[Review]”Are we human or horse?”..’Ogame 3’ Hwang Dong-hyeok’s cruel fairy tale
*This article contains spoilers.
▶ “We are not words”
‘Squid Game’ Season 3 was released on the 27th.The final game participants of Season 3 were Ki-hoon(Lee Jung-jae)and Myeong-gi(Im Si-wan).They play a game of death, as if they were performing acrobatics on a pillar in the sky.Between them is the baby born to Jun-hee(Jo Yu-ri).Myeong-gi threatens Ki-hoon by using her own daughter as bait, and the two end up falling together.In the end, Myeong-gi falls to her death, and Ki-hoon barely survives, but he doesn’t win.According to the rules of the game, the bell must be pressed on the pillar, and one person must die for the rest to live.In the end, one of Ki-hoon and the baby must die to live.
Ki-hoon enjoys this game of death and says to the VIPs watching, “We are not words.We are human.Humans…” and kills himself.Ki-hoon’s final choice was ‘a choice as a human.’Was this the ending that proved the humanity that Director Hwang Dong-hyeok wanted to show?
▶The evolution of games in cruel fairy tales
Following the simple yet shocking violence of’ The Rose of Sharon Has Blossomed ‘in’ Season 1 ‘and the psychological pressure of the’ Round and Round ‘game in’ Season 2 ‘, new games called’ Hide and Seek ‘and’ Rope Jumping ‘appear in’ Season 3 ‘to increase the tension to the max.
In particular,’ Hide and Seek ‘transformed the simple children’s game of hiding into a human hunt.It produced a terrifying chase.The ‘rope jumping’ game, which replaced ‘tug-of-war’ in Season 1, also transformed into a cruel game by pushing human selfishness to the limit.
The evolution of these games shows the calculations of the production team to make them more stimulating and spectacular.
▶What does the appearance after 6 months mean?
It’s ironic.After Ki-hoon’s noble sacrifice, the world still goes round.In the final episode, which takes place six months later, Kyung-seok(Lee Jin-wook)is living his normal life at an amusement park, No-eul(Park Gyu-young)goes to find her lost daughter, and Sae-byeok’s(Jung Ho-yeon)younger brother and mother are reunited.
However, the game designer, Frontman(Lee Byung-hun), is still alive, and he entrusts Jun-hee’s baby to his younger brother, Detective Hwang(Wi Ha-jun), along with the 45.6 billion won prize money.This seems to be a foreshadowing that the game will continue.
▶Director Hwang Dong-hyeok’s dilemma
Director Hwang Dong-hyeok has already excellently depicted the complex agony of individuals fighting against an absurd system through films such as ‘Silenced’ and ‘Namhansanseong’.Director Hwang Dong-hyeok’s ‘Squid Game’, which he planned 10 years ago, also focuses on the despair of alienated individuals in a capitalist society and the ‘humanity’ they show.
However, compared to the dense season 1, as seasons 2 and 3 went through, he tried to pack in a variety of human figures and things to see into one basket, and his core values gave the impression that he was trapped in the capitalist system in his work.Ki-hoon is too good, and the system is too evil.I can’t help but feel like it’s become a typical Hollywood blockbuster hero movie.
▶ The symbolism of the female baby being the winner
All seven challengers who survived until the final round were male.However, the only female contestant was Baby, the daughter of number 222 Jun-hee.In the end, Baby, who was female, became the final winner, and Jun-ho(Wi Ha-jun), who will raise the baby, and the 45.6 billion won are the inheritance created with the blood of the challengers.
The scene where In-ho(Lee Byung-hun)gives a card containing a large sum of money as a keepsake to Ki-hoon’s daughter is the same.In the end, those who received the inheritance are women and the younger generation.What kind of meaning does the setting that women and children are the winners leave behind?
Hwang Dong-hyeok’s cruel fairy tale ultimately asks us: Are we really human, or are we still horses? The answer to that question is probably up to each individual.However, one thing is clear: this question itself already shows the cruelty of the reality we face.
Ultimately, we are all participants in this giant ‘squid game’.And the game is still going on.
Reporter Kim Gyul- winter@donga.com
▶ “We are not words”
‘Squid Game’ Season 3 was released on the 27th.The final game participants of Season 3 were Ki-hoon(Lee Jung-jae)and Myeong-gi(Im Si-wan).They play a game of death, as if they were performing acrobatics on a pillar in the sky.Between them is the baby born to Jun-hee(Jo Yu-ri).Myeong-gi threatens Ki-hoon by using her own daughter as bait, and the two end up falling together.In the end, Myeong-gi falls to her death, and Ki-hoon barely survives, but he doesn’t win.According to the rules of the game, the bell must be pressed on the pillar, and one person must die for the rest to live.In the end, one of Ki-hoon and the baby must die to live.
Ki-hoon enjoys this game of death and says to the VIPs watching, “We are not words.We are human.Humans…” and kills himself.Ki-hoon’s final choice was ‘a choice as a human.’Was this the ending that proved the humanity that Director Hwang Dong-hyeok wanted to show?
Following the simple yet shocking violence of’ The Rose of Sharon Has Blossomed ‘in’ Season 1 ‘and the psychological pressure of the’ Round and Round ‘game in’ Season 2 ‘, new games called’ Hide and Seek ‘and’ Rope Jumping ‘appear in’ Season 3 ‘to increase the tension to the max.
In particular,’ Hide and Seek ‘transformed the simple children’s game of hiding into a human hunt.It produced a terrifying chase.The ‘rope jumping’ game, which replaced ‘tug-of-war’ in Season 1, also transformed into a cruel game by pushing human selfishness to the limit.
The evolution of these games shows the calculations of the production team to make them more stimulating and spectacular.
It’s ironic.After Ki-hoon’s noble sacrifice, the world still goes round.In the final episode, which takes place six months later, Kyung-seok(Lee Jin-wook)is living his normal life at an amusement park, No-eul(Park Gyu-young)goes to find her lost daughter, and Sae-byeok’s(Jung Ho-yeon)younger brother and mother are reunited.
However, the game designer, Frontman(Lee Byung-hun), is still alive, and he entrusts Jun-hee’s baby to his younger brother, Detective Hwang(Wi Ha-jun), along with the 45.6 billion won prize money.This seems to be a foreshadowing that the game will continue.
Director Hwang Dong-hyeok has already excellently depicted the complex agony of individuals fighting against an absurd system through films such as ‘Silenced’ and ‘Namhansanseong’.Director Hwang Dong-hyeok’s ‘Squid Game’, which he planned 10 years ago, also focuses on the despair of alienated individuals in a capitalist society and the ‘humanity’ they show.
However, compared to the dense season 1, as seasons 2 and 3 went through, he tried to pack in a variety of human figures and things to see into one basket, and his core values gave the impression that he was trapped in the capitalist system in his work.Ki-hoon is too good, and the system is too evil.I can’t help but feel like it’s become a typical Hollywood blockbuster hero movie.
All seven challengers who survived until the final round were male.However, the only female contestant was Baby, the daughter of number 222 Jun-hee.In the end, Baby, who was female, became the final winner, and Jun-ho(Wi Ha-jun), who will raise the baby, and the 45.6 billion won are the inheritance created with the blood of the challengers.
The scene where In-ho(Lee Byung-hun)gives a card containing a large sum of money as a keepsake to Ki-hoon’s daughter is the same.In the end, those who received the inheritance are women and the younger generation.What kind of meaning does the setting that women and children are the winners leave behind?
Hwang Dong-hyeok’s cruel fairy tale ultimately asks us: Are we really human, or are we still horses? The answer to that question is probably up to each individual.However, one thing is clear: this question itself already shows the cruelty of the reality we face.
Ultimately, we are all participants in this giant ‘squid game’.And the game is still going on.
Reporter Kim Gyul- winter@donga.com
This article is automatically translated using Google AI. If you notice any inaccuracies, please let us know at allkstar@donga.com.
