Daily Dialogue — April 30, 2017

Lady Hideko: [whispering] What does a man really want?
Sook-Hee: What?
Lady Hideko: What I mean is… the weeding night. How would I know? I grew up without a mother to teach me. I have no idea about any of this. [pause] Probably kissing first?
Sook-Hee: [thinking] All right. Let’s try to put her to sleep. So adorable. In a foreign country and without a mother. Alone in this giant mansion. Reading useless books. And learning nothing of value.
Lady Hideko: [thinking] Why did the taste change? Sour and bitter. Within the bitterness changes to sweetness. Sweet with a nice scent. How do you know? Have you done this before?
Sook-Hee: Nope, not at all, my friend showed me this.
Lady Hideko: Showed you? By describing?
Sook-Hee: Yes, by describing.
Lady Hideko: So this is the feeling!
Sook-Hee: This is what the Count wants!
Lady Hideko: Really?
Sook-Hee: The Count…
Lady Hideko: Would it be like being with a corpse? You know, my hands and legs cold?
Sook-Hee: Is that so?
Lady Hideko: Do you want to feel it?
Sook-Hee: I just feel relieved!
Lady Hideko: Relief? Do it to me. I want to personally know if it’s relieving.
Sook-Hee: The Count will want to do this too. And also… So cute! If the Count sees this…
Lady Hideko: Will he be as gentle as you?
Sook-Hee: Of course! The Count will also… also…
Lady Hideko: Continue! Just like that! As if the Count was doing it!
Sook-Hee: After that, he would say “How soft and warm.” So… so wet. Your beauty leaves me breathless!

— The Handmaiden (2016), screenplay by Seo-kyeong Jeong & Chan-wook Park inspired by Sarah Waters novel

The Daily Dialogue theme for the week: Coming Out, suggested by Angry Cyborg.

Trivia: During the script writing stage, Director Park and his female co-writer Seo-kyeong Jeong often sought the advice of one of Chung’s best friends, who was a queer woman, for advice on the sensibilities of queer women.

Dialogue On Dialogue: After a slow build in their mutual seduction, the two women consummate their affair, ironically while simulating “what a man wants”.