Review of Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance (2002) by Margaux D — 08 May 2009

I really don't know how to feel about this movie. It's not terrible, but it definitely isn't great. It especially isn't a great revenge film. You would think with this genre, there would be more "revenge-seeking" taking place. With this film, however, there were more scenes that either served no purpose or made no sense, lasted longer than necessary, or were just composed of complete silence. Park Chan-wook left me in awe with Oldboy, the second film in his revenge trilogy (with Mr. Vengeance being the first). With this, I was slightly bored, frustrated and disappointed.

EDIT: After watching this film for the second time, I am more able to understand a lot of the aesthetic and directorial choices (such as the long takes with no dialogue). But in the end, it is still sometimes frustrating to watch, and still pales in comparison (in every sense) to Oldboy and Lady Vengeance, the other two films that comprise of Park Chan-wook's revenge trilogy.