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A South Korean movie produced in 2017, it was completed in the first half of 2017 and was screened at the Busan International Film Festival. However, despite this, domestic theaters refused to release it, causing the film to float for nearly a year before it was finally released in 2018.
The movie "Park Hwayoung" is the directorial debut of Lee Hwan. It's an expansion of his second short film, "Home," with the actress Kim Ga-hee reprising her role from "Home" as the protagonist in "Park Hwayoung."
Name: Park Hwayoung
Age: 18
Occupation: High school student
Family: Non-existent but exists
Friends: Existing but non-existent
Those gathered at Hwayoung's house eat ramen every day, smoke cigarettes, and call Hwayoung "mom" as they're of the same age. Hwayoung, perhaps due to the scars of being abandoned by her mother, exhibits a peculiar attachment to her friends, always expressing how they would be lost without her. However, her friends do not reciprocate positively, instead treating her like a fool and belittling her. Among her friends, she particularly looks after Mijeong, who is in turn exploited by her, manipulating Hwayoung's feelings and using her the most maliciously among their group.
When Sejin, another runaway girl, comes to Hwayoung's house, initially treated well, she begins to show signs of having a relationship with Yeongjae, who openly has a girlfriend. Hwayoung warns her not to get involved with Yeongjae, but she disregards this, even provoking Hwayoung by apologizing to Yeongjae, causing a confrontation where Hwayoung grabs her by the hair and kicks her in the stomach. Hwayoung then warns Yeongjae not to touch her friends and storms off, leaving Sejin lying on the ground.
Later, when Mijeong posts a photo of herself with Hwayoung on Facebook, Yeongjae, upon seeing it, assaults Mijeong. Hwayoung, frightened, initially runs away but ultimately returns, unable to abandon Mijeong. She is dragged by her hair by Yeongjae to his house, struggling and resisting all the way. Forced into a fight between Yeongjae and Mijeong, Hwayoung hesitates but eventually hits Mijeong after she slaps her. After hitting Mijeong several times, Hwayoung is kicked by Yeongjae and then subjected to group violence, taken to a bathroom, tortured, and left alone with Mijeong.
Later, Hwayoung confronts Yeongjae in a parking lot, expressing her anger and disappointment at how he could do this to her. However, Yeongjae runs away, leaving Mijeong to tell Hwayoung to take responsibility in a commanding tone, not as a request. With a sad expression, Hwayoung looks at Mijeong and then, with a big smile, tells her to leave quickly, pretending not to understand when asked if she still calls herself "mom." After being released from prison, Hwayoung works at a restaurant to earn a living, and though she no longer threatens her mother with a knife when she asks for money, she continues to be treated like a fool by the runaway youths she shelters, maintaining her role as their "mom" until the end.
The movie concludes with Hwayoung laughing and saying, "You would've been lost without me," until the very end.
The movie "Park Hwayoung" was produced in 2017 but released in 2018, depicting the life of a runaway girl in South Korea in a hyper- realistic manner. It boasts intense scenes and is centered around the relationships and events involving Park Hwayoung and those around her. Park Hwayoung, a high school student, is treated like a pushover by her friends but exhibits an unusual attachment to them. One of the key characters, her friend Eun Mijeong, a nameless entertainer, also plays a significant role.
The film realistically portrays the lives of runaway girls, featuring scenes of violence and profanity that divide opinions among viewers. However, the director has described it as a hyper-realistic work, claiming it accurately depicts the realities faced by runaway girls. Furthermore, the absence of idealization or softening of the surrounding characters, but rather a blatant portrayal of their reality, serves to convey a social message without glorifying or romanticizing their situations.
While there are hardly any gory scenes, the movie boasts a very intense atmosphere. There are no descriptions of severed limbs or blood flowing profusely like in typical movies, but the violence between characters and the portrayal of relationships in the film are so realistic that opinions are divided. Some viewers even complained that the intensity was too uncomfortable, wondering just how extreme it had to be to cause such a stir.
The director himself described it as a "hyper-realistic film," portraying the reality of runaway youths very realistically. The depiction of the hierarchy among the delinquent teenagers in the film is so vividly portrayed that one might wonder if there has ever been a Korean movie that depicted it so clearly. While opinions may differ on the level of violence and profanity in the film, there is unanimous agreement that the director paid great attention to realistic portrayal. Comments on YouTube review videos related to the film often testify to the realism of the portrayal of runaway youths or those claiming to be runaway youths.
However, due to these reasons, opinions about the film itself are polarized. While the quality is excellent, the constant profanity and violence make it difficult to watch, which is the main criticism. Overall, many compare it to films like "Dogville," "The Crucible," and "Dream of a Warrior." Perhaps because these films share similar themes, such comparisons are often made. Of course, in terms of intensity, "Park Hwayoung" is much stronger. Think of it as the dung beetle version of "The Crucible."