3-Iron (2004)

Kim Ki Duk’s wordless, nearly silent film ’3-Iron’ has been referred to as a pretentious gimmick that seeks attention from viewers by choosing to tell its story without the use of a lot of dialogues (the main character does not speak at all) and very little context. It tells the story of a man who lives in other peoples apartments while they are away, by breaking into their houses, but not stealing anything. The sensation of desiring another more pleasant life is fulfilled in this way, till he meets a girl in one of his break-ins who falls in love with him and who herself decides to break free from her loveless, husband dominated marriage to join him on his escapades.

It turns out that ’3-iron’ is anything but a pretentious gimmick. Its not pretentious because the director is adept at handling a situation where 2 characters can communicate without talking - how often do you see that happening, and working? Its not a gimmick either because there is something important being said here. The Arabic song, which most of the viewers including myself do not understand the words to, heighten the desire to communicate via other means and not just convention. Each time it played, it not just sounded great (hints of inspiration from ’Chungking Express’ are clearly evident), but set the tone perfectly. Sombre, beautiful and supremely well made, this is a highly artistic picture that had me sucked in deep.

flag objectionable content