[Slate] The Lives of Same-Sex Couples 'Ghosts' Beyond Nationalism and Mystery

Original Chinese Novel 'Pungseong' Adapted into Film 'Yureong'
Director Lee Haeyoung Boldly Omits Mystery Elements
Intense Psychological Battle Missing... Only Simple Role Depiction
Lee Hanui's Acting Transformation and Unrealistic Mise-en-Sc?ne Worth Watching...

※ This article contains many potential spoilers for the film.

Director Lee Hae-young's film Ghost is based on a Chinese novel. It is Feng Sheng (The Message) written by Mai Jia (?家). This is the second film adaptation. The first was visualized in China in 2009 as The Message. The setting is Nanjing in 1942, after Wang Jingwei (汪精?), the Vice Chairman of the Kuomintang, collaborated with Japan to establish the National Government. Government agents, who are nothing more than Japanese collaborators, are being killed one after another. Japanese military special officer Takeda (Hwang Hyo-myung) identifies that the mastermind behind this is the Communist Party leader in Beijing known as the "Ghost." Believing the Ghost has infiltrated the Japanese military headquarters, he sends out fake codes. Five suspects who approach are confined in a remote villa and subjected to persuasion and torture to identify the Ghost. "Only you know the content of the Baekchodang meeting. That means the Ghost who infiltrated the headquarters and stole information is among you."

△ 'Ghost' Discards the Strengths of the Original, Leaving Unfilled Gaps

Directors Gao Junshu (高郡?) and Chen Guofu (??富) emphasize the intense psychological warfare depicted in the original work. They create an atmosphere where the characters are unsettled and focus on subtle changes. Up to the climax, the audience wonders who the Ghost is and whether they can survive without being caught. This approach encourages active audience participation, similar to Knives Out (2019) or Murder on the Orient Express (2017). Ghost takes the exact opposite route. It boldly excludes elements of deduction or analysis. From the very beginning, Park Cha-kyung (Lee Ha-nee) confidently reveals herself as the Ghost. It also exposes that Murayama Junji (Seol Kyung-gu), a Japanese police officer, is not the Ghost. Director Lee said, "I wrote the script with the mystery erased from my mind from the start," adding, "I hope the audience does not misunderstand it as a genre like The Message." "Rather than revealing who the Ghost is, I wanted to illuminate the person wearing the Ghost's mask from various angles. I also wanted to convey thrill and pleasure through their fight for a greater cause."

Ideally, the remote cliffside hotel where the suspects are trapped should serve as a space for espionage and action. The former is hardly noticeable. The information uncovered is nothing more than fake codes that security chief Takahara Kaito (Park Hae-soo) casually spills. Park Cha-kyung does not even inform her comrades outside. The latter appears mainly three times. Except for the fight between Park Cha-kyung and Murayama, the focus is on the escape process. Director Lee fills the long gap before the escape with simple character portrayals. For example, Chief Cheon (Seo Hyun-woo) constantly worries about his starving pet cat. Director Lee explained, "I wanted the characters to feel lovable through unexpectedly strong fun." This effect can be expected only if the characters are organically intertwined. Chief Cheon, who remains on the periphery of the story, does not meet this condition.

Murayama and Takahara are in even worse shape. Although they have relatively more screen time, their actions are exaggerated and their dialogues crude. Murayama is repeatedly trapped in bitter memories of the past. The more he recalls, the more he spits out the words he once said in anger. Takahara is extremely simple and flat. He is merely a villain desperate to catch the Ghost. His cleverness in sending out fake codes early in the film is unbelievable given his incompetence. With monotonous lines and angry gestures, he only forms a hostile relationship with Park Cha-kyung. The passionate performances of Seol Kyung-gu and Park Hae-soo, who could not have been unaware of this, are nothing short of dedication.

△ Acting Transformation and Aesthetic Desire Pointing to Homosexuality

Ghost gains two things through the sacrifices of its two actors: Lee Ha-nee's acting transformation and Director Lee's expression of aesthetic desire. Park Cha-kyung, as the protagonist, has few lines. She is a character who suppresses emotional expression. She strives to hold back her boiling resentment and indignation. Except for the desperate look she shows while escaping the hotel, she maintains a restrained atmosphere. Lee Ha-nee did not have to worry about the resulting gaps because Director Lee replaced words with surreal mise-en-sc?ne. Almost all visual elements are filled with emotions, metaphors, and hints about Park Cha-kyung.

The most noticeable device is the film poster. Early in the film, the theater marquee displays Joseph von Sternberg's Shanghai Express (1932). It is a work that strongly conveys Marlene Dietrich's charm. The Shanghai Lily she played reunites with her former lover, Dr. Donald Harvey (Clive Brook), on a special train. Their reunion does not last long. A guerrilla group takes over the train and threatens the passengers. The situation, where male passengers cannot even dare to resist, is overturned by the efforts of Lily and Hui Fei (Anna May Wong), a professional woman. In Ghost, Park Cha-kyung and Nan-young (Esom) demonstrate courage and sacrifice to overturn prejudice. Like Anna May Wong and Dietrich, they also love each other.

In the latter part of the film, a poster of Janghwa Hongryeon Jeon (1928), the first film made with Korean capital and technology, appears. The production team made it by dressing actress Geum Sae-rok in dual roles (Janghwa and Hongryeon) and filming. Director Lee explained, "The structure where the sorrow of loss and the will to achieve are symmetrical was important." In Janghwa Hongryeon Jeon, sorrow is represented by flowers (花), and will by ghosts (鬼). The sisters who live as both yet one have the identity of victims through internalized obedience and compliance. Only when they become vengeful spirits do they correct social norms stained by oppression and suppression. Ghost overturns this structure through the power of love. There are no more flowers dying afterward. Park Cha-kyung transforms into a more active subject than Nan-young. She comes out into the world, points a gun, and even indicates female solidarity. This clearly draws a line from the previous roles set during the Japanese colonial period, which leaned on nationalist sentiment. Reckless but bold...

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.