imaseed

I was quite surprised by Payback. It's a more interesting, profound, and well-rounded film than I had imagined and expected, and most of this stems from its pacing and the psychological development of Sun. In terms of genre, I'd guess the film is more of a character study, using romance as a... medium, or a healing remedy for the characters' psychological trauma. However, the individual character arcs still feel somewhat more engaging and worth discussing. The film really did a decent job with the "show, don't tell" aspect; the inner conflicts, tragedies, and traumas are portrayed clearly without feeling forced or superficial. For this, praise must be given to the expressive acting through the eyes of the actor playing Sun. On one hand, I could feel a sense of "how this scene would look if it were drawn in a manhwa"; on the other hand, I also saw the characters as cinematic figures, like tiny fragments of real people in actual society.

The story still features dark elements stemming from the dark side of the industry and human nature, with nuances ranging from emotional numbness and total depletion to hatred and love. The most obvious revenge arc in the film clearly isn't about making the villains pay a horrific price, but rather about the characters' process of self-healing and finding themselves again—through love (not just romantic love), and through every bit of warmth they can still feel in their frozen hearts. In reality, Sun's revenge isn't all that aggressive or burning with hatred, and the conclusion doesn't even lead to much. This is because, intrinsically, whether before or after knowing the truth and deciding to take revenge, Sun remains a person devoid of his own emotions, to the point where it seems the person he truly wants to punish and torment is actually himself. Therefore, the true conclusion of this revenge, for Sun, is the moment he chooses to forgive—to forgive himself. And that is a very humane ending and journey.

As for the other character, Jay, his revenge arc seems a bit more methodical and proper. Although slightly rushed, he did manage to reclaim what belonged to him, and more importantly, he managed to win back his lover.

And, besides the two main leads, the motives, life goals, and reasons to keep moving forward for many other characters also stem from "revenge." Only for everyone to eventually realize that the best way to take revenge on others is to live better, to repay oneself for never stopping the effort and never giving up (even when moving forward aimlessly at times). The love in the film is very warm, magical, and full of miraculous coincidences. But that doesn't really matter, as long as the film successfully conveys its core values.

The romantic relationship in the film is decent; it's not the main focus and plays its role well. For me, there's nothing to complain about regarding that. Even though the chemistry feels a bit weird at times, overall, I still understand the intention and the dynamic of the couple that the producers wanted to portray. That is enough for a good film.

Undeniably, there are many parts of the film that could have been done better, explored deeper, or pushed further. But beyond just getting a satisfying revenge, I think what the film elevates more is the humane meaning behind it—a value that I can feel 100%, without it being overly on-the-nose or forced like some of those preachy "life lesson" type of movies out there.