Bad Guy

Bad Guy by Kim Ki-duk is hard to watch but impossible to forget. It’s a cruel love story that sits between obsession and punishment. The film starts with a disturbing act and slowly becomes a study of control, guilt, and loneliness. It’s brutal and strangely quiet, testing how much you can take before looking away.

The story follows Han-gi, a gangster and pimp who becomes fixated on Sun-hwa, a college student. When she rejects him publicly, he takes revenge by trapping her in debt and forcing her into prostitution. What’s twisted is that he watches her through a one-way mirror every day. He can’t touch her but can’t look away either. Over time, they form a bond that feels unnatural and painful to witness.

At first, Han-gi just seems cruel. He barely speaks and shows emotion through violence or small gestures. Sun-hwa’s suffering is heartbreaking. But as the story goes on, something changes. She learns to survive, and he becomes strangely protective. It’s never clear if this is love or just dependence. Their relationship feels like Stockholm syndrome, an emotional trap born from fear and isolation.

Kim Ki-duk doesn’t make this easy to understand. His camera watches from a distance, letting violence and silence speak for themselves. The brothel feels dirty and hopeless, full of people who’ve lost any sense of right or wrong. The world is cold and divided by class and power, where love and cruelty mix in disturbing ways.

Cho Jae-hyun is both frightening and tragic as Han-gi. Seo Won goes through the most painful transformation, showing fear and strange acceptance. The lack of dialogue makes their connection even more uncomfortable, but that’s the point. By the end, I wasn’t sure what to feel. The movie doesn’t ask for sympathy or give clear answers.

For me, Bad Guy isn’t easy to recommend. It’s disturbing, slow, and filled with uneasy moments. But it has a strange honesty. Kim Ki-duk doesn’t explain or justify anything. He just shows how damaged people can still crave connection, even if it destroys them. It’s not about understanding love. It’s about how love can twist when it grows in the dark.