Somewhere Between Anti-Heroism and Pantomime: Song Kang-ho and the Uncanny Face of the Korean Cinema

This article explores the trajectory of Song Kang-ho’s on-screen performances from the

release of his fourth film, Number 3 (1997), to one of his most recent films, Thirst (2009).

As a case study, it reveals new insights about this popular and representative actor’s

numerous screen personae and how they have enabled audiences to peer into a cinematic

surface that reflects back a mixture of anti-heroism and pantomime. Beneath the

many costumes and performance styles he adopts, audiences have come to see a human

being with everyday problems and concerns. In a way reminiscent of the French pantomime

clown Pierrot, Song’s characters reflect a depth of human feeling and compassion

modulated by a comic undercurrent—the tension between these overlapping layers is

precisely what holds his various personae together.