AllMovie

An embittered wife sets her family down the path of tragedy in this grim drama from acclaimed South Korean filmmaker Kim Ki-duk (Arirang, Pieta). Enraged at the discovery of her husband's infidelity, a woman unsuccessfully attempts to castrate him before turning the blade on her own son. In the bloody aftermath of her unthinkable transgression, she vanishes without a trace. Meanwhile, overcome with grief after rushing his son to a local hospital, the repentant father severs his own manhood in an excruciating act of solidarity with his suffering son. Later, physically disfigured and mentally scarred, the son finds a strange sense of solace in the company of his father's mistress. The father, too, having fallen into a deep despair in his failed attempts to bring his son some amount of pleasure, realizes that his struggle has only just begin when his wife reappears, and an even blacker cycle of darkness begins.