Mi-sseu-baek

Brutally simple child-abuse drama, with the usual South Korean penchant for sadism I've come to know pretty well by now. Which is to say I entered expecting blood, so unpleasant moments are present, but also no surprises in this regard. What surprised me is how Lee Ji-Won keeps it all tight and focused. Instead of relying on long, pointless moments of gratuitous violence and desperation, Miss Baek shows what's enough, and maybe just a little more, to understand lives forever ruined by a horrible childhood. Thus a tale of compassion and revenge becomes an attempt at reconciliation with one's own past and memories. Amidst the horror, tenderness is abundant, and that's when Miss Baek works better for me. The final shot is nothing less than heartbreaking.