Crying Fist

Kang Tae-sik was once a medal-winning boxer. Now he stands in the street and lets people hit him for money; anyone wanting to unload their anger takes a turn. Sang-hwan is nineteen, in a juvenile facility, and learning to box there. Their two stories never meet across the film. The subject is not boxing but both men having only one way to earn forgiveness. Tae-sik owes it to his son, Sang-hwan to his grandmother; each treats winning as a form of apology. The film vindicates neither. The form is built on parallel cutting and holds it to the end. The characters meet only in the final of an amateur tournament, and by the time that arrives the viewer knows them both; all of the film's force comes from not knowing whom to support. The casting is interesting. Ryoo Seung-wan directs and his own brother, Ryoo Seung-bum, plays the young boxer; Choi Min-sik took the other role in the period straight after Oldboy and went somewhere physically entirely different. Im Won-hee is in the cast. Who it is for: viewers who like Korean drama and the emotional weight of sports films. Who it is not for: anyone who wants a clear winner; the ending is painful on purpose.