Written by: Park Chan-wook & Jeong Seo-kyeong
Starring: Song Kang-ho, Kim Ok-bin, Kim Hae-sook, Shin Ha-kyun, Park In-hwan, Song Young-chang
Rating: [4/5]
Everything in life has its drawbacks one must be aware of. You give and take some and in Thirst we see the greatness that comes with having the capabilities of operating as a vampire but also the horrific downsides accompanying it making for quite the erotic experience as these creatures tend to fall into. With this feature, we see all of the conflict that comes with it not only on a human level but also when religion and guilt get thrown into the bloody mixture.
A Catholic priest, Sang-hyun (Song Kang-ho) volunteers to be a patient in the hope of ending a deadly disease and killing anyone who contracts it. After a transfusion in the process, he awakens with a lust for human blood that keeps any pain and afflictions at bay but he must continually drink blood to maintain. This gets more complicated when he meets, Tae-ju (Kim Ok-bin) as she navigates her difficult circumstance.
Taking one look at Thirst and how it manages to operate in the playground of the vampire subgenre, it becomes quite obvious Park Chan-wook took the helm in bringing this story to life. With his style, he was made to tell a story revolving around vampires and the general sexuality that always surrounds them in the way they feed and offer such an alluring prospect to anyone interested in having this life. To no surprise, what he delivers is nothing short of outstanding in how it demonstrates this particular way of living as a vampire but what would transpire if this happened to a Catholic priest.
Seen as the pinnacle of holiness on Earth even if they do not meet this standard on most occasions, having a priest go through this vampire experience adds an extra layer to the wild nature of this feature. In the initial stages of this feature when he first develops this thirst for blood, we have Sang-hyun deeply battling with the implications of what his actions thereafter mean regarding morality. He battles with whether he can ethically extract blood from others in order to keep himself going and this throughline continues for the rest of the feature, especially when a wild card gets thrown into the mix making everything a bit messier in the process.
Utilizing the vampire lore of the dangers of ultraviolet light and others, this feature harps on the idea of consumption and how Sang-hyun and anyone struggling with this state can maintain themselves. Not just in how they extract blood from others but the manner in which it gets done, which raises some dubious questions marks needing some answers attached to them. Incredibly intriguing to analyze within the larger conceit that Sang-hyun will die if he does not consume blood, as it serves as his nourishment as food does for human beings. It makes humans the source of food for these vampires and flips the script on how we can view the way we can consume other species as Sang-hyun would ingest our blood for his sustenance.
However, with all of the ethical issues and guilt riding throughout this feature, Park Chan-wook creates something incredibly funny as well in how everything plays out. The moments with Tae-ji, in particular, bring genuine humor to the story in the different ways they handle the circumstances placed before them. These moments feel wrong because of the larger implications of what’s transpiring around them, but you cannot help but laugh. Park Chan-wook maintains the tone very well throughout making these laughs occur at just the right moments while still maintaining the larger themes this feature seeks to evoke throughout the larger story. Some genuinely heartbreaking events occur in this feature but the film manages to maintain the seriousness of those little moments while also allowing for some laughter to appear at some of the actions transpiring. This added dimension brings another further addition to the entertainment factor this feature brings to the table.
With Park Chan-wook’s slick direction and Chung Chung-hoon’s exceptional cinematography, this feature also gets boosted by a strong performance by the always-reliable Song Kang-ho, but Kim Ok-bin completely steals the show. Her performance as Tae-ju provides a litany of complexity in the way we, as the audience, and Sang-hyun view her as the narrative transpires. She serves as the foil but also the wild card in how she changes everything in the feature for Sang-hyun and wreaks havoc. An inspired performance and one that continued to surprise throughout.
Vampires have always carried this sex appeal to them but I would argue no film captures it to the level of Thirst. Not only in the sex scenes it displays but the eroticism involved in how these creatures live. It makes for such an enthralling feature and it keeps the audience guessing in which ways it will go in both a thrilling and comedic manner making for such an entertaining viewing experience.
Films with Josh 
