3-Iron, directed by Kim Ki-Duk, ends with a title proclaiming that sometimes reality and fantasy are indistinguishable. The film's title refers to one of the clubs used in golf that plays a significant role in the film. Tae-Suk (played by Jae Hee), a college student with a motorcycle, evidently has nothing to do during summer vacation but amuse himself by posting fliers about a restaurant on the doors of houses and apartments and then return the following day or evening to see which residences are unoccupied. He next uses the tools of the burglary trade to gain entry, plays a message tape to be sure that the residents are out of town, makes himself at home, tidies up, eats food left in the refrigerator, and sleeps over. Similar to Monsieur Hulot in Mr. Hulot's Holiday (1954), Tae-Suk never talks; his only other eccentricity is a compulsion to practice his swing on the 3-iron. Although he hopes not to meet the residents, he inevitably runs into the unexpected. In one case, Sun-Hwa, a wife (played by Lee Seung-Yeon) who has been beaten by her now-absent husband, is home; after observing his arrival awhile, she decides to play along. Soon her husband, Min-Kyu (played by Kwon Hyuk-Ho), returns; angry and belligerent that she is not eager to forgive him for his previous rough treatment, he against begins to slap her around, whereupon Tae-Suk hits golfballs with 3-iron shots into his body. She then joins Tae-Suk in his escapades, the worst of which involve getting slugged by a boxer, accidentally killing a passenger in a car when he hits a ball into its windshield, and finding a dead man in a pool of blood. In the latter case, the dead man's son arrives, summons the police, and the gypsy duo are arrested and questioned. Both maintain silence during interrogation, and the investigation ultimately clears them of any serious wrongdoing. However, Sun-Hwa matches a description for a missing person, and her husband collects her at the police station. Since the only crime is civil trespass, the police interrogator decides that Tae-Suk's punishment is to be dumped, handcuffed and legcuffed, on a road under a bridge across the Han River, so that Min-Kyu can swing the 3-iron at him. Afterward, the interrogator unlocks the handcuffs and legcuffs, whereupon Tae-Suk starts to strangle him. He is then arrested and jailed for the crime of assault. Antics in prison prove that Tae-Suk is quite a prankster, despite a prison warden's brutality, but Tae-Suk is released after a short sentence. Accordingly, he returns to some of the same places where he overnighted so that he can perpetrate more pranks; in addition, the prison warden suffers from his 3-iron revenge. Sun-Hwa, of course, expectantly awaits Tae-Suk's release, and there is a happy ending when Tae-Suk appears to carry out the best prank of all; filmviewers will certainly want to believe that the prank is real rather than imaginary. However, 3-Iron provides a fascinating window into life in Korea. In addition to focusing on police and prison brutality, the cinematography reveals how residents of Seoul live, with special attention to those who are rich or famous. In contrast with the cruelty portrayed by some husbands and the lecherousness of a single man in relation to women, Tae-Suk is gentle and pleasant though strong. What 3-Iron demonstrates is that Korean women fantasize for a Tae-Suk, who serves as a cinematic role model for a Korean society that might no longer be so unabashedly male dominant. MH
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