Hypermasculinity and Desire in Old Boy

This week, the two readings that I found most intriguing were Lynne Joyrich's analysis of the phenomenon of hypermasculinity and Mary Doane's take on the feminine viewing position and the desire to desire. Between the two screenings, though I did find The Stray Bullet to be an interesting film, Old Boy in particular kept me rapt throughout the movie. I spent much time thinking about how these two readings applied especially well to this film, and after Professor Chun's question at the end of class Wednesdsay, particularly to the incestuous scene between the two siblings.

Obviously, perhaps the most crucial part of this (excruciatingly awkward) scene is the mirror. The young woman is visibly uncomfortable with her brother's taboo actions until she holds up the mirror, at which point her face gradually breaks into an expression of pride and fulfillment. The mirror here seems to satisfy the woman's desire to be desired, as enunciated by Doane; though she has been made into an unwilling object by none other than her own brother, the woman seems elated when she views the experience from a different view. Her view in the mirror seems to serve, for her, as the view of the camera, and she takes on the strange duality of being both a spectator and a participant in the on-screen action. One could argue that the mirror also fulfills her desire to desire, as she looks at her brother's face and feels a certain attraction to him as well, now that he has fulfilled her desire to be desired.

But enough about desire; the events in this scene, arguably the most important in the entire film, can also be linked to the phenomenon of hypermasculinity to explain the antagonist's actions throughout the movie. For the rest of the movie, Lee Woo-Jin is attempting to make up for the challenge to his masculinity posed by a witness, Oh Dae-Su, who has seen him in a position universally frowned upon by the rest of society. Oh Dae-Su may not realize just what he has seen (nor does he understand the consequences of his gaze), but the fact that he has witnessed it is enough to not only lead to Woo-Jin's sister's assited suicide but subconsciously drive Lee Woo-Jin to prove his masculinity through acts of severe violence and inhumanity. Only by perpetually toying with Oh Dae-Su to bring him beneath his level through an even more disturbing taboo can Lee Woo-Jin regain his position of power and masculinity. Once he has regained this position, he not only loses all drive to torment Oh Dae-Su, as is revealed when he allows Mi-do to leave the box shut, but he loses all will to live and commits suicide. It's an incredibly disturbing sequence of events, but it all ties in perfectly with the readings and shows that Joyrich's example of hypermasculinity in TV can be extended to films as well.