May 1, 2005

"3-Iron" - Korean, Kim Ki-Duk

Korean director Kim Ki-Duk, who directed last year's Buddhist monk import "Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter ... Spring" (here's my review), is back with another near-silent parable.

"3-Iron" appears to be inspired by the Rita Rudner (?) joke about how the law shouldn't declare people "criminally insane" for breaking into your house and raping and killing you. No, "criminally insane" should be reserved for the ones who break into your house and do your laundry. In "3-Iron," a young man, who bears a distracting resemblance to Speed Racer, breaks into empty homes in Seoul, does the laundry, fixes any appliances on the blink, then leaves. In one house he finds an abused wife. When her nasty husband comes home and tries to rough her up some more, the hero pelts him with golf balls driven with the hubby's own Callaway Steelhead 3-iron.

Is he a criminal? A saint? A performance artist? A ghost? A golfer?

I have no idea what it all means, but it's clever, cute, and short.


My published articles are archived at iSteve.com -- Steve Sailer

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