Original subtitles

It's so dark.

Is he sleeping?

The General's Mustache

I refuse to... that's why I'm alive.

You've been living in the same house and yet you don't know if he is dead or alive?

Does that make sense?

We may be living in the same house but

I've never even seen his room.

If his mother and sister didn't come to visit

you would have been living with a dead body for months...

Don't scare me like that.

Just ask my daughter.

If you never lived in the same house as him you just wouldn't know.

He doesn't say hello, he doesn't speak to you,

you never know if he's coming or going.

I did nothing wrong except rent a room to the wrong person.

Carbon monoxide from the briquettes killed him

and you're trying to pin it on me?

Ah... but the carbon monoxide didn't leak on it's own.

The cover to the heater was open.

What,

you think I opened the cover?

Oh my...

Why would I do that when he owed me rent money?

- He was behind on rent? - Yes, he was.

Why don't you ask my daughter

what a pain he was.

He didn't close the door when he was sleeping,

he didn't turn off the faucet completely,

he didn't turn off the lights¡¦ do you know how

many times I had to go and turn off the lights?

Doesn't it makes sense that he left the cover off the heater?

You have never even seen the inside of his room

yet you go into his room when he's sleeping and turn off the lights?

You went to turn off the lights that night didn't you?

God knows that

I... do I look like someone who could commit murder?

I'm someone who freaks out over a spider.

I'm someone who believes in Christ.

Oh, Lord...

Let me see.

What did they say to you?

Well, they showed me a sock and asked if it was mine.

What did you say?

I told them I would wear fashionable socks like those

if I could afford to.

And?

I said it belonged to the girl and then he kept asking me about her.

Did you tell them they had a huge fight and that she left after that?

Of course!

They even fought over whose soap it was and who the toothbrush belonged to.

Isn't it obvious who killed him?

Did you tell the police that?

Why? Why give them cause for suspicion?

Well it looks like I can forget about renting that room.

Who's going to want a room somebody died in?

What did I tell you?

I said I couldn't rent a room to a single guy

with a nosy girl like you living here

but you just had to have your way. Now look at us.

What did I do?

I wanted to kick him out when he brought over that girl but you insisted!

You're the one that insisted so why is it my fault?

I don't want to hear it!

We've got three leads.

The first is the letter, we need to find the novelist Han Woo-jeong.

Second, the stockings that were there but shouldn't have been

and the camera that should have been there but wasn't.

You're saying those are clues to the killer?

What about the third lead?

Why is there a scar on his forehead?

You can always find a scar where someone has a grudge.

If it were you, which lead would you follow?

The second. The stockings.

You're always interested in anything to do with the ladies.

That's not true. What about you, sir?

Umm... I would follow the first lead.

- Ok then. - I'll get going too.

- Have a good day. - Ok.

Stop pretending you don't know.

He's dead.

So what?

Did he tell you to read me his will?

In the end, you're trying to establish a relationship

between me and his death right?

I'm not an undertaker,

there is no reason for me

to discuss a death that I'm unrelated to.

- What is that? - Read it.

You won't be able to play dumb after you read this.

The next time I see you I promise it will be completed.

I'm sure I can finish it in a week.

I don't care if you make fun of me,

if I can't pull it off then this will be the last time.

After that...

Oh, it's this guy.

If you gave this to me earlier...

What does that mean, "I'll finish it in a week"?

You need to know that working at a newspaper can be a waste of time.

Hey! We're not writing a novel here.

I'm sorry but this is about writing a novel.

I met him through a Mr. Lee, a photographer I know.

He came to me because he wanted to write a novel.

He wanted to write a novel?

Yes, the title is "The General's Mustache"

Is it an historical novel?

Is it about Admiral Yi Sun-Shin?

It doesn't matter what you think but...

Anyway, why don't you tell me about the plot?

You're just like everyone else.

When you tell people you're writing a novel the first thing they ask about is the plot.

Isn't the plot like a skeleton?

So?

So, the plot...

well it starts just after a country is liberated.

Hooray! Hooray! Hooray! Hooray!

It's exactly like they said.

The mustaches right?

What happens next?

They all grew one, each and every one of them.

Now look,

I would like to ask the great king a question

on behalf of his people.

Go ahead.

Why did all the independence fighters grow a mustache?

Does there have to be a reason?

If there was one it would be because they didn't have time to shave.

Would it be ok for us to grow a mustache?

That's up to you.

People are more interested in the general's mustache than independence.

Everyone started to grow a mustache.

- Honey! Honey! - Yes?

- Here! - I almost forgot.

You're the best!

Well...

"The General's Mustache" I didn't want my protagonist to

go out of his way to grow a mustache

but it was difficult to find someone who didn't grow one.

Bankers grew them,

businessmen were growing them, mechanics were growing them,

university professors were growing them

even blue-collar workers were growing them.

Mustaches were becoming a symbol of independence.

It seems like independence existed so people could grow a mustache.

The moment I was dreading finally came.

Are you nervous?

Then maybe you should grow a mustache?

For some reason I think it will look funny on me.

I think you need a vacation.

Is it because of the mustache?

Did someone make a law that says I have to grow a mustache?

We live in a free country.

The constitution guarantees our freedom so why are you talking about mustaches?

It's that kind of obsessive thinking that has made you weak.

Here's your severance pay. Take care of yourself.

I came to turn myself in. I...

I refuse to grow one. I said I'm not going to grow one.

Just... just take me. Go ahead!

Growing a mustache is a personal choice.

The only crime you've committed

is getting drunk and obstructing justice,

but I'm going to let you off, so go home.

It's goes something like that.

So he didn't end up growing a mustache?

That's as far as I've gotten.

It's entertaining.

What do you think? Do you think I can make a novel out of a fable?

- It's entertaining but¡¦ - It's too ideological, right?

No, it's too much like a comic.

A novelist should be writing novels.

A photographer should be taking pictures right?

These days there are a lot of wannabes just making up titles to books.

If nothing seems to be working out, a lot of young people say they'll write a novel.

No.

Anyway, go ahead and write it.

A novel isn't written with your mouth, it's written with your hand.

Of course it's written with your hand.

You never saw him after that?

I ran him into him once by coincidence.

He was with a young girl.

- Na Sin-hye right? - Na Sin-hye?

I'm not sure but they sure looked close.

You remember March 26th?

Can you tell me where you were from midnight to the next morning?

Yes.

You're not asking me if I stood by and watched

while Cheol-hun was being murdered, are you?

I'm not concluding that you were beside him,

you just have to tell me what you were doing.

I fell asleep listening to music on this bed.

There is a late night music show from 12:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m.

for people who can't sleep.

I thought about what I was doing when Cheol-hun was killed.

While someone was dying I was listening to the peaceful

sounds of Mendelssohn and Rimsky-Korsakov.

Isn't that unbelievable?

And?

And

I woke up at 6:00 a.m., had two cups of black coffee

and went horseback riding with some people I know.

Oh, really?

That's not enough for an alibi.

How can the radio prove that you were at home?

Anyone who couldn't sleep that hour could tell you.

I can tell you every song that was played.

But where you heard it is the key.

Well, there is no radio in Cheol-hun's room.

I see you're quite familiar with his room?

Can you zip me up please?

Thank you.

Why did you break up?

We happened to meet by chance and just happened to break up.

By chance? Please be more specific.

All I can say is we met by chance

and we were close

for about a year... then we broke up. Just like how we met, it just happened.

You broke up after a big fight, was that also by chance?

Yes, it just happened.

We had a huge fight the day he gave his camera to a nude model.

Camera?

Who did he give it to?

A nude model,

but I wasn't jealous.

Come in.

- Hello. - I'm sorry, you have a guest.

It's ok, he's from the police department.

Oh... I see.

This is Chairman Jeong.

I wanted to go to the airport with you.

I've got some foreign guests coming in on Northwest Airlines.

Of course it's for business but in cases like this,

it's always better to have a woman around.

Are you a cop?

Why do you keep bothering me?

It's my job to take my clothes off, but I'm different from girls who sell their bodies.

I used to paint as well.

I'm talking about pictures...

Why? Is the police department hiring nude models?

Have you modeled in pictures before?

No, I haven't.

I think you have.

You know Kim Cheol-hun right?

Kim Cheol-hun?

Ah! The photographer right?

I'm sure you're familiar with his camera?

His camera was his life so why do you have it?

A girl will take her clothes off if she's in debt like me.

A camera is nothing.

Was he in debt to you?

A bit.

At any rate, he gave me the camera. Why don't you ask him for the specifics?

And if you need a nude model, I'm available anytime.

Wait! You do know Kim Cheol-hun is dead, right?

What?

Why? Did that shock you?

No, nothing shocks me.

- He was an innocent man. - An innocent man?

I just thought I would say that because he's dead.

You tend to think that dead people were nice.

See you later.

What do you think about this incident?

It looks like he poisoned himself with carbon monoxide from the briquettes.

Why would he commit suicide?

Na Sin-hye probably had a new boyfriend.

There are some girls out there who enjoy breaking hearts.

You think she's one of those girls?

- Have you seen her nails? - Yes, I have.

Her nail polish isn't a common color.

That's why men...

No, I'm talking about Kim Cheol-hun's nails!

Kim Cheol-hun's nails?

People who commit suicide are careful

not to look dirty to the people who find them.

They will take a shower or change their clothes.

If they don't have time to do that, they will at least cut their nails.

There wasn't a will either but... Leaving a will doesn't necessarily mean it was a suicide.

This happens often. At first glance it looks like a suicide but

the writing on the will is messy.

Isn't a will the last thing you will ever write in your life?

So you will go to great lengths to write it as neatly and as nice as possible.

So it was murder?

Humans are aware of those around them even when they are about to die.

I have yet to see a suicide where the victim doesn't have any regrets.

Did you think of something?

Honestly, it's a big vague to me.

Oh, really? Vague?

This is when the paper uses the term "have no clue".

I feel like we've walked a mile in the fog.

- Have you ever caught a cold? - A cold?

Do you know why we catch colds?

So you're saying when your environment changes, crimes are committed.

Cheol-hun suddenly caught a cold one day.

When do you think that was?

He started to cough, he had a fever and he started to sweat.

You're investigation is too literary.

It's the opposite of literature.

Literature takes something specific and makes it vague but

we are taking about something vague and making it specific.

Didn't Kim Cheol-hun catch a cold the day he lost his job?

Why don't we start over from there?

He also had a scar.

He didn't have what it took to be a photojournalist.

In short, he didn't have the skills to survive in society.

First, a photographer is busy.

A photographer leaps before he looks.

But he...

Is he still sleeping in the darkroom?

Is he still in the darkroom? Huh?

Yes.

I feel comfortable in the total solitude of the darkroom.

People are outside in the bright sunlight

swimming around like fish but I've got my own...

Look here.

Oh... those aren't my words, they're Cheol-hun's.

You should ask him about the darkroom.

I feel comfortable in the total solitude of the darkroom.

Can't you just stop?

In the darkness, a fluorescent plate the shape of a moon throws off a blue light.

It looks like the gateway to another world.

The sweet smell of Hypo Clear,

the sound of a stopwatch in the darkness.

Ah! This is a state of enlightenment where we can sleep forever.

Working in the darkroom liberates me.

I'm always standing beside a camera lens.

I can't get into the world of the subject standing in front of me.

I always need to keep my distance.

Even in sadness and extreme happiness

I'm always like a guest, always on the outside.

I need to be where the news is taking place

but even though I'm there, I'm always on the outside.

Everyday... I'm becoming more like a camera lens.

I think I'm going crazy.

Is that why he quit the paper?

No, the reason he quit,

and this is a famous story, is...

do you know Dr. Jeong? Dr. Jeong Yeong-pil?

Oh, Jeong Yeong-pil! I know the name.

I interviewed him when he came back from the States.

That's why it's important to be rational.

People are precise, like machines.

But if you look at human relations in underdeveloped countries...

Oh, how do you say underdeveloped country in Korean?

You just say "hujinguk".

Oh! Hujinguk. That's right. That's right.

- Excuse me... sir! - Yes?

How long did you live in the U.S.?

Well. Almost five years. I was there for five years.

I see.

Very impressive. You earned two doctorates in five years.

- Usually ener, umm... - Energetic.

Yes... that's right, you're very energetic.

Sure sure. Please have a drink.

Thank you.

But Koreans... excuse me.

The kimchi in Korea is so hot, I've got serious stomach trouble.

Excuse me, it keeps coming out.

Because taste isn't absolute.

- It can be improved, right? - Yes, oh yes.

What was it like when you first got to the States?

Wasn't butter tough to get used to?

What are you mean?

I think that's enough for today.

Would you allow us to take a family picture?

Oh certainly! Where would you like to take it?

- How would you like to do this? - Let's just take it here.

Hey, get ready.

- Please excuse me for a moment. - Sure.

John! Mary! Where are you?

Mary... John...

Mommy! Mommy!

What's up Mommy?

They will take our picture and put it in the newspaper.

Oh! I think it's wonderful!

- Daddy? - Oh come on boys and girls.

Hurry up and get ready. What are you doing?

Excuse me, don't they have Korean names yet?

No, they were born in the U.S.

I know you're probably not aware of this

but even though anything American is popular

names are a different story.

Even though they don't speak Korean, they would probably understand names.

What's matter daddy?

So what?

Besides that, American names are still not well received in our country.

Vitamins and dogs are called by western names

so when you called these cute kids,

I thought you were calling your dogs.

What are you talking about! Damn you!

Where do you get off talking like that!

- Calm down sir. Calm down. - Don't you have parents of your own?

How can you say something like that!

These kids have done nothing wrong.

They can't speak the language so all they do is play with their dolls.

- You're still talking back! - They can't play with their dolls all day.

Please calm down!

This is a legendary story at the paper.

John. Mary.

In short, he doesn't have the skills to survive in society.

Did he get that scar from a fight?

No, he has never been in a fight.

Then where did he get that injury?

Why do you keep asking? Stop!

I'm asking because you're hiding something.

Stop trying to open old wounds.

My mother is barely hanging on.

Please cooperate this is very important.

It might be murder.

Somebody left the cover on the heater open.

If he opened it, it's suicide.

If somebody else did, it's murder.

We need to find out why that cover was opened.

The reason we're having difficulty with this investigation is

because there aren't many people who were close to your brother.

I killed Cheol-hun! It was me, I killed him!

Please, calm down.

We've got nothing left to lose, let's tell them everything.

What happened? Why can't you tell me?

Oh! I think it's wonderful!

When Cheol-hun was a baby,

my mother was working late as a seamstress

and she fell asleep.

But in her sleep... in her sleep she hit his head with a hot iron...

Cheol-hun!

He suffered his entire life because of that scar. I killed him.

- He died because of me. - Mom!

Mom!

Please be quiet. Shh!

My mother believes that scar on his forehead sent him down the wrong path

and was always worrying about him.

That's why he was single, even though he was over thirty.

She believes it was the scar that killed him.

But if there's a reason for Cheol-hun's death

it isn't because of my mother, it's because of my father.

All the kids in our town were the offspring of sharecroppers or servants.

Just because we're descended from Kim Jeong-sun

we weren't allowed to play with them.

Cheol-hun wanted to play with those kids.

- But my father wouldn't let him. - That's not true.

I... I...

Don't worry mom,

I just want to tell them about the land.

What land?

Land was our destiny.

We didn't know how to live away from our land.

As soon as we were free the land took revenge on us.

Thanks to land reforms, the deeds my dad loved more than anything

all turned into trash.

Mom! Mom!

Who's there?

- Cheol-min! - Cheol-hun!

Cheol-min!

Cheol-min! Cheol-min!

Cheol-min!

- How are you? - Oh, look at you.

- Where have you been all this time? - Like an idiot, I let them fool me.

They used me and now they want me to die?

What are you talking about?

You jerks!

Give me back my land!

No! No!

I said, give me back my land!

I said no. I said no!

Dad, stop!

I can't be your father anymore.

I'm so ashamed. I have no right to be your father.

Give me back my land! My land!

Dad, Cheol-min is here.

Honey!

These are the deeds!

I gave away the land just like you wanted

so leave!

I didn't know what I was talking about.

Please forgive me dad.

Forgive you?

I might be able to forgive you

but our ancestors will never forgive you.

Dad, please forgive Cheol-min.

He didn't know.

- Dad. - You!

Honey!

- Cheol-min, get out! Get out! - Dad.

- I told you to get out! - Honey! If he leaves, he'll die.

- Get out now! - Honey!

Excuse me.

I'm here from the police department.

Why didn't you turn yourself in?

I'm late.

Cheol-min!

Cheol-hun!

Let's go.

Cheol-min.

Cheol-min!

Dad!

Cheol-min!

Cheol-min! Cheol-min!

- Cheol-hun! - Cheol-min!

Cheol-hun!

Why is this case stressing you out so much?

So far, it's all been a waste of time.

- I don't want to conclude suicide. - There's nothing I can do about it, right?

Now you're preaching to me.

What a living person can do for the dead

is not just send flowers or a nice coffin.

It's finding out why they are dead.

Finding that out is meaningful for the living too.

Someone's death contributed to advances in medicine,

created new philosophies and covered up social problems.

And someone else's death created laws and policemen is what you're saying right?

I don't think Cheol-hun's death is within our jurisdiction.

I think a novel or a mental institution needs to handle this problem.

Not yet!

We've barely scratched the surface.

- The testimonies we've gotten so far... - They don't mean anything.

Not a chance! Let's find that diamond in the rough.

- Ok, now, Sin-hye had a father right? - Mr. Na, the minister.

He died after he got paralyzed.

That's right.

He was paralyzed for five years

but the only person that would take care of him was Sin-hye.

- She was how old? - 27.

She was too young to be taking care of an invalid.

If you were Sin-hye, what would you have done?

But she wouldn't have killed her father?

If you listen to what the neighbors said

she was away for a few days, during which time her father died.

It's like he was dead anyway

and she was miserable

so she committed euthanasia.

You think Cheol-hun was a pawn? Him?

Committing euthanasia doesn't mean you kill someone with your bare hands.

She needed someone naive.

Is there anyone more naive than Cheol-hun?

According to witnesses he was lonely and lived in a fantasy world.

He was also sympathetic.

Sin-hye left the house and he went into her father's room.

Is that you Sin-hye?

Your daughter isn't coming back.

Who are you?

Your daughter is giving you the opportunity to run away.

Everything ends in this room.

Everything in this room is rotting away.

The sun, time, the body...

Everything is rotting away.

You need to leave this place.

You've been in this room for five years.

You probably can't bear it anymore.

Are you a doctor?

Did my daughter ask you to kill me?

I'm a believer in Christianity.

Go. Everything will become silent.

Very quietly...

Go to sleep and

when you wake up the next morning the pain will be a distant memory.

The day they started living together

happens to be the day after her father died.

Isn't that too much of a coincidence?

It's not like Sin-hye has any reason to kill Cheol-hun right?

Cheol-hun was probably using her father's death

to keep her close to him.

But Sin-hye already found a rich boyfriend

and was sick of being poor.

She ran out of Cheol-hun's room the way she ran out of her father's.

In order to run away, she had to do her own killing.

She couldn't leave the room without breaking some walls.

- Doesn't her alibi hold up? - Not a chance.

That is what's so strange.

There was a small radio and

if you plugged in earphones you could listen to it anywhere.

Even if you're killing someone.

Sin-hye is a smart girl.

She's been around.

Hello.

It's cold and it's snowing outside.

Come warm yourself by the fire.

It looks like it's time to change the briquette.

Watching the snow fall made me think of this room.

No briquette in the heater,

and you're all curled up in bed.

Cheol-hun.

Why are you here?

Come here.

I'm going to ask you one more time. Were you there when your father died?

No.

Who was there? Was he alone when he died?

He was there.

Kim Cheol-hun?

Yes, but so what?

Stop playing dumb!

How do you explain Cheol-hun's presence there?

And why weren't you there?

I told you it was coincidence.

We just happened to meet.

Yes. You flew in like crows,

attracted to the smell of death.

I'll tell you everything.

It has already been a year.

It was summer.

The sound of music and the smell of sweat.

It was so hot it was suffocating.

My life was miserable.

I was making a living off of tips men would give me for dancing with them.

I was a dancer back then.

I felt like everything was dying.

A windless silence. The all of a sudden...

Police! Police!

What are you doing? Hurry up and get in.

Come on, get in there.

Excuse me! Excuse me!

Please take this!

Please take care of my father. I'll return the favor later. Na Sin-hye.

Please do this for me! Please!

So let's say it's all a coincidence.

While you were gone, why would Cheol-hun

take care of someone he didn't know?

According to you, your father couldn't control himself.

It's difficult even for a parent to take care of someone like that.

My father was unhappy and eccentric...

He lived in a fantasy world

but that was what Cheol-hun liked about him.

That's a bit of a stretch.

They became close because of a gas lamp.

A gas lamp?

We lived in a makeshift shack.

There was no electricity so we used a gas lamp.

You're just like me.

I spend most of my time in a darkroom

and like me, you spend all your time in this dark room.

When I became paralyzed a lot of people came to visit me.

One by one they stopped coming. Now no one comes.

But does that mean they've left me for good?

Yes, they're gone.

People leave all the time.

You must be lonely.

I think you look lonely.

I'm not lonely.

He wasn't someone who cried because he couldn't stand to be alone.

He was someone who knew how to use loneliness.

That was what my father was like.

I don't care about any of that!

Get to the point!

You took care of your father for five years.

Talking only with him day and night and you were sick of it right?

Think whatever you want.

I don't know what point you want me to make.

Whatever you're looking for¡¦ well that's your job.

I'm just going to tell you whatever comes to mind.

Father! Everyone is gone!

All that is left is you and the persecution you're going to suffer.

But God is here, isn't he?

Why did you choose to become a martyr?

Father, Seoul isn't Rome.

Don't worry, we'll see each other again.

Now, get going.

He was a father and a minister.

I felt sorry for my father who had to take on both roles.

Just a second!

Why didn't you go to church last week?

We were watching you over the last few days.

You weren't in church last week, you were golfing weren't you?

I don't believe in Christ.

The daughter of a minister doesn't believe in Christ?

Do you think a daughter like that loved her father?

My father told me

when people get to know God they become unhappier and

if you can't overcome conflict or anguish you will curse God.

The reason I don't go to church is because of my father's advice.

How many people do you think can with that battle, like my father,

and stay with God?

Lord, I'm so scared.

Lord, you said that your soul is pure but your body shakes.

Seoul is burning.

Are you here, Lord, in the burning fire and this empty church?

Minister Na!

- Are you hurt? - It's not that bad.

The town below us is already swarming with enemy soldiers.

We heard the church bells and came here.

Please hide us. We are members of the church.

That doesn't matter.

Minister...

If the communists find us we're all dead.

I've already sent my daughter to a safe place.

Members of the flock need to find a safe place to rest.

You should go with them. You're going to have to take care of them.

Where did you hide them?

What is your relationship with them?

There must be a reason why you're risking your life to hide them.

I gave them my word.

- It's no use. - Fine.

Bring them in!

Get in here!

Over there!

These kids are the children of church deacons.

Whether we beat you or not depends on your minister.

Beg for your life. Beg!

But... they're kids. What are you going to do to them?

I'm sorry!

I promise I won't play with my ball in the church yard.

I'll ask my dad to pay you back for the window I broke.

Please help us. Please!

Let them go, they've done nothing wrong.

Of course they've done nothing wrong.

You're the minister that needs to protect their souls.

- Comrade! - Yes.

- Please save us! - Get out!

- Please forgive us! - I said let's go!

Lord, please help me.

There's nothing I can do...

I'm afraid I'm going to have to dishonor you.

Answer me. Where did you hide them?

Is that your answer?

Comrades!

Beg your minister and maybe we won't beat you.

Whether we beat you or not depends on your minister.

- Does it hurt? - No, I'm ok.

Lord! Which lamb am I to save?

When my wife died I didn't blame you.

Lord, what am I to do?

Lord, please give me strength.

Get inside!

Hurry and go inside!

They heard you were captured

and left to go to another place.

I told them you would keep their secret

and that they were safe but they left anyway.

What did you promise?

Who believes in promises made by humans?

You're the only idiot who believes humans will keep their promise.

Don't listen to his hypocrisy.

Even though they beat me within an inch of my life

I was happy.

If they didn't beat me, I would have hit myself.

God forgave me.

Now do you understand?

Cheol-hun said he quickly grew close with my father because of his spirit.

We're the ones asking the questions.

We're missing an important part.

How did you two fall in love?

You don't start living with someone because

they help you for a few days. Wouldn't that be ridiculous?

How did you fall in love?

Men always emphasize why they are in love

but women...

The only thing I'm sure of is why I don't like someone.

But living together...

Living together in chinese characters makes

it sound like two animals stuck together in a cave.

"living together" But we're not a wolf or a fox.

We're just together.

Like one person.

But you didn't love each other?

Because we're one.

Because of your secret...

Ah! And so? That's exactly what I'm talking about.

That secret is the crux of this story.

You misunderstand my use of the word "secret".

When weaknesses and bad elements come together,

that union is like a shadow that dies when the sun goes down.

If we got rid of our secrets, wouldn't we be able to come together as one?

I want to believe in miracles.

In order for one human to unite with another,

I now understand that we have to

touch each other's painful scars.

The reason Christ was able to form a union with humanity

was because of the scars on his hands.

Thomas didn't believe in the resurrection of Christ until Christ told him to

touch the scars from the nails on his hands and the scar from the sword on his side.

Scars that bleed from the darkest corners of your soul.

If these scars are touched, strangers becomes friends

and we all can become one.

What does he mean by touch a scar?

So what are you supposed to do?

Isn't that where the conspiracy starts?

Conspiracy?

Yes, you could call it a conspiracy.

By telling each other our secrets

we ended up turning it into the "confession game."

Aren't you going to ask what I mean by "confession game"?

It's like the catholics who confess to their priest.

Cheol-hun liked that game.

Ever since I was a kid I didn't really have any friends.

I did have this one friend.

His name was Lee Jin.

His family was descended from royalty.

Hey Kim! Relationships are based on people's weaknesses.

For example, alcohol or gambling or adultery.

Friendships made through these weaknesses...

are stronger than friendships based on morals or culture.

That's why gang members are extremely loyal.

Kim! Do you know how to swear?

One of the reasons you can't make friends

is because you don't know how to swear.

Kim, call me an jackass. Ok?

Try it. You jackass!

You jackass!

You jackass!

You jackass!

You jackass!

- You jackass! - You jackass!

It's an enemy plane.

Get up! Over there!

Sergeant!

Sergeant! Sergeant!

Sergeant, get up.

Those jackasses are all gone!

I treasured him more than I treasured myself.

If it were me in that spot

my friend would have at least lived...

But he died.

That always happened to me. I try to help someone...

instead I bring them misfortune.

When my brother was arrested it happened.

When I tried to save Lee Jin it happened...

Sin-hye! I'm scared to love someone else.

Sin-hye, this is my confession.

Sin-hye, it's your turn to make a confession.

This is what I mean by "confession game".

- Why do you keep avoiding it? - Avoiding what?

How Kim Cheol-hun killed your father and how you killed Kim Cheol-hun.

Tell me your secret.

- Look here! - Ok, continue.

It's your turn to make a confession.

Go ahead and tell me.

I haven't told anyone, not even my father

about this.

It's embarrassing and melodramatic

but if you really think about it, it's a meaningless incident.

It was cold. It was after the big retreat out of Seoul.

We had been walking nonstop since Seoul.

We? Who are you talking about?

My father's friend's son.

He had just gotten into university.

I was in love with him and

he acted as if he loved me.

It didn't feel like we were fleeing a war zone, it felt like we were going on a picnic.

But we were in the middle of a war and it was freezing.

He said we are in a war and

that bullets don't avoid young people.

What does that mean?

He wanted me.

I really liked him

but I told him we needed to keep our virginity.

Actually, I was just really young.

I was satisfied just looking at him and talking to him.

But he said

wars were started because they were jealous of the love between

beautiful and pure young kids.

What he was asking for was different from what playboys asked for.

Before he died and the god of war took him away

he wanted me.

But I wanted to stay pure.

Please don't laugh Cheol-hun.

His prediction was correct.

He was captured and I became an outsider.

I continued on with other refugees.

I got frostbite and my feet started to swell.

I was so exhausted I couldn't walk anymore.

- And¡¦ - And?

It was evening.

I wanted to hitch a ride in an army cargo truck,

so we went into a station compound with some others

and hid in the truck.

My frostbitten foot was so itchy I couldn't sleep a wink.

I suddenly became nervous. Was this truck going to leave?

How long were we going to have to wait in the truck?

We didn't know anything. Nobody knew.

In the middle of the night,

the Communist Chinese Army had blocked the road.

But... but¡¦

Sin-hye! I know it's hard.

I'm going to tell you. I will.

Help me!

Hurry! Hurry!

I didn't cry.

As I brushed the black coal from my skirt,

I swept away my youth, my love and my dreams.

This is the only secret I have.

I aged that day. I became cold.

I heard a door close.

Nobody could open the door

because I threw away the key on those train tracks.

People disappeared from sight.

I had the eyes of a mule. No matter how much I fought and screamed

I couldn't see anything.

Thank you Cheol-hun.

The day I wrote that note with my lipstick and asked for your help

was the day I saw another person's eyes for the first time, in a long time.

Just like a mule we can't see each other.

Don't be afraid, we're together now.

When two people come together

they touch each other's scars.

Sin-hye! We're now together. We're one!

Right, Sin-hye?

After your father passed away you two got together

and you were playing this¡¦ confession game?

It can be considered a type of game right?

- Were you playing on his grave? - I'm not going to deny it.

I don't want to deny anything.

Cheol-hun was right when he said people who know sadness

But that was way after we played the confession game.

After I was released from jail

and before he went to go see my father,

he asked me to go hiking with him.

Your dad thinks you work in an office building.

I'm not a Christian, after all.

That's something I can keep from my father right?

I lied to him too. I told him you were on a business trip.

Why would I do a favor for a girl

who was hauled off to jail for dancing?

Is it because I said I would repay your kindness?

Thank you for saving my father

but I don't have anything to give you.

It's ok Sin-hye.

I should be the one paying you.

I have never met anyone like your father.

Someone I could speak openly with.

Someone who needed me.

We talked a lot.

We were like people stranded on a deserted island

but don't be shocked,

he was already dead.

He had one final request.

He didn't want you to cry or be sad.

He wanted me to tell you that...

So, why did you break up?

You shared your secrets to become one

so why did it end so quickly?

If you've never lived with him

it's impossible for you to understand what he's like.

Hey.

Let go, come on.

He just hammers away, wherever he wants because it's not his house.

I think I made a mistake renting him the room.

Our life was a fantasy, like being in a play at first.

Cheol-hun called our life "adrift".

We are adrift at sea.

Everyone else on the boat has drowned and we are

the only two left, adrift at sea.

Then this window must be a porthole?

Oh?

You're so smart, Sin-hye.

Let's look out onto the ocean? What?

- But what is that awful smell? - The ocean breeze usually smells like this.

Where are the sails?

The flew off in the typhoon.

Look! The sails. It's the laundry, the laundry is over there.

Dirty laundry?

- Then what is that? - What?

- Is that the captain's cabin? - No, it's the engine room.

- What about that? - The deck.

Nautical map.

A compass.

Ah! This is lipstick.

This is the trade wind that brought us together.

Now that I think about it, the boat is destroyed

but the most important things are still here.

There's hope!

Sin-hye! We're going to discover a land that nobody

has ever been to.

At first, I thought his games were fun

because I was tired of the old men that surrounded me.

You enjoy the ocean breeze.

I'm going to catch us some fish for dinner.

Then I'm going to attach the sails to the boat.

- Can you give me my fishing rod? - Here!

What are they talking about?

It was stupid of me to ask you.

Wait! Why do you keep changing the topic?

I'm telling you in the order it happened.

Let's say that Kim Cheol-hun had plenty of reason to fall in love with you.

What about the scar?

Yes.

He hated his scar and wanted to live in his imaginary world.

But I didn't.

That scar made me see reality more clearly.

Inside me was a burning fire, a desire to live.

I had tenacity about me and

whenever something bad happened it reignited that fire.

But that door was still locked.

I wanted to find the person who had the key to open that door

but in the end, he didn't have the key.

Sir, you need to more objective.

She is going to do anything she can to make this look like a suicide.

She's making everything up.

So? So what happened?

We lived together

but I started to become bored and life was becoming dull.

Sin-hye!

- Do you know what this is? - What is it?

Guess.

How was today's voyage?

It was really windy.

Thanks to the wind, the two-way radio broke.

A radio that can only receive signals

is better off broken.

- What is it? - Guess.

A shirt?

Oh! A raincoat! A red raincoat right?

No, something even more valuable.

You can't find this in Seoul.

What could it be?

I'll show you.

Look.

Our very own mast.

If you stand on it you can see that our very own country

is closer that we thought.

At that moment, the flames in my stomach exploded

and I started to feel the fire inside heat up.

I wanted to play like this.

On top of the hill with the other kids

flying a kite.

But I... I had a cold and

my dad said I couldn't play with commoners.

Now there is no sky to fly a kite.

I wish there was a sky where I could dry my laundry.

We have already been adrift for a month.

Do you want to play the confession game?

I don't have anything to confess.

The flames inside were looking for somewhere to go

rocking back and forth inside,

but as always, the door was shut tight.

I wanted to live.

I didn't want to live in a fantasy. I wanted to live in a real world

where people would bleed when they scraped themselves.

The monsoon started and

Cheol-hun quit his job to write a novel.

I went out to look for a job.

It's raining again?

The monsoon season is too long.

Stop making that sound!

Please stop cutting your toenails.

What's wrong with you?

Are you bored, Sin-hye?

You're listening to the rain and cutting your toenails...

Please! Please... stop doing that!

Whenever we sleep together and I feel your body beside me,

I... keep thinking how we are like fish.

Like fish pulled out onto land, flapping their gills looking for water.

Your shoulders moving up and down as you breathe

remind me of the water.

I didn't want to say this but,

Sin-hye,

I'm sorry for talking about you like a fish with scraped scales.

Please forgive me.

People cut their toenails like they're sharpening a pencil.

It just sounds painful to me.

Please, please Sin-hye.

Please give me water. I want to live too. I want to live.

I wanted to open the door and shout out into the open space.

I suddenly decided I would break up with him.

That's after he became unemployed?

Yes, but it wasn't just because of our financial situation.

Playing the confession game, playing "adrift"

and hearing about a novel he kept saying he was going to write was boring.

Winter came.

I got a job in a small company.

I took an advance on my first paycheck and

we bought a briquette for the first time in a long time.

It was the first time I felt like we were married. Our life was fun.

- It feels like we're camping doesn't it? - Yes, it does.

See how one briquette can change this room?

Oh! Sin-hye,

do you want to play the confession game?

I don't have anything to confess.

I'll go first.

Sin-hye, did you know my camera was missing?

You didn't know right?

I gave my camera to a nude model.

Sin-hye, I decided I'm never going to take another picture!

When I was young, I was driven to school.

You saw it right?

I didn't go to school that often so...

You know, it was always parked in front of the school gate.

The black sedan, that was our car.

I see.

But after the revolution of April 19th my father went to jail.

I never thought my life would get so tough that

I would have to do this kind of work.

Cheol-hun, can you even imagine what it was like for me

when I first took my clothes off in front of other people?

I don't care how depraved you are

no girl wants to show their body off to men.

But in the bright daylight¡¦ as for me,

I stopped being embarrassed about my body before I lost my virginity.

I forgot what my body was supposed to be used for.

Now, it's a line, a contour,

a three-dimensional figure. That's what my body is...

Today is my mother's 60th birthday.

I see.

She still wants to be that rich woman she was.

I really want to give her a gift but¡¦

You don't have any money.

Cheol-hun, let's go for a long walk.

Just until her birthday is over.

Is that why you had a fight? Because you were jealous?

Jealous? I'm not sure.

Maybe it was because he kept wanting to play the confession game.

I don't have anything to confess. Nothing! I told you there's nothing!

Sin-hye! Are you jealous? Is it because of the camera?

What are you trying to tell me?

What's the point of confessing.

Fine. I'll confess! This is the last time!

Sin-hye!

I'm sick of this. Don't mistake it for jealousy.

Back when monsoon season started I made a decision.

Listen carefully to my confession.

This is not a boat. This is a room in the country that we

rent for 3000 won a month.

That is a window, not a porthole.

This is a cheap briquette heater.

What? A high performance diesel engine?

This is a bed, a bed!

How is this broken transistor radio a two-way radio.

I'm leaving tomorrow.

Scar, you may call it a scar but for me

the parts of me that aren't scarred are more important!

More important!

Emotional scars pale in comparison to a massive scar across your whole life.

This isn't a boat adrift at sea, it's an empty room.

It's the inside of a coffin for the dead.

You're just the youngest child of a landowner.

The lady who owns the house said she

heard something about a toothbrush and pen?

I also found this stocking beside the bed.

Why aren't you stopping me from leaving?

Oh, I guess I should but

I think it's best you leave.

While Sin-hye was packing her things, I realized

that in the end we were strangers.

I thought we were living

this miracle together.

We lived together for a long time but looking at her bags

I realized that her things and my things were completely separate from the start.

They weren't mixed together.

Here, this toothbrush is mine.

This sock is mine.

This book is Sin-hye's.

That's right!

From the beginning everything looked like it belonged to someone else.

These stockings,

from the beginning I thought they belonged to someone else.

This was the problem.

And? Tell me what happened next.

I suddenly felt sorry for him.

He was a sick 30 year old child that needed a guardian.

That's why I couldn't leave him alone.

It's our destiny to go our separate ways at any time.

Write your novel.

It will be easy for you to bring your imaginary world to life.

I'm just an animal with a body.

A silkworm can give us beautiful silk and

turn into a butterfly but I can't. I'm just an animal.

Please write your book. How does it end?

Does the protagonist eventually grow a mustache?

Yes. I'm going to write the novel.

Just this once, I'm going to make sure that helping

someone doesn't turn into a tragedy.

Why does that happen?

I don't want you to be destroyed.

Do you understand?

So? You're going to write the novel?

Yes.

The General's Mustache takes place one rainy summer night...

It was foggy and the rain was falling.

He was walking across a bridge.

A tire, a punctured tire

was rolling down.

He tries to avoid the tire

but this time the men with the soft mustaches,

the rain-soaked mustaches were chasing him.

That's when he saw it.

A black car, a strange car

shined its headlights on him and raced towards him.

The driver's face was covered by the General's Mustache.

He tried to run into a side street but

it hit him.

He fell down.

Rain was falling, there was a thick fog.

He lifts his head towards the disappearing car.

I'm going to die because of the mustache.

This is the last person whose face isn't covered by a mustache.

I'm dying.

This is not a car accident. It's not an accident,

he yelled as he was dying.

In the darkness there was a light.

The light from the red candles lit

at his first ever Christmas

were dancing in front of his eyes.

Those lights start to change into primary school students.

They are coming towards him

holding paper mustaches.

As he feels their mustaches coming closer and closer, he closes his eyes.

He is dead.

Have you heard of "seven spay"?

Humans wear seven masks when they live with another person.

In other words, they have seven layers.

Their real identity is at the very bottom.

Let's suppose that your mother and father take off one layer

and your significant other takes off another.

Your teacher takes one off,

your friend takes one off and

the sixth one you take off yourself.

It doesn't matter how talented an investigator you are,

if you think you can take off more than that, you're sorely mistaken.

Then who takes off the last layer...

When he said he wanted to write a novel, he was already dead.

It was because his last hope was gone

that he committed suicide.

Don't you think someone who has problems turning off a faucet

could have easily left the lid off the heater?

He's not capable of functioning in society.

He lost his job and has nothing to eat, of course he's dead.

I killed Cheol-hun. I killed him!

It was the land, the land took revenge on him.

It was the land that killed him.

He's dead.

I'm going to burn all the interviews.

So that's the end of this investigation?

How are you going to write your report?

- What do you think? - It seems clear to me.

Like I said from the beginning it was suicide caused by schizophrenia.

It seems pretty obvious.

If that's what you think, that's what you should put in your report.

Let me go! Give me back my money!

- Just go. - Are you trying to steal my money.

Are you saying I'm crazy? I'm not crazy. I'm not crazy.

Where are you taking me? You thieves!

They're trying to steal my money!

Help me! Help me!

I said help me! Someone, anyone!

Who is it?

How have you been?

Now what do you want to know?

I really don't know anything else.

All I know is that one man died on March 26th.

That's it.

It's May now.

It was cold then, but now the flowers are blooming.

If someone dies, does time stop?

He died because he didn't want to live anymore.

He wouldn't want people to

be talking about him.

We need to forget about him, just like he wanted us to.

Please, just go.

Why have I lost my self confidence?

I was a capable investigator, the one who could catch a goblin.

That's what people called me.

But this investigation...

it's breaking me.

I saw the murderer

but I couldn't use my handcuffs to put them in the witness box.

Loneliness.

It has suddenly brandished a weapon and stabbed someone.

It is a dark night, rain is falling and the murderer is waiting in the wet alley.

The murderer moves into the room,

lifts the sheet and stabs the heart.

Hello.

I'm taking home a gift for the first time in a long time.

The kids will be happy, right?

My wife will be happy, too.

Korean Film Archive presents Korean captions and English subtitles are sponsored by Google Translations and subtitles by Free Film Communications