Doll Master

The Doll Master (Korean: 인형사; RR: Inhyeongsa) is a 2004 South Korean horror film directed by Jeong Yong-ki.

Doll Master
Theatrical poster
Directed byJeong Yong-ki
Produced byHan Man-taek
Written byJeong Yong-gi
CinematographyJo Cheol-ho
Edited byNam Na-yeong
Distributed byLotte Cinema
Cineclick Asia
Release date
  • 30 July 2004 (2004-07-30)
Running time
90 minutes
CountrySouth Korea
LanguageKorean
Budget$2 million

Plot

60 years ago, a doll-maker and a woman in a red kimono (Jeong Yu-mi) fell in love in the Korean countryside, and the doll-maker made a doll in her image. Later, when the red kimono woman was found murdered, the blame was put on the doll-maker. He was arrested and killed by vigilantes in the woods. Not content to be without her maker, the doll sat by his grave for all eternity.

In present day, Hae-mi (Kim Yoo-mi), a sculptor, Tae-seong (Shim Hyung-tak), a model looking for work, Young-ha (Ok Ji-young), a woman who talks to her doll like it's alive, Jung-ki (Im Hyung-joon), a photographer, and Sun-young (Lee Ka-yeong), a ditzy high school student, arrive at an isolated doll museum after receiving an invitation that dolls will be made in their image. They are greeted by siblings Choi Jin-wan (Chun Ho-jin), the museum’s curator, and Im Jae-won (Kim Do-young), the paraplegic doll-maker.

Then, odd events begin to occur. Hae-mi catches sight of a mysterious young girl in a red dress who shows up repeatedly on the museum grounds. Tae-seong has an encounter with a doll that touches him, and it is revealed that the curator is keeping a man chained underground. Hae-mi finally meets the red-dress girl, learning that her real name is Mi-na (Lim Eun-kyung). Things take a nasty turn when someone destroys Young-ha's doll; Young-ha is found hanged. Panic arises in the group. Hae-mi is alarmed to find a crying Mi-na with bloody hands. Mi-na asks Hae-mi why she doesn't recognize or remember her, before fleeing in tears. Inside the house, Sun-young and Jung-ki are both murdered.

Hae-mi finally remembers that when she was younger, she had a doll that she loved so much that it gained a soul, resulting in Mi-na. Tae-seong reveals himself to be a police officer who had come to investigate a recent murder at the museum, and handcuffs Hae-mi in suspicion. However, Im reveals that she is possessed by the red kimono doll, who wants to avenge its maker; all the guests Im invited are the descendants of the doll-maker's vigilante killers. Angry at being rejected by Hae-mi, Mi-na admits to murdering the other guests and kills Tae-seong before going after Hae-mi. She stops her murder attempt when she sees Hae-mi's scar, remembering the childhood incident where Hae-mi protected her. However, Im destroys Mi-na's soul before attempting to finish off Hae-mi, who kills Im in defense.

The chained man, revealed to be Im's husband, escapes prison and kills the curator. He finds his dying wife, saying he regrets bringing the red kimono doll from the woods after all the trouble it caused. In the end, Hae-mi and Im's husband burn the dolls and the remaining corpses.

Cast
  • Kim Yoo-mi as Hae-mi, the sculptor
  • Shim Hyung-tak as Tae-seong, the "model" who later reveals to be a police officer
  • Ok Ji-young as Young-ha, the woman with the Demian doll
  • Lee Ka-yeong as Sun-young, the ditzy high school student
  • Im Hyung-joon as Jung-ki, the photographer
  • Lim Eun-kyung as Mi-na, the soul of the doll Hae-mi once owned. She was later retrieved by Im Jae-won after being discarded.
  • Chun Ho-jin as Choi Jin-wan, the museum's curator and Im's brother
  • Kim Do-young as Im Jae-won, the museum's doll maker
  • Jeong Yu-mi as woman in red kimono. She was the muse for the red kimono doll.
  • Byeon Ju-yeon as young Hae-Mi
  • Nam Myung-ryul as Im Jae-won's husband who was chained throughout the film

Dolls

Although the story states that the dolls are decades old, many of them featured in the film are modern ball-jointed dolls. Some of the dolls such as Mi-na and Demian are a part of the "Event" series of "The AI" dolls from a Korean doll company called Custom House.[1]

References
  1. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 16 December 2008. Retrieved 2008-10-31.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) "July : Movie [Doll Master] Main character Mina doll released"
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