In this blog post, we explore the narrative structure and social significance of the gangster genre through the film ‘Sunflower’, examining why it elevates heroes only to ultimately lead them to ruin.
‘Sunflower’: What is the Purpose of the Gangster Genre?
Robert Warshaw states in ‘The Gangster as Tragic Hero’: “The gangster is a man of the city. But this city is not the real city; it is a dangerous and sorrowful imaginary city. This imaginary city is more important than the real one—it is, so to speak, the modern world.” If the real city produces criminals, the imaginary city produces gangsters. The gangster is a figure we both desire to become and fear.
Within a rich imagination, the screen gangster is portrayed as a figure possessing style and heroic qualities. It is precisely this heroic quality that serves as the key element distinguishing real criminals from screen gangsters. Taesik in ‘Sunflower’ is a man who committed murder and violence, leading to his imprisonment. His mere release from prison is enough to make both organized crime figures and the police tense, such is his overwhelming presence.
Yet Taesik strives to leave his criminal life behind and become a law-abiding citizen. In this process, the audience feels maternal compassion for him and develops sympathy, hoping he will ultimately find happiness. The violence that constantly provokes him ultimately functions as a device to justify Taesik’s own violence.
Yet we must ask: Is Taesik’s violence and murder truly justified? This question applies not only to ‘Sunflower’ but to all gangster films. As the preface to ‘Enemy of the People’ states, the genre’s purpose lies not in glorifying criminals but in depicting their environment. The ultimate conflict in gangster films exists not between gangsters and police, but within the gangster himself—between contradictory impulses. It is the conflict between personal success and the common good, selfishness and the communal instinct, savagery and ethics.
Tae-sik, too, vows “I will never fight again,” yet finds himself embroiled in four violent situations. However, his refusal to fight is not merely to avoid defeating his opponent, but a choice to keep his promise to the mother who took him in. The violence in this process is presented as a social evil. The message is clear: the tyranny of power that bullies the weak must not be tolerated, whether it takes the form of physical or psychological violence.
Yet, the audience cheers when he finally seeks revenge. This mirrors the emotional structure seen in ‘A Bittersweet Life’ when Seon-woo takes vengeance against the boss. In ‘Sunflower’, the injuries to his sister Hee-joo and his mother’s death become the decisive catalysts. Violence against family members is the most potent emotional trigger for Korean audiences. The background music with its sorrowful lyrics, coupled with the repeated framing of Tae-sik in close-up and his enemies in full shot, maximizes the audience’s emotional immersion.
However, this is not a glorification of crime but a device within the emotional structure. In fact, no scientific evidence has been presented that films encourage real-world crime; on the contrary, some analyses suggest they can contribute to crime prevention through their cathartic effect.
The gangster is ultimately a being destined to fail. The urban landscape mirrors Taesik’s inner world, and the pressure from power and order demanding he leave drives him toward catastrophe. Modern social order and civilization construct narratives that inevitably lead the gangster to ruin. That is the purpose of this genre.
‘Sunflower’ and the Grammar of the Gangster Genre
The grammar of gangster films is clear.
First, violence is the core driving force of the narrative. In the Korean context, where gun ownership is illegal, fists and knives become the primary weapons. Taesik’s bare fists and Jo Pansu’s gang’s knives and clubs faithfully follow this genre characteristic.
Second, murder is presented as an everyday occurrence. In the nightclub scene, numerous characters fall, but the numbers are irrelevant. Murder is a genre essential.
Third, friendship and loyalty. As seen in «Friend» and «Holy Bloodline», ‘Sunflower’ also depicts Yang-gi, Chang-mu, and Byeong-jin revealing both loyalty and betrayal within their complex relationships.
Fourth, the villain emerges as a figure colluding with power. Councilman Jo Pan-su is a being who garners citizen support while evading the law.
Fifth, the prologue device. In ‘Sunflower’, Tae-sik’s notebook of hopes functions as the opening sequence.
The icons are also clear: organized crime figures, kitchen knives, nightclubs, room salons, and the deaths of peripheral characters. Especially pivotal is the death of his mother, which sends Taesik back into the world of violence.
The film’s title ‘Sunflower’ symbolizes Taesik’s fate—a flower that gazes at the sun but cannot reach it, dreaming of an ordinary life yet forever beyond his grasp. The Hope Notebook is the concrete representation of that desire. Taesik’s stutter is also read as a symbolic device revealing his suppressed violent instincts.
And the gangster ultimately meets ruin. This is a common ending structure in both Hollywood and Korean cinema. Amid the clash between heroic individuality and social order, the narrative maintains balance, and ultimately, order is restored.
The gangster genre does not glorify crime
The classic Scarface opened with the subtitle “It denounces the social conditions that create criminals,” while Little Caesar began with the biblical phrase “Those who live by the sword die by the sword.” Enemy of the People also explicitly stated its purpose was not to glorify crime. Recent works similarly insert similar subtitles.
Audiences become immersed in the criminal’s narrative, sometimes perceiving him as a hero. Camera work, editing, dialogue, and the star system orchestrate our emotions. Yet their end is always ruin.
Gangsters determine their own fate through their obsession with family or the ‘family’. The sister in “Scarface”, the sister and mother in “Mean Streets” and ‘Sunflower’, and the friend in “The Godfather” and “Friends” fulfill this role. The strong individualist ultimately brings about their own ruin through compromise.
Korean gangster films particularly emphasize ‘story’ and ‘emotion’. The reason ‘Sunflower’ has long enjoyed audience support also lies in this emotional core. Even when viewed today, this film reads not as a simple revenge drama, but as a narrative of family, atonement, and thwarted hope.
Conclusion
If one views ‘Sunflower’ merely as Tae-sik’s story of escaping Jo Pan-soo’s evil deeds, there is room to interpret it as glorifying violence. However, this film inherits the traditions of the gangster genre, aiming to provide catharsis through the depiction of a corrupt city and the hero’s downfall, while also portraying the environment and conditions that lead to violence.
As previously examined, the core of gangster films lies in the structure where modern social order ultimately destroys the gangster. The figure who seemed heroic ultimately cannot escape his fate as a criminal. Therefore, gangster genre films do not glorify crime. Rather, they reveal the contradictions of society and humanity through crime, clearly showing at the narrative’s end just how destructive the price of those contradictions is.
‘Sunflower’ also resides within this tradition. It is the story of a man who held hope but ultimately failed to reach the sun. And what remains for us through his downfall is not sympathy for violence, but loss, sorrow, and reflection on social structures. In this regard, ‘Sunflower’ stands as a valid example of the gangster genre even when revisited today, convincingly proving the proposition that genre films never glorify crime.
