A Decaying Tooth

A decaying tooth, the agonizing pain of a core nerve rotting from the inside of your mouth, this simple yet crippling situation is what echoes in both the life of a main character “Chul-ho” and the society portrayed in the 1961 Korean movie “Obaltan (The Stray Bullet)” directed by Hyun Mok Yoo.

Throughout the film there are indications of a hurting society with issues such as unemployment, protests and suicides. Also in the household of the main characters we see a girl raised to believe that the world is full of lies and a young woman choosing to become a “Western Princess” in order to support herself even though she has two physically healthy older brothers.

The film showed facts of life in a nation devastated by a civil war. No matter how badly you resisted the ache, it got worse. The problem needed to be addressed but with money ever so short, complications just continued to escalate. Eventually it was the money earned by Myung-sook through selling her body that allowed a financial breathing room for Chul-ho to go and take care of his toothache. This dilemma of selling oneself for other’s entertainment wasn’t something only Myung-sook had to face. Young-ho, who eventually became a bank robber, was also offered an opportunity as an actor because of his flesh wound, but he refused to take the job.

What if “Young-ho” accepted the role as an actor? Would the outcome be different?

“The Stray Bullet” offers a subtle yet bitter ending after both teeth are removed and Chul-ho roams the night streets half sickened by pain and half dizzied by reality. He gets into a taxi not knowing where to be or who to be, yet needing to go.

When it comes to poverty or anguish or despair or whatever you call the part of life that humanity desperately wants to run away from, does it matter how? Does it matter where? When the sense of aimlessness feels like the most suitable direction, does the fact that you are lost really matter?