[HanCinema's Film Review] "Sa Bangji" + Full Movie

Inspired by the real life of Sa Bangji, an intersex person of the Joseon Dynasty, "Title for Members Only" is a rather interesting title, not just due to its unique subject, but in the way it combines the erotic with the melodramatic.

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Sa Bangji is the product of the union between a hardened criminal and a mentally disturbed woman. She is also an hermaphrodite, who, as the movie begins, is taken in and cared for by the abbott in a monastery. Eventually, though, Bangji decides to leave the protected setting in order to get to know the world, soon ending up working in a household as a caretaker. Her evident beauty has both men and women in the area lusting for her, with the young-widow of the household, Lee So-sa, ending up being the one sharing her bed. The two of them soon move beyond the erotic, but their relationship is discovered by the elders of the family and So-sa betrays Sa Bangji. Sa Bangji barely escapes with her life and begins to roam from place to place. She soon meets a shaman priestess named Myo-hwa and plots to take revenge on those who wronged her, all the while essentially prostituting herself.

Song Kyung-shik directs a movie that includes almost every favorite aspect of Korean audiences, with the melodrama, the episodic structure and the odyssey-like story moving towards a distinct crowd-pleasing path. At the same time though, there are two elements that make the movie stand completely apart from almost any other local production. Obviously, the first one is the main character, with this probably being the first time an hermaphrodite is the protagonist of a Korean movie. Song highlights the difficulties her life presents as soon as people discover her true identity, with words like ' monster ' and 'abomination' setting the tone quite eloquently here, with the drama emerging mostly from this root.

The second is the erotic, which begins as simple sensuality before it becomes more and more steamy, with the sex scenes following a homosexual path, which can also be perceived as a comment regarding the subject, particularly during the era. The way these scenes change as the story progresses is also interesting, as the artistic first ones soon give their stead to more titillating ones, with the last pointing somewhere close to soft-porno, despite its briefness and lack of nudity. Also of interest is the less-than-a-second one that presents Sa Bangji's member, in a moment that definitely remains on the mind of the viewer.

Furthermore, as the artistic gives its place to the pornographic, violence also becomes a part of the movie, eventually combined with drama in some of the most melodramatic scenes of the movie, closer to the end. These scenes can also be perceived as a kind of comment, with the women in the story getting punished in the worst way for their deeds, in a rather conservative approach that goes into a completely opposite direction than the main premises of the movie.

Considering the aforementioned, two of the most crucial aspects of the film are the acting and the cinematography, and it is easy to say that they are also two of its best assets. Lee Hye-young-I gives a tremendous performance as Sa Bangji, with her transformation from a victim to a femme fatale and back to a victim being great to watch, as much as the love she shows for So-sa, even despite her betrayal. Her evident beauty also benefits the movie significantly, considering its erotic nature, with DP Joo Hong-shik, highlighting it in every chance, and even more so in the erotic scenes.

And talking about cinematography and sex scenes, Joo Hong-shik's work finds its apogee during the many such instances, with the way they change also being a trait of the movie that should be attributed equally to the director. Furthermore, the presentation of the era is excellent, while Kim Hyeon-I's editing results in a rather fast pace that allows the many episodes to unfold nicely, along with the characters appearing in them. The montage of the erotic scene with the festival celebrations is where this aspect finds its apogee.

"Title for Members Only" is a very entertaining film to watch, but most of all, I feel that its value lies in its uniqueness, which makes a title definitely worth watching. 

Review by Panos Kotzathanasis

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"Title for Members Only" is directed by Song Kyung-shik, and features Lee Hye-young-I, Bang Hee, Kwak Jung-hee, Park Am, Lee Kyoung-hee, Lee Dong-shin. Release date in Korea: 1988/10/29.