Fifteen Years of Suffering

Lee Myung-se’s The Duelist is one of the most important films in my life. I began writing a book about it 15 years ago. Given the length of my writing so far, it’s safe to say that I’ve spent a large part of my life thinking about it. Before, I used to believe my work as a music director was simply a job, and that film had nothing to do with philosophical thoughts. 

The Duelist made me realize that cinematic awareness could provide a basis for the kind of philosophical perception that could not be achieved through reading. The film does not have a clear theme per se. Nor does it have gripping drama. It gets zero points in terms of storytelling. Nevertheless, tens of thousands of people profess to be fanatics of the film. It’s not the film’s storytelling or cast that got so many people hooked on it. Rather, the film offers a completely new cinematic experience.

Watching the movements and images in the film, you suddenly feel somewhat healed and liberated. This is different from catharsis. Rather, you detect a movement of decentration away from things that drag you down—or, some kind of obsessions. Director Lee Myung-se is keenly conscious of this power of perception. I feel a sense of duty as a scholar to explain the philosophical values of his perception, which is the reason why I’ve been suffering for 15 years. (CHO Sung-woo)