Life of Hae-oak

Personally, it felt like the Sinlim-dong version of *Whiplash*. It seems calm, but throughout the movie, you are swept away by various emotions like psychological pressure, disgust, fear, despair, and empathy. It's a film with a strong pull. Even after it ends, the process of revisiting the various familiar or innovative image references planted throughout the film is quite enjoyable. I look forward to the next work.

The conversation with the rude customer at the meat restaurant is integrated into the protagonist's situation, making the film immersive. Reflecting on the words used in that conversation brings to mind both the pigs trapped in the first scene and Hyeok herself. Unlike the mother's belief that hard work never betrays, the success of those who succeed through strange methods only makes Hyeok feel more miserable, causing me to reflect on my own life's efforts. It's been a while since I've encountered a movie worth revisiting.

The tension between the protagonist and her mother is the emotional crux of the film. The mother's unwavering belief in her daughter's potential and the daughter's internalized pressure to meet those expectations create a dynamic that is both relatable and heartbreaking. The film captures this familial pressure with incredible nuance, highlighting the complexities of love and expectation. As the protagonist struggles to meet her mother's high hopes, the emotional toll becomes increasingly evident. The mother's well-intentioned words of encouragement begin to feel like shackles around the protagonist's neck, tightening with each failure. What makes this dynamic so compelling is the realism with which it is portrayed; there are no villains here, just a family caught in the web of societal pressures. The film also delves into the larger theme of how generational expectations can create rifts between parents and children. The burden of living up to one's family's dreams can be overwhelming, and the film does a masterful job of showing the emotional weight that this carries. It's a poignant and thought-provoking examination of family, love, and the crushing burden of expectation.

First, increase the number of screenings, please! This film is so meticulously detailed it could be called "Park-tailed" (Park Tale). It may seem like a typical story about a bar exam student, but it's far from being ordinary or typical. There are no scary scenes, yet in this horror/thriller film, when you find hope, you might feel comforted through *Hyeok*! Of course, this isn't a friendly way to provide comfort if you're looking for it!

Is it because of Hyeok or thanks to Hyeok? Escape is based on intelligence. I await the day when Park Jeong-hwan, the director who made us feel like our home is hell, becomes a more standard figure.

We are weaker than we think and less clever than we think. Can ordinary people maintain their dignity, like the captain who stays on the sinking Titanic until the end, or the orchestra that plays until the very last moment? For most people, the best they can do is get on a lifeboat.

Infusing hope can sometimes be psychological torture. The clearest example of this is in this exam thriller. - The scene of a small compact car climbing a snow-covered hill was the best metaphor for the youth of this era.

It's been a year since the exam ended, but I still haven't taken down the post-it note from my window. When asked if I cried after the results, I said I was just glad I didn't have to tell my mother I'd failed. So many of the images I'd envisioned for myself appeared in the movie.

The genre is definitely horror. A name hidden under desire.

Civil service exams and casinos are always fair. The news only ever shows those who have succeeded, never revealing the ugly truths behind most cases.

On top of the victims' corpses created by greed, again. The movie begins by showing a pigsty. Pigs. Bar exam students. A pigsty boarding house. Premium Korean pork. This is one of the best metaphors in recent movies. The view outside the window, which the mother first saw when she visited the house, was likely filled with hope for her daughter's future, a future that would also serve as a source of pride in her old age. That's why she kept giving her all, even as it drained her. The real estate agent who showed the house, along with others, is a character who deceives people for his own gain. He now drives a foreign car. The chaotic scene shown at the end of the epilogue calls to mind the initial confusion, creating a wonderful full-circle moment. The scene feels like a lair and a mass grave for the previous pigs. After watching the movie, the biggest question that lingers is, "What did Rael see in the fridge?" Considering that the fridge is where pork-pig corpses-are stored, the inside of the fridge likely mirrors the chaos at the beginning and end of the movie. The young boss emphasizes persistence and not giving up, but in reality, his actions are empty, hoping for luck. His behavior overlaps with that of Rael's mother. Thus, Rael's outburst towards the boss is also meant for her mother.