[Limelight] The Fox Breaks the Tiger's Waist... Connecting with Experience

Movie 'Pamyoo' Veteran Pungsu Master Kim Sang-deok Role by Choi Min-sik
Director Jang Jae-hyun's Bold Attempt to Cut the Story Midway
Sealing Uneasy Seams with the True Posture of a Pungsu Master
Emotional Continuity from Works like 'Myeongryang' and 'Daeho'

Director Jang Jae-hyun's film 'Pamyo' digs into 악지 (Eokji, "evil land") twice on a grand scale. The lighting methods differ greatly. The first half builds tension and fear through events that uncover the reality of sympathetic resonance. Spirits are revealed indirectly, reflected in glass windows or seen only as silhouettes.

In the second half, spirits appear directly. The figure is an 'Onimusha,' a fierce and brave warrior, making the film take on a stronger creature feature tone (works featuring monsters that eat or kill humans). The narrative also becomes more explanatory, mentioning events from 500 years ago and revealing exorcism methods through narration.

Director Jang Jae-hyun stated, "I wanted to cut the story in the middle, like the line 'The fox cuts the tiger's waist.'" He added, "The first half is a smokescreen closely related to the second half. The structure of hiding the reality until later seemed to fit the theme."

There was a reliable anchor: veteran actor Choi Min-sik's gravitas. Without much backstory, he portrays Kim Sang-deok, a feng shui master with 40 years of experience. His demeanor, such as tasting and immediately spitting out the soil of the 악지, exudes the aura of a master. True to his role as a 지관 (geomancer), all the land's energy is conveyed through his eyes. Thus, his spoken words are firm and cold: "This is an unheard-of 음택 (burial site). If you meddle carelessly, from the geomancer to the workers, everyone will face a total disaster. This is 악지 among 악지."

Choi Min-sik said, "He is someone who has spent his life observing nature, the foundation of feng shui." He explained, "Feng shui masters survey mountains nationwide, studying the shape of the land and the texture of the soil. I thought he must have developed a habit of deeply observing things. He probably never overlooked even a single tree or blade of grass, as well as the overall landscape. He needed eyes that accept with the heart."

This aligns with the context in the book 'Taking Good Care of Ancestors Ensures Descendants' Prosperity (2007),' co-written by Lee Seok-jeong, Park Chae-yang, and Choi Ju-dae, which describes feng shui masters. "A person with eyes that can accept the land or mountains with the heart can find a 명당 (auspicious site) like a mother's embrace. There is no need to forcibly involve feng shui logic or theory. (Omitted) They look at the land relying on pure human instinct. There is inevitably a heart that seeks warmth like a mother's embrace. One just needs to follow that."

The problem lies in the middle where the story breaks. Kim Sang-deok continues to investigate the resolved first half incident. The trigger is the illness of a worker who participated in the exhumation. Returning to the 악지, he confirms the presence of the Japanese ghost Nure-onna (a Japanese snake yokai with a woman's head) and a secret burial (a coffin secretly buried in another's grave). The former can be dealt with by cremation, and the latter does not necessarily require intervention. However, Kim Sang-deok says, "I can't just leave this person here," and seeks help from shaman Lee Hwa-rim (Kim Go-eun), mortician Go Young-geun (Yoo Hae-jin), and Buddhist priest Yoon Bong-gil (Lee Do-hyun).

His reckless approach does not waver even after confirming that the oni from another grave harmed humans and pigs and turned into a fireball. Kim Sang-deok, looking at a photo of Goseong's mountain landscape described as the "spine of the Korean Peninsula" in the hospital where Yoon Bong-gil is admitted, becomes convinced that the oni is a spirit guarding the iron needle. Knowing that the oni mercilessly kills even those without grudges, he climbs the mountain with a pickaxe?not to heal the injured Yoon Bong-gil, but to protect the land where descendants will live.

There are hardly any scenes in the first half dealing with such grand thoughts. Instead, scenes like sensing the smell of money from ghosts make one suspect corruption. Choi Min-sik overcomes the awkward transitions with the feng shui master's fundamental attitude: love for our land and the prosperity of descendants. He revealed, "I kept repeating in my mind the setting that Kim Sang-deok's daughter, who is about to get married, is carrying a grandchild in her womb."

"In the scene where Kim Sang-deok refuses the exhumation because it's 악지, Lee Hwa-rim angrily says, 'No, the child is sick, isn't it?' At that moment, I thought he must have thought of the unborn grandchild. I saw that memory connecting to the second half. Of course, he must have been afraid. I wouldn't be able to climb such a mountain (laughs). But Kim Sang-deok is a feng shui master. Though he has dealt mostly with the wealthy over 40 years, the basic thought is that this is the land my grandchild will step on. The conscience that cannot leave evil things unattended?that is the basic duty of a feng shui master."

The pure-hearted love he embodies includes not only the land but also all the people who must live relying on it. Choi Min-sik has already shown this in various forms in many films. In 'The Admiral: Roaring Currents (2014),' he comforted soldiers who lost their fighting spirit through fierce battles and fearful civilians. In 'The Tiger (2015),' he shared fate with the last tiger of Joseon, called the mountain lord of Jirisan. In 'The Battle of Bongodong (2019),' he scattered the remains of independence fighters blown by the wind across the Korean Peninsula, pledging to rebuild the homeland. 'Pamyo' is a continuation of the love and spirit cultivated through these works.

"Director Jang Jae-hyun's words about wanting to heal the trauma of our land resonated deeply with me. Whether feng shui and shamanism are real or not is not important. The core is the heart. The grandmother who loves me is both religion and faith. I hope many people enjoy our culture and customs with an open mind, thinking about the love and spirit contained within..."