Faust (2015 film)

Faust (Hwangji: 파우스트; lit, Faust) is a 2015 Hwangji drama directed by Ye Kwang, starring Cah Kwang, Sol Sang-Chol and Eoh Jung-Ah. It was released theatrically on August 12th, 2015. The screenplay is based on the novel of the same name, written in 1996 by Sang Cho-Il. The film is set around 2010 and centers around 24 year old college drop out Jung Tae-Suk who attempts to kill himself, coming into the after life and meeting the myseterious being Faust who forces puts Tae-Suk into the lives of 6 different people to make him appreciate the life that he has been given. Also featured in the film was Sol Sang-Chol, Hwangbo Sung-Soo and Pak Song-Sun.

The film was released to much praise and became the first installment of the Faust series. It was followed up by a sequel, Faust 2 which was released in 2019 with a follow up film Faust 3 as well as a spin off on the early life of Faust titled Man of Mystery being in production.

Plot
Jung Tae-Suk is a well meaning but egotistical and proud man who believes himself smarter than others, after being rejected from yet another job interview, he receives a call from his long-time girlfriend who informs him that she's breaking up with him and that she's moving on to another man, unwilling to keep herself back to try and support Tae-Suk after 5 years of fruitless dating. After this call, he ponders on the unfairness of his life, realising how pointless his existence is and convincing himself that no one would really care for his own suicide and death. Thus Tae-Suk walsk to the top of the apartment block where he lives, ignoring a call from his mother as he leaps off.

Tae-Suk wakes to finds himself in a room and he comes to meet Faust, a well dressed man who sits on a chair as he cleans out a revolver. He explains to Tae-Suk that he have to relive the lives of others, as punishment for his suicide. Tae-Suk attempts to leave though he is unable to escape as Faust walks up and places the barrel of the revolver to his temple and shoots him. Tae-Suk awakes to find himself in the body of a 32 year old hobo as he receieves all of his memories, despondent at his situation and believing that Faust has no right to meddle with his suicide, he grabs a nearby knife and slits his throat. Tae-Suk awakens back to the room, shouting at Faust for his actions however Faust ignores him as he shoots Tae-Suk once again with his revolver. Tae-Suk awakens again, this time as obese 17 year old student Yeok Gi-cheol, upon recieving his memories and realising that Gi-Cheol is suffering from intense bullying, Tae-Suk becomes incensed at his bullies and vows to get revenge. Tae-Suk arrives at school the next day, using a pipe that he picks up from the back of Gi-Cheol's home, he beats Gi-Cheol's bullies in one of the school alleyways. Encouraged with his success, after school he goes on a run though he meets one of Gi-Cheol's bullies, Tan Jae-Sun, who savagely beats Tae-Suk before stabbing multiple times him with a knife and running away.

When Tae-Suk awakens back to the house, he complains bitterly to Faust about the unfairness about doing a good thing only to be killed. Faust merely ignores him, asking whether he thinks that he should be treated fairly for doing good things. Tae-Suk ponders but doesn't get to answer before Faust raises the revolver to his head and shoots him again. Tae-Suk finds himself with a knife and blood all over his hands he finds himself as the famed Yungso Murderer who has just murdered a couple in his home. Tae-Suk begins to grapple with the reality of his situation as he questions himself about what to do. Tae-Suk soon realises that he cannot cope with living as a famed murderer, deciding that he will make the best use of his time and then kill himself in order to save the trouble of the authorities. Collecting all the valuables and withdrawing all the money he can, Tae-Suk leaves it in a safe before killing himself with a bread knife and returning back to the house. There he is questioned by Faust on why he killed himself so effortlessly, Tae-Suk tells Faust about that he wouldn't let himself live as a famed murderer, not wanting him to continue getting away with all the murders that he has committed. Faust disagrees, telling Tae-Suk that he simply doesn't care enough and doesn't want to really put the effort to make things right. But before Tae-Suk can protest, Faust shoots him in the head again as Tae-Suk starts another life.

Upon waking up, Tae-Suk finds himself as veteran firefighter Tham Young-Nam. Tham is considered to be a jaded lazy man, having spent years sidelined by colleagues and it no longer respected by many of his juniors. In particular, firefighter Pang Hyun-Shik regularly criticizes Young-Name flippant attitude with his job with Tae-Suk also finding out he has an unhappy home life as his wife is regularly deployed with the Marines and he does not have the time to take care of his daughter who stays with his sister in Zalu. Tae-Suk, resolved to prove Faust wrong, decides to take matters into his own hands and starts to show effort in his work. This is noticed by his colleagues, including Hyun-Shik who is initially surprised and skeptical but is quickly won over by the new enthusiasm from his seniors. On his first call with the firefighters, Tae-Suk is involved with a fire at a factory, however they come under fire from some gunfire. In a slit second decision, Tae-Suk orders the firefighters to run away as he provides a distraction with one of the fire hoses, allowing them to escape before he is gunned down despite cries from Hyun-Shik to get to them. Tae-Suk awakens back to protest to Faust over this injustice, he does good things and yet he still dies, arguing that all that these lives have shown him is that life is truly pointless as no matter what you do, you die anyway. Faust queries whether Tae-Suk really thinks life is so one dimensional, questioning whether he thinks all these lives have truly been for nothing. Tae-Suk answers that he does, but doesn’t get to say more before Faust shoots him again.

Upon waking up, Tae-Suk finds himself as veteran firefighter Tham Young-Nam. Tham is considered to be a jaded lazy man, having spent years sidelined by colleagues and it no longer respected by many of his juniors. In particular, firefighter Pang Hyun-Shik regularly criticizes Young-Name flippant attitude with his job with Tae-Suk also finding out he has an unhappy home life as his wife is regularly deployed with the Marines and he does not have the time to take care of his daughter who stays with his sister in Zalu. Tae-Suk, resolved to prove Faust wrong, decides to take matters into his own hands and starts to show effort in his work. This is noticed by his colleagues, including Hyun-Shik who is initially surprised and skeptical but is quickly won over by the new enthusiasm from his seniors. On his first call with the firefighters, Tae-Suk is involved with a fire at a factory, however they come under fire from some gunfire. In a slit second decision, Tae-Suk orders the firefighters to run away as he provides a distraction with one of the fire hoses, allowing them to escape before he is gunned down despite cries from Hyun-Shik to get to them. Tae-Suk awakens back to protest to Faust over this injustice, he does good things and yet he still dies, arguing that all that these lives have shown him is that life is truly pointless as no matter what you do, you die anyway. Faust queries whether Tae-Suk really thinks life is so one dimensional, questioning whether he thinks all these lives have truly been for nothing. Tae-Suk answers that he does, but doesn’t get to say more before Faust shoots him again.

When he comes to, Tae-Suk is now Do Dae-Jung, a career thief who is serving a 9 year sentence in a minimum security prison for a heist he conducted under the auspices of one of the country’s largest corporations. Tae-Suk is incensed at this choice, not wishing to spend 9 years of his life in prison. Yet he grits his teeth, wanting to prove that he can get through this without giving up. 3 years into his sentences and a new inmate arrives this turn out to be Ji Jae-Sun, upon learning how easy Jae-Sun has been living since the end of high school, entering only because of a drunk driving incident in which he accidentally killed a teenage girl, Tae-Suk corners him in a quiet corner of the prison. Tae-Suk beats him bloody as revenge for what he did to Gi-Cheol, revealing his knowledge of the murder of Gi-Cheol which Jae-Sun carefully had hidden with help from his rich father. Tae-Suk proceeds to carry out the rest of his sentence, safe from revenge by Gi-Cheol who fears his crime will be revealed. Eventually, Tae-Suk is released on parole after 4 years. Amongst the first encounters he has after prison is visiting one of the local cemeteries, seeking to look for the remains of Young-Nam. He soon recognises it’s actually the anniversary of his death, there he finds Hyun-Shik with a young woman leaning on his shoulder with a young girl by his side. He soon recognises them as Young-Nam’s sister and daughter. Soon seeing the rings on their fingers and realizing what his death has allowed. Invigorated by what he has seen, Tae-Suk returns to the old home of Dae-Jung after picking up the money he left when he was the Yungso Murderer. There he finds that his next door neighbor is his mother. Tae-Suk’s attempts to interact with her fall on deaf ears despite attempts over the weeks. One day, as he is preparing to go for a run, he is kidnapped by men hired to keep him quiet over his involvement with the heist that landed him in prison. Despite this, Tae-Suk is content with his death, accepting it as he lands himself back in front of Faust.

Tae-Suk has no words this time, seeing how the lives he lead as Gi-Cheol, Young-Nam and the Yungso Murderer has affected not only other people but shown him the value he lead as those lives yet he still queries whether his own death would cause much considering how he lost everything, not thinking anyone would really care. Faust smirks, raising the pistol and shooting him once again as Tae-Suk finds himself in the body of his mother. There he is flooded with memories of his mother’s experiences since his death which has now occurred over 5 years ago. Upon finding hundreds of empty pill bottles in her trash and a dilapidated apartment, Tae-Suk breaks down crying.

12 years later, Tham Eum Mi, now a journalist, is investigating the story of a woman who claims to have lived multiple lives. She arrives at retirement home where Tae-Suk, still as his mother, recognises her immediately and promises to tell her all about her stories as well as surprising her about the story about her father. Though, when she returns the next day to visit, she is informed that the woman had died the previous night. Tae-Suk returns to Faust, there after having lived the 12 years of his mother’s life as well as experiencing the effects that he has caused by living the lives of other people as well as the beauty and pain that comes with it, he breaks down begging to not die leading to Faust to fire the last bullet in his gun.

Suddenly Tae-Suk returns back to the ledge, tears still in his eyes as he picks up the phone to his mum, telling her he didn’t get the job but that he’ll try again, promising that he will make her proud.