The trigger of the aimless bullet

  The film Aimless Bullet or Obaltan is a post-war Korean film directed by Yu Hyun-mok, depicting the hard realistic life the Koreans had in the 1960s.  It is said to be one of the greatest Korean films of all times but it was also banned once by Korean government for its strong downbeat portrayal of everyday life.Throughout the film, the characters show a great sense of loss, frustration, and fatigue in living their every day lives.  The notion of the “aimless bullet”, or a stray bullet, is mentioned at the last minute of the film could be tied to the tooth ache Chul-Ho constantly suffers.
   

Second from the left, Chul-Ho suffering from his toothache

     Chul-Ho strives to live an honest life to support his family not allowing himself to indulge in anything else.  One example is how he faithfully brings all his money from pay day to his wife, not allowing himself to go out to eat or drink, or even go to a dentist to have his constant tooth ache fixed.  The tooth ache could be seen as a sign of build up, of negative emotions that include frustration, loss, or anger that the characters feel as the film progresses, giving image of the inevitable misfire of over-stressed gun.  Chul-Ho sluggish posture and bland expression in the entire film also adds more to the overburdened image increasing the stress.  Near the end of the film, after learning of Yong-Ho arrest for robbery and his wife’s death, Chul-Ho finally makes the decision to attend the dentist.  This event could be seen as the ‘trigger’ as after he finishes the treatment, he loses track of his destination.  He feels as if he needs to go somewhere but is at complete loss where he keeps requesting a different destination to the cab driver who ultimately is the one who brings the metaphor of the ‘aimless bullet’ in the film.  A bullet ultimately serves its purpose when it reaches its target.  Thus an aimless bullet is a wasted bullet, which in turn illustrates the breakdown and turmoil of emotion Chul-Ho must have felt when his family started to break apart.