MovieChat Forums > Biyeolhan geori (2006) Discussion > Who really betrayed who? (major spoiler)

Who really betrayed who? (major spoiler)

posted 16 years ago by pairofdox
5 replies | jump to latest

At first I thought that the big boss was the real mastermind behind it all. Because in that scene with Byung-du and his boss in the limo, didn't Byung-du tell his boss that he was gonna kill Min-ho off and then fled the country? So knowing that, how can the boss was not surprised and still drinking with Min in the end? Did the boss murder Byung so that he didn't have to give him his share? Or was he threatened by what Byung said in the limo "give me my share so that just in case I get caught, I won't give up your name". Either way.

I think a more likely scenario though is that, the real culprit being Byung's own lieutenant Jong-su. I think he kidnapped Min and made him snitch out to the cop -- that scene with him burying Min made audience presume that he was going to kill Min off, but then all of a sudden he lets him go and the only clue we get is from his line to Min "now that we are in the same boat". In short, Min was forced to snitch on Byung by Byung's own man -- Jong set Byung up. But why? One obvious motive is of course so he could take over Byung's position, but he could've done that anyway without killing Byung since Byung was already on the run. So did he do it to make sure that Byung wouldn't find out later? Perhaps. That motive might sound a little forced but on a thematic level, this fits perfectily.

The movie's "final twist" can be seem as parallel to what Byung did to his former boss Sang-chul earlier. Although we the audience know that Sang was indeed plotting against Byung, Byung couldn't have possibily known for certain despite that his suspicion was warranted; but Byung killed Sang anyway.

The same could be said about his own righthand man then. It didn't really matter whether Sang was plotting against Byung or not, Byung suspected as such and killed him for it; Now we the audience know that Byung really didn't plot against Jong, but Jong might've suspected just as much and adding that to his own ambition, he makes the deal with the big boss and sets Byung up.

All this goes towards the final scene where in flashback, Byung saids to Min, "make a film with real gangster spirit"; and thus the point of film, it's a life of constant mistrust and disloyalty.

ps. A 3rd possibility is that Min just snitched on his own accord, as he was freaked out by Jong's torture. I'd dismiss that theory because 1. wouldn't the cop go after Jong as well then? 2. I find it hard to believe that Jong did all that torture just to give Min a warning; and that when Min did snitch, no harm came to him at all.

pps. I might've missed it, but can anyone tell me if Byung's family got any shares at all that the Big Boss had promised in the end?

I AM... BORED!

[–] ar-pi 16 years ago

I think somewhere along your lines.

imo Jong-su probably thought that Byung-du "got soft" (so they say in the gangster world) or he just wanted to take his place.

And also prolly the big boss and Jong-su had some kind of agreement.
I never thought that the big boss would liked the director dead since his daughter was in his movie and he could control him. Eventually it all worked nicely for him.

So its Jong-su and the big boss.

p.s.

mf's!!!

[–] kennethpitchford 15 years ago

Hmm. I see it a bit differently. There's that early scene just after Min's torture by Jong. Min is sitting alone and says nothing, but something dawns in his mind at that point. It obviously must be that he is in danger so long as Jong is not mollified. So he seeks out Jong offscreen and they plot Byung's fall. Perhaps Min didn't foresee that this necessarily meant Byung's murder, but too bad. Jong was already disgruntled by Byung's refusal to punish Min. How satisfying to do a 180 and take out Byung rather than Min. No to your question, "Did Byung's family get their share? Don't be silly or naive. They lost everything. But Byung lost his life as well - the price in the gangster world for ever "going soft" (forbidding a friend's punishment) even for a minute. Who benefits from the way things work out? Min and Byung. Enough said. This makes Byung's remark to Min bitterly ironic - "Make a film with a real gangster spirit." What's the point of that if it doesn't involve betraying a friend?
==posted by KP

[–] genghistran 15 years ago

I don't think you really understand the "gangster mindset" as you seem to think. Granted, I'm not a gangster so obviously I don't either, but your explanation is just a little too movie-esque.

A major theme in the movie is the concept of family, both that of the house and the family that the gang represented together. Byung's first boss said something along the lines of "If you think you're being treated badly, just say so." Granted, he had ulterior motives but as a family, that's how it should be. You can see throughout the movie that Byung doesn't exactly treat Jong as his equal; Jong is often bullied by Byung. The final straw was when Jong offered to kill Min for the "family" if Byung couldn't do it because it was his friend. I don't think the "going soft" concept applies here, because Jong recognized the connection between Byung and Min could've complicated things.

Byung attacks Jong (not the first time) which drives him over the edge. Byung felt wronged by his first boss and Jong felt wronged by Byung, so it goes full circle. Now the last quote is a little ambiguous as to what it meant, but honestly I don't think "betrayal is something that's necessary" is the message as you say. If you really listened to the message Byung preaches throughout the movie, it's that the gang is a family, meaning there should be NO betrayal. So, "Make a film with a real gangster spirit." means to make it seem like a real family, which is fitting for a closing quote as he actually did and at the same time did not. Ultimately, Min's movie is true to the gangster spirit (it's based on things Byung actually did) but also untrue to the gangster spirit (betrayed the trust of Byung).

[–] Jiwoongb 14 years ago

i just wanna say, jong probably felt no anger from the antagonizing byung did. he didnt do it for no reason, he did it because he was threatening his friend. thats just how it is in korea, you must respect those above you and beatings are very common even in the household so in a gang its much more expected and severe. byung seems like he was a more merciful leader than many others could have been.

[–] akaiken 13 years ago

Interesting, I hadn't considered the possibility that his lieutenant had coerced the director into squealing on him. It's very likely that that's what happened considering the ending. I think that even if he had taken it upon himself to get the main character out of the way the lieutenant would have been in cahoots with the big boss, he wouldn't have made a move like that if he wasn't assured of having a job after all was said and done.

Originally I has thought that the director was scared by the lieutenant's tactics and snitched, but your argument has me thinking.

As for the money he should have inherited for his family, in the end it doesn't really matter, his mother died soon after he did, and it was mostly for her sake that he needed it. His brother and sister are more than capable of making a living for themselves.