Address Unknown

‘This film is not about historic facts, but about the demise of the soul of the Korean people. We shall have to try and find this soul again,’ in the words of this film’s director Kim KiDuk. The Korean War (19501953) left massive scars on the country. In Address Unknown, set in seventies Korea, the emotionally and physically battered inhabitants of the village of Pyongtaek are still reminded of this painful time by the American army base that dominates the area.Pan EunJin had an affair with an American soldier and has a son to remind her of it: ChangGuk. She continues to write letters to the American, but they get returned to sender unopened. Despite her unrequited love, the woman has an affair with the village dog butcher. Her son works for this brute. ChangGuk is disgusted by his mother’s behaviour, an irritation that eventually has gruesome consequences. JiHum is in love with a girl with a mutilated eye, but he is too shy to approach her. The girl in turn is too damaged to have a normal relationship and allows her dog to satisfy her needs until she becomes embroiled in a difficult relationship with an American who takes LSD. An outburst of violence brings all conflicts to an end.Both in its ominous beauty and in its violence, the film is comparable with its predecessor The Isle. Not to be recommended for the squeamish.