3-Iron
Most of "3-Iron's" twists and turns are welcome, but after about an hour you sort of wish things would take a more expected, conventional turn.In fact, as odd and entrancing as this drama-fantasy can be at times, it has the feel of a film where the director is simply trying too hard to make something different. As a result, it seems too unreal; the emotional core is a little hollow.
It's also hard to completely warm up to a film that centers on a home-invader as its main character. He's Tae-suk (Jae Hee), a young drifter who sneaks into unoccupied homes and lives there for brief periods of time. (On the plus side, he sometimes cleans up the places and fixes some broken appliances and devices.)
However, as clever and careful as he usually is, Tae-suk does make the mistake of entering a house that's occupied. Unbeknownst to him, abused wife Sun-hwa (Lee Seung-yeon) has been watching him, trying to decide whether she should call the authorities.
But before she can, her husband (Kwon Hyuk-ho) returns. Rather than use the distraction to get away, Tae-suk gets involved — bludgeoning the bullying husband in a rather unusual fashion (with golf drives). And to Tae-suk's surprise, the grateful Sun-hwa runs away with him, helping him find new temporary "homes" and helping with his "chores."
The quirkiness does get a little tiresome, even though director Kim Ki-duk and cinematographer Jang Seung-beck are able to capture some eerily beautiful images (particularly those involving Tae-suk's obsession with artwork and photography).
"3-Iron" is rated R for a couple of strong scenes of violence (a golf club assault and police beatings), occasional use of strong sexual profanity, glimpses of nude photos and artwork, some brief sexual contact, and brief gore. Running time: 87 minutes.
E-MAIL: jeff@desnews.com