''Azooma'' () is a 2012 South Korean

crime thriller film Crime film is a film belonging to the crime fiction genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and fiction. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine with many other genres, such as drama or gangster film, but al ...

starring

Jang Young-nam Jang Young-nam (; born November 25, 1973) is a South Korean actress. She began her career as an acclaimed actress in theater, then transitioned to supporting roles on television and film, notably in works by director Jang Jin. A member of Jang J ...

in her first leading role as a mother seeking justice for the rape of her ten-year-old daughter. It made its world premiere at the 2012

Busan International Film Festival The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF; ), formerly the Pusan International Film Festival (PIFF), held annually in Haeundae District, Busan, South Korea, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. The first festival, held fro ...

, and was released in theaters on April 18, 2013. The film has since received recognition in the international film festival circuit. Written and directed by Lee Ji-seung, the movie's English title is a

transliteration Transliteration is a type of conversion of a text from one script to another that involves swapping letters (thus '' trans-'' + '' liter-'') in predictable ways, such as Greek → and → the digraph , Cyrillic → , Armenian → or L ...

of the Korean term "

ajumma Ajumma (), sometimes spelled ahjumma or ajoomma, is a Korean word for a married, or middle-aged woman. It comes from the Korean word ''ajumeoni'' (). Although it is sometimes translated "aunt An aunt is a woman who is a sibling of a parent ...

" (), a form of address used for married (or simply older) women that has complex connotations and by which Jang's character is always called. The film's Korean title means ''A Fair Society''.

Plot

Seoul, the present day. Ten-year-old Yeon-joo (Lee Jae-hee) is picked up outside school by a man (Hwang Tae-kwang) who says he knows her mother and is then driven to a flat where she is sexually abused. Six hours later, her mother, Yoon Young-nam (

), reports her disappearance to the police, who say it is too soon to launch a proper investigation. After being found dumped on the street in a suitcase, Yeon-joo is taken to a hospital by Yoon and recovers; however, Yoon's ex-husband, TV celebrity dentist Dr. Lee (Bae Sung-woo), is not happy at the adverse publicity Yoon's action has generated. Yoon eventually persuades a busy detective, Ma (

Ma Dong-seok Lee Dong-seok (; born March 1, 1971), better known by the stage names Ma Dong-seok () and Don Lee, is an American actor and film producer based in South Korea. He gained early recognition for his supporting roles in '' Nameless Gangster: Rules ...

), to take an interest in the case; he questions Yeon-joo in hospital but the child reveals little. Later, a female police officer questions her, with more success. Angry at the apparent slowness with which the police are treating the case, Yoon tracks down the child molester herself and confronts him at his flat. After a struggle and chase, the police arrive and take both of them in, though en route the child molester escapes. Yoon decides to take more radical action.

Cast

- Yoon Young-nam *

- Detective Ma *Hwang Tae-kwang - the rapist *Bae Sung-woo - Dr. Lee *Lee Jae-hee - Lee Yeon-joo

Awards

*2013

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

International Film and Video Festival: First Prize in the Feature Narrative section *2013

Beloit International Film Festival The Beloit International Film Festival (BIFF) is an annual film festival in Beloit, Wisconsin Beloit ( ) is a city in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 36,657 people. Beloit is a princi ...

: Best Feature Film *2013 Irvine International Film Festival: Best Actress -

*2012 Costa Rica International Film Festival: Best Feature Film *2012 Nevada Film Festival: Platinum Award *2012 Director's Guild of Korea: Best Actress -

References

External links

''Azooma''
at M-Line Distribution * * {{kmdb film, 13274 Rape and revenge films 2010s Korean-language films South Korean crime drama films 2012 films 2012 crime drama films 2010s South Korean films