I dont think this movie ends on a happy note. Everybody is ashamed about something. There is guilt everywhere. Nobody, apologizes for their actions or words. Nobody really changes. Its hard to change when all these values have been hammered to your brain. It s hard to change when you've been mistreated all your life. What I find great about his movie, among many things is this... correct me if im wrong or if you differ... all throughout the movie it seems people will change their views toward something, but you quickly hear them say or do something that shows that they really dont/wont. There is a lot of manipulating. You would think that Ryu will change, or the mom, but in the end the only person that shows some signs of actually turning around their views about what he has done is grandpa in the end of the film. The character you would think will be impossible to do it. The man that represents the old generation with all these traditional values that many, including his son, and the younger generation dont agree with. Ryu doesnt chamge his views. Its his dad after that incident where he doesnt help the neighbor even though he is a doctor and it should be his duty. He didnt step up. I think this is when he realized how bad he has been. His own dead son, gave up his life. He died to save someone else. And he couldnt even walk across the street to help someone. He felt less than his son. How would his dead son feel if he could see that his dad could help the neighbor. He realizes what a terrible person his been, especially with his family. Everyone makes mistakes, everyone is human. He was reminded earlier by the song his wife makes the listen, of a mistake he made when he cheated on his wife years before. Anyway, the ambulance incident happens and this is when he goes to the beach again. It seems to me it was probably hard for him to go near the water. It was that same water that killed his son, it should be extremely painful for him to go to the beach. We see that earlier when he stops by the highway thats between him and the water, he looks at it and turns around. In my head i dont think he has ever been to the beach since his son died. In the end he finally did. It is pretty clear that he has turned around. He then invites his son and the kid to go to a soccer match. He wants to be close again. He wants to spend time again with them. He want to give them what he has never been able to, cause he also wants it in the end... a son, his only son that he never paid attention to, and his grand kid. Then he says "They will be back for New Years"... he wants them back, wants more time with them. But of course its to late. People are always late just like Ryu says right after that. Ryu doesnt even wanna stay the night if he goes back.
Anyway...im not the best writer and this is to long now. The film was beautiful... its sad that there arent many posts about the movie here.
Any takes on the ending?
reply
share
15 years ago
[deleted]
caosonico
15 years ago
someone replied!! Anyway... he might have acted concerned cause its a human thing to do. He realized it was worse than what he originally thought over the phone. Its his neighbor and patient, shouldnt he be concerned? The cheating part... with some much going on and the subtitle thing, its easy to miss stuff or misinterpret. I think she said she went and bought that record wright after she went to womans apt, a friend maybe, and heard him singing the love song. Which she said it was karaoke. She might really have thought it was karaoke, or it was her way of saying that she knew about the cheating... by beating around the bush and being unclear. Then he doesnt say anything and starts crying. He realizes hes human, everyone makes mistakes, like his son said earlier. I read this scene like that... that he was singing a love song to some other woman that day. Maybe im wrong, i would love for more people to come to this bulletin and give their thoughts.
reply
share
15 years ago
[deleted]
meg9justin
15 years ago
The ambulance scene was very moving, I thought. Early in the film, you see that he still has a connection to his former patients, so much so that he is called as soon as the woman is experiencing problems. (That patient even says something in the early scene about how she wants him to tend to her in her last moments; he makes a joke and says something like she has plenty of time.) But the interesting thing is that when he is called to tend to her, he backs away from the responsibility. He says there's nothing he can do and that she should call for an ambulance. Then, of course, he goes out there to try to do something and the paramedics ignore him. I think the scene perfectly captures this in-between state he's in. He still wants to be important and hold onto his profession, but some part of him recognizes that he's no longer capable of giving the best treatment.
About the record: She buys it after she hears him singing the song to his lover (with whom he's cheating on her). It's such a subtle--and manipulative?--move to suddenly pull that record out and play it. She doesn't confront him directly at first, just lets him know that *she* knows in this little way.
I love the film, too, and I'm glad others do as well!
reply
share
CitrusWithFuschiaTrim
14 years ago
Good post. Now that I rhink of it, those two scenes with the grandfather may be the ones I found most affecting. One can sense that his understanding of his own life has been abruptly changed and he's utterly dumbfounded.
On the other hand, the "I remember the wrestler's name" scene on the bus seemed to me like one of the few slightly cloying moments in the film.
_____
I suppose on a clear day you can see the class struggle from here.
reply
share
Philo D.
14 years ago
*Nobody apologizes for their actions*
except the fat kid, who has to come once a year and apologize for living
reply
share
urania_fic
13 years ago
I dont think this movie ends on a happy note. Everybody is ashamed about something. There is guilt everywhere. Nobody, apologizes for their actions or words. Nobody really changes. Its hard to change when all these values have been hammered to your brain. It s hard to change when you've been mistreated all your life. What I find great about his movie, among many things is this... correct me if im wrong or if you differ... all throughout the movie it seems people will change their views toward something, but you quickly hear them say or do something that shows that they really dont/wont. There is a lot of manipulating. You would think that Ryu will change, or the mom, but in the end the only person that shows some signs of actually turning around their views about what he has done is grandpa in the end of the film. The character you would think will be impossible to do it. The man that represents the old generation with all these traditional values that many, including his son, and the younger generation dont agree with. Ryu doesnt chamge his views. Its his dad after that incident where he doesnt help the neighbor even though he is a doctor and it should be his duty. He didnt step up. I think this is when he realized how bad he has been. His own dead son, gave up his life. He died to save someone else. And he couldnt even walk across the street to help someone. He felt less than his son. How would his dead son feel if he could see that his dad could help the neighbor. He realizes what a terrible person his been, especially with his family. Everyone makes mistakes, everyone is human. He was reminded earlier by the song his wife makes the listen, of a mistake he made when he cheated on his wife years before. Anyway, the ambulance incident happens and this is when he goes to the beach again. It seems to me it was probably hard for him to go near the water. It was that same water that killed his son, it should be extremely painful for him to go to the beach. We see that earlier when he stops by the highway thats between him and the water, he looks at it and turns around. In my head i dont think he has ever been to the beach since his son died. In the end he finally did. It is pretty clear that he has turned around. He then invites his son and the kid to go to a soccer match. He wants to be close again. He wants to spend time again with them. He want to give them what he has never been able to, cause he also wants it in the end... a son, his only son that he never paid attention to, and his grand kid. Then he says "They will be back for New Years"... he wants them back, wants more time with them. But of course its to late. People are always late just like Ryu says right after that. Ryu doesnt even wanna stay the night if he goes back.
Anyway...im not the best writer and this is to long now. The film was beautiful... its sad that there arent many posts about the movie here.
Nearly two years later but I appreciated this post very much. I only just caught a repeat of this film for the first time and I thought it was terrific. It's a genuine masterpiece. Your post made me go back and look at quite a few things I had missed especially the gransfather's walk at the beginning of the film and the progress he makes at the end. Great post.
reply
share