From the director of Pain and Typhoon, Kwak Kyung-taek presents the comedy
drama The Ugly Duckling, based on the director’s time serving in the military. The
film follows Private Jeon, a 23 year old service man in 1987 Korea, a time of political
unrest. Jeon struggles in the army and is forced to abuse inmates in a prison facility
which opens his eyes to the problems in his country’s society, empowering him to
rise against the wrongs he has witnessed.

Kwak Kyung-taek has a knack for using the cityscape of Busan in his movies that are
also known for characters who personify traditional Korean male values; camaraderie, perseverance, passion etc. He made his directorial debut with a small-budget
flick, 3PM Paradise Bath House in 1997 gaining national fame with the mega success of Friend 2001. The movie attracted 8 million viewers across Korea and set a
new box office record with then the most number of tickets sold. Along with Love
from 2007, Pain proved Kwak’s gift in directing melodramas with extreme emotions
coming and going. The Ugly Duckling mixes the director’s expertise in Melodrama
with a pinch of humour to create a thought provoking, funny and insightful film.