Daytime Drinking: Beneath Every Rock Bottom Is Another Rock Bottom

Eight telltale signs that Hyuk-jin (Song Sam-dong), the protagonist of Noh Young-seok's Daytime Drinking, is severely depressed and in need of therapy:

1. He watches long stretches of mindless television alone while eating instant noodles.
2. He drinks and smokes even when he doesn't really want to and actually wakes up after a blackout in a completely different town.
3. He's an easy target for a pimp (Tak Seong-joon) and his drunk, good-time girl (Kim Kang-hee).
4. His best friend Ki-sang (Yuk Sang-yeop) thinks he's a downer and procrastinates meeting him, even at a time of need.
5. He's unable to clue in to the fact that the jolly trucker (Shin Woon-seob) -- who gave him a lift when he was stranded in his underwear on the highway -- is looking for sex, not for Good Samaritan points.
7. He has psychosexual nightmares involving some crazy poetess (Lee Lan-hee) whom he met at the bus terminal.
8. His life is spiraling so out of control that if he isn't severely depressed at losing his girlfriend in the beginning then he definitely should be after being screwed left and right by the movie's end.

If ever there were a movie that reinforced the idea that drinking won't solve your problems, this one is it. With every drink, Hyuk-jin's life gets worse and worse. What's weird is at the end, you sense he might be about to embark on yet another bender!

Lament / Elegy of the Earth: As Queer as a Three-Dollar Bill Named Jong-man

I'm pretty sure Kim Hee-cheol's Lament is a tragic gay love story. But I'm not totally sure. I mean the two main guys never kiss but cute, stupid Jong-man (Lee Byung-hun) who works in a beer hall definitely appears to fall in love-at-first-sight with alcoholic composer Kwang-su (Shin Hyeon-jun) who's just found out that his crazy brother committed suicide. But is it love just because the two guys shack up together in an apartment then move into an abandoned house to escape the cops? or because they run through a field while screaming something about escaping their pasts? or because the composer sobers up and sweetly ties the waiter's tie in the morning? Actually, Jong-man's not a waiter. He's an aspiring actor-screenwriter who videotapes himself engaged in mundane activities like eating and making funny faces before faxing his script -- a Meg Ryan vehicle -- repeatedly to Hollywood. He's a man with big dreams, my friend. As to his crush, Kwang-su would be happy enough to attain more modest goals, like staying out of the hands of the corrupt police force and maybe cuddling with not-too-successful, nearly mute independent business owner Se-hee (Jeong Seon-kyeong) whose music shop is always full of musical instruments but never customers. It's hard to imagine this movie getting many customers either, gay, straight or otherwise!

The Pot: The Holy Ghost Isn't Supposed to Be Scary Or Is He?

Goodbye, Age of Anxiety. Hello, Period of Paranoia. As all serious discourse on subjects like art, pornography and spirituality-nee-religion is watered down to "I know what I like," "I know it when I see it," and "I know what I believe," assertions about being an artist, judging intent, or subscribing to any system of belief besides science are too scary for most people afraid of risking ridicule by stating an opinion outside the noncommittal norm. Organized religion has been especially hard hit with Christianity, in particular, constantly debunked as creepy mumbo-jumbo. Playing upon that spooked out view of spirituality, Kim Tae-gon's largely effective horror movie The Pot presents a deaconess (Kil Hae-yeon) and her evangelical church's congregation as Satanic ne'er-do-wells with duplicitous motives when it comes to helping a struggling businessman (Im Hyeong-gook), his pregnant wife (Yang Eun-yong) and their daughter (Ryu Hyeon-bin), a little devil herself who's got no truck with punching her mom's pregnant belly as a way to demonstrate that she, for one, has no interest in having a baby brother. That the Church ends up not being the bad guy in this movie comes as a shock later on. And frankly, a disappointment. Blaming the devil for bankruptcy, miscarriages, and badly behaved children is so much more interesting than faulting an unhinged man. Oh yeah, spoiler alert.

Missing: You Should Never Call a Woman a Dog, Pet Owners

So you're one of those people who equate owning a dog with rearing a child and believe that pooches are really people in fur, eh? Well, have I got a Korean movie for you: Missing. In Kim Seong-hong's twisted little fright flick, the serial killer kidnaps young women then forces each, in quick succession, to be his dog: keeping her in a cage, spraying her down with a hose, getting her down on all fours for some doggy-style. The idea of canines as humans doesn't sound so hot when you reverse the direction, now does it? And I'm sure Hyeon-ah (Jeon Se-hong) and Hyeon-jeong (Chu Ja-hyeon) -- one a brutalized victim, the other her sister survivor -- would heartily agree on all counts. Being treated like a dog is a bitch, especially if your owner is Pan-gon (Moon Seong-geun), a devoted son and deranged serial killer who spends his time in between torture sessions playing harmonica or spoon-feeding gruel to his invalid mother (Son Yeong-soon). Missing was inspired by a true story of a septuagenarian fisherman who killed four women in Bosung. That character doesn't show up until the movie's end; the villain in this movie -- with his axe, birthday cake, and egg delivery service -- is really more of an original.

Another Public Enemy: Revenge of the Nerds Who Work for the Law

Justice prevails! What a square sentiment. And what a satisfying one to see played out in a cops-and-robbers movie. In Kang Woo-suk's Another Public Enemy, you're never quite sure if that's going to happen though, whether Public Prosecutor Kang (Sol Kyung-gu) is going to nail his childhood nemesis Han Sang-woo (Jeong Jun-ho) or whether that sneering sociopath is going to abscond with millions after killing his brother and father then dissolving the family estate. What you do know is that the poor-boy-made-good versus rich-boy-so-bad scenario is hard-to-resist if you secretly suspect all wealthy people -- and especially their children with entitlement issues -- are inherently evil. With two killer gang fights within the first half hour, you might expect this action pic to have more physical conflict than it does but Another Public Enemy is really an homage to its hero -- an upstanding, rule-breaking guy who'll go to any length to catch the criminal. He's got no wife; he's got no life. But what he does have is moral integrity and a support team that will put their lives and reputations on the line for him. It's all work and no play but the cause of justice is not such a bad raison d'etre.

The Best Korean Movies of 2010 (Sort of)

Most year-end "best of" lists reflect the vibe of the year. Not this one. My top ten is composed of Korean movies seen this year regardless of release date, and because of that, reflects my own current preoccupations more than the world at large. The common thread this time? Revenge. In short: If you crossed me in 2010, watch out in 2011.

1. Jeon Woochi: The Taoist Wizard (2009): Fantasy isn't generally my cup of tea but Choi Dong-hun's sorcerer's tale about righting wrongs is a bubbly glass of champagne. The director's crime pic Tazza: The High Rollers almost made my list but ended up in the eleventh slot.

2. Barking Dogs Never Bite (2000): Bong Joon-ho's portrait of a bitter, vengeful, petty academic (Lee Sung-jae) is evidence that genius is apparent at the start of some careers. (Bong's first film also memorably features Bae Du-na whom he cast later in The Host.)

3. A Frozen Flower (2008): Not for those who blush easily, Yu Ha's sexed-up melodrama finds King (Ju Jin-mo) and Queen (Song Ji-hyo) feuding over Hot Bodyguard (Jo In-seong). Many scenes with humping. Many scenes with suspense.

4. Secret Sunshine (2007): This character portrait by Lee Chang-dong isn't as good as his Oasis but what is, really? The movie concerns a woman who loses her son then spirals into an evangelical Christian support system that's a bit troubling. This time, don't praise Jesus. Praise Lee.

5. Old Partner (2008): The one documentary on this year's list tells the story of a very old farmer and his very old ox. Very moving. If you think animals are people in a way, you'll love it.

6. Antique Bakery (2008): This one looks like it's going to be a lighthearted gay romantic comedy but ends up a murder mystery in which the gay man isn't the victim or the killer. He's simply a patissier with demonic powers of attraction. Now that's novel!

7. Arahan: Urban Martial Arts Action (2004): Usually my guilty pleasures go in the number nine or ten slot but this action pic -- basically The Tao according to Marvel Comics -- is so adorkable I couldn't demote it further than seven.

8. Black House (2007): This horror flick creeped me out big time. As a female Hannibal Lecter, Yu Seon gives a performance to send shivers up your spine. As the male Jodie Foster seeking justice, actor Hwang Jeong-min is somewhat unlikable which makes the conflict even more interesting.

9. The Secret Reunion (2010): The one film actually from 2010 is also a major blockbuster and stars Song Kang-ho (who also gives a memorable performance in Secret Sunshine) and Kang Dong-won (who's even better in Jeon Woochi).

10. Green Fish (1997): Another really polished work from Lee Chang-dong (see slot 4), this directorial debut is most notable for the exceptional performances by Han Suk-kyu (as a late-blooming thug) and Shim Hye-jin (as a down-on-her-luck-forever nightclub singer).

The Green Fish: You Need to Go Down to Get Deep

The loss of innocence is so upsetting sometimes. Even if you factor in that innocence and adulthood are pretty much incompatible, watching a late-bloomer fall from grace can make for a painful viewing experience. And coming-of-age only gets crueler the older you get. In Lee Chang-dong's masterful first film The Green Fish, the naif about to lose it all is earnest 26-year-old Makdong (Han Suk-kyu). He's a poor, eager-to-please guy who, recently discharged from the army, ends up working for ruthless mobster Bae Tae-kon (Mun Seong-kun) after one unlucky circumstance. Bae's girlfriend Mi-ae (Shim Hye-jin), for her part, is about as far from innocence as you can get. Pimped out by her boyfriend when she's not being harassed by customers who ridicule her nightclub act, she knows she's sinking more and more deeply into the mire but she can't find a way out. She's drawn to Makdong not because he's cute but because he's the least corrupt thing she's seen in God knows how long. He'll never be the life preserver he and she wishes he could be; the few times he tries, he proves a terrible protector since he's adhering to a school boy code in a roomful of truants. But their love is inevitable. Just as their future is doomed.