Quartile rating: 7.5/10 · 1 rating
A loan shark is forced to reconsider his violent lifestyle after the arrival of a mysterious woman claiming to be his long-lost mother.
Kim Ki-duk's Pieta is a singularly disturbing and morally complex film that earns its notoriety. The plot is a masterclass in slow-burn revelation, with a twist that recontextualizes everything and lands with devastating force, making it one of the more memorable revenge narratives in recent Korean cinema. The acting is committed and raw, particularly from Jo Min-su, though not universally exceptional. Cinematography is functional and gritty — appropriate to the Cheonggyecheon industrial setting — but not strikingly inventive. Novelty is high: the film's specific blend of Oedipal horror, economic critique, and Catholic iconography (the Pietà motif) gives it a voice that is unmistakably Kim Ki-duk's and unlike almost anything else. The ending is a genuine gut-punch, one of the director's finest and most earned conclusions, cold and logical in its cruelty.