Knives and blood.

One of the main reasons I don't enjoy Korean movies is the gore. I don't like Korean gangster movies. Too many knives, too much blood. I can't deal with them. Ok, so they have to kill each other. Do it with a gun, you know. Why do you have to "make him feel the presence of the knife" before he dies? Just shoot him dead. Don't stab him over 30 times to do the job. I used to wonder why there has been so many incidences of random, psychotic stabbing crimes in the streets of Seoul lately. After watching this, I think I understand partly. The whole nation, including some very mentally ill people, grew up watching these knife-filled gangster movies. (And they look so cool with their friendship and loyalty and show of masculinity and all that.)

There. Do you see my stance on Korean gangster movies?

In Friends, though, I think knife symbolizes more than just gore. It must since we see so much of it, right? After seeing this movie a couple of times, I very seriously pondered why Korean people are so obsessed with knives. It is a cheap, easily available, straightforward weapon with long long history. But I think the reasoning behind the obsession on knives go much beyond the obvious accessibility of knives.

Knives are the weapon of the peasants. Along with axes, bats, and sickles, it's what the peasant population used to rise up against their oppressors as far as history goes. The same knife that is used to clean fish and cut up meat for dinner can be used for some major acts of violence. It is what is known to and comfortable for the common people. Not everyone has held a gun before, but no one has never touched a knife in their life. What more, it doesn't require a fancy ninja sword to kill someone. In fact, Joonseok suggests his 'interns' to use sashimi knives to kill people.

Knives are also 'intimate' killing tools. To do real injuries with it, you have to be close to your target. Sure you could throw it, but to do it justice, you need to remember to twist it 90 degrees and make your target fill its presence. And you can't just stab him anywhere. Any sensible, smart killer will stab the target in the back, piercing into the lungs.

Blood is inevitable with the use of knives as weapon. Neither is pain. Killing with a bullet is simply not satisfying for the killer because it doesn't inflict enough pain. Where would you vent your han? The victims must bleed and go through unforgettable pain, just like the han in you.

Gangs of such sizes as in Friends definitely have the means to arm themselves with automatic weapons, but in this film and in many other Korean gangster films, they would rather just use knives and create a bloodbath. There may be some great cultural, societal, even nationalistic meaning behind the insistence on knives. Not enough for me to embrace the gore.

(Please excuse my thick sarcasm throughout the post...)