'Mr. Vengeance' Park Chan-wook expands his cinematic reach

By Shin Hae-in
SEOUL, May 25 (Yonhap) -- South Korean director Park Chan-wook is considered one
of the top auteurs of the country, noted for his talent in creating dark noir
films with unique, often brutal, themes.

Grabbing the juror's award at the Cannes film fest with his newest release
"Thirst," Park has now become the winner of three major international film
awards, including the Cannes Grand Jury Prize with "Oldboy" and the new
perspectives award at the Berlin film fest with "I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK."
Born in 1963 in Seoul, he studied philosophy at Seoul's Sogang University,
developing a love for movies at a filmmaking club on campus and publishing a
number of articles on contemporary cinema.
Debuting with "The Moon Is... the Sun's Dream" in 1992, Park received little
attention from the public and film critics alike until his third feature "Joint
Security Area" in 2000.
Backed by the commercial and critical success of the film featuring the
companionship shared between South and North Korean soldiers, Park began to
create his so-called "revenge trilogy" -- "Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance (2002),"
"Oldboy (2003)" and "Sympathy for Lady Vengeance (2005)."
Despite the violence in his films, Park is regarded as one of the most popular
filmmakers in Korea, with three of his last five feature films -- "Joint Security
Area," "Oldboy" and "Sympathy for Lady Vengeance" -- drawing audiences of over 3
million. One million viewers is considered the yardstick for box office success
in South Korea.
A member of the official jury section at the 63rd Venice International Film
Festival in 2006, Park says he was influenced by Alfred Hitchcock, Robert
Aldrich, Shakespeare and Kafka.
His politics are decidedly center-left and he is affiliated with the progressive
Democratic Labor Party.
hayney@yna.co.kr
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