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A Good Lawyer's Wife
바람난 가족
2003 106 min South Korea 18+
★6.5
Drama, Crime
Director: Im Sang-soo
Trailers
Description
A woman, married and with a child but becoming increasingly distant from her husband who is already cheating on her, reluctantly enters a secret relationship with her neighbor, a teenage boy.
Starring
Moon So-ri
Actor
Hwang Jung-min
Actor
Youn Yuh-jung
Actor
Awards
Venice Film Festival 2003
— Golden Lion
Key opinion
The film offers a provocative and cold examination of familial dysfunction and societal double standards in Korea. While some praise its sharp satirical tone and departure from traditional melodrama, others find the characters' emotional detachment and mechanical behaviors alienating.
| Culture | The film effectively challenges traditional patriarchal norms by juxtaposing a wife's cathartic exploration of agency against the shallow illusions of her husband. | |
| Direction | Director Im Sang-soo replaces conventional sentimental melodrama with a cold, realist aesthetic that highlights marital hypocrisy. | |
| Acting | The characters exhibit an unsettling, mechanical detachment that leaves their internal lives and motivations feeling intentionally hollow. | |
| Screenplay | The narrative oscillates between serious family drama and satirical excess, leading to disagreement over whether the tone is insightful or disjointed. |