Suddenly in the Dark 1981
A wife starts to suspect her husband's infidelity after the arrival of their new, young housekeeper, who carries a mysterious wooden doll with herself.
A wife starts to suspect her husband's infidelity after the arrival of their new, young housekeeper, who carries a mysterious wooden doll with herself.
A sonagi is a brief but a heavy rain shower that starts suddenly, usually on a hot afternoon. In Hwang’s story, the rain shower symbolizes the short but heart-rending love between the boy and the girl. The story begins with the boy encountering the girl playing by the stream on his way back home. Although many of Hwang’s short stories are notable, “Rain Shower” is cited as his timeless Korean classic by Koreans. Koreans of all ages are acquainted with this story. It is famous for its poignant depiction of the Korean countryside and of innocent adolescent love. The picturesque scenes from this story stir nostalgia for many people.
Bae Il-do, who feels unappreciated in his rural village, runs away from home and works as a tailor. His wife grew up under a harsh stepmother and worked as a housekeeper and bar hostess before meeting Il-do, for whom she bore a child. The young and attractive Gong-rye comes between them, having an affair with Il-do while working with him in a garment factory. Their secret meetings don't remain secret for long and Il-do's wife inevitably finds out...
During the Korean War in early 1950s, mother’s family comes and stays at Dong-man’s house. His uncle on father’s side is a North Korean partisan and the uncle on mother’s side dies while fighting as South Korean soldier. For this reason, his grandmothers don’t get alone. Dong-man tells a stranger that his partisan uncle is home and his father gets arrested.
The map where the independence army's military funds are stored is contained within the body of the Buddha statue. A bloody fight ensues over this, and In-sik, a patriotic young man, searches for the lost Buddha statue with Monk Hae-cho. At this time, he meets a female singer named Gyocheongcheong. And Detective Mori follows them. They came all the way to Manchuria in search of the Buddha statue. The Buddha statue is kept in the home of an antiques enthusiast named Jincheon. The provincial office goes from place to place looking for Buddha statues. Seoljungmae appears like the wind and disappears without a sound. It is she, the school district office, who is the one who chills the conversation among Japanese people. Ultimately, thanks to her activities, the Buddha statue containing the map falls into the hands of the independence army.
A man wanders around the mountains with a bleeding leg, holding a rifle in his hand. Seemingly a fugitive, he runs from as-yet unknown pursuers, but he also seems to be following somebody who has already walked the same path. As he hides in a secluded cave, past memories sweep through his exhausted mind, memories of lifelong cowardice and evasion. And this recollection leads to a reconstruction of early 20th century Korean history. Winner of Best Picture (Nam-a Pictures Co., Ltd.), Best Actor (Ha Myung-joong), Best Art Direction (Kim Yoo-joon), Best Lighting (Son Young-cheol) at the 14th Grand Bell Awards. (source: Jiro Hong, koreanfilm.org)
Kang Wook, a Korean Taekwondo expert, suddenly appears in Hong Kong's red light district. He came to Hong Kong after his lover had an affair with Japanese gangster leader Hashimodo (Kang Young-cheol) and ran away to Hong Kong. Kang Wook, who has taken control of Hong Kong's underworld with his outstanding martial arts skills, hires a young Korean named Dae Geol (Im Ja-ho). Afterwards, Kang Wook learns that his lover became blind and a prostitute after being cruelly violated by Hashimodo, and begins to take revenge in anger.
Su-Jeong, a daughter of the lord of a castle in a beautiful country, Star, loves Ho-Dong, a brave man. The lord declares that the person who brings the most valuable treasure will be the husband of his daughter. Then, with a magic box, Ho-Dong takes part in the contest but Wang Bang Wul wins the victory with an evil plot. Frustrated Ho-Dong and Su-Jeong go in the magic box where the age is modern times. They experience there a variety of happy events, appearing on TV and winning a prize. Ho-Dong and Su-Jeong returning to Star under Wang Bang Wul's occupation rescue the lord and restore peace.
Yeong-ho tries to keep his heart disease a secret from his wife but he becomes so depressed over his condition that he can no longer function at work and loses his job. To earn money, his wife takes a job with a family friend but Yeong-ho misinterprets his friend's act of kindness. He leaves home in a fury leaving his wife to discover the cause of his behavior and to begin a frantic search for him.