Toilet, a Stage for Birth, Life, Illness and Death

Chinese director Fruit Chan, who is known for his works such as `Made in Hong Kong` and `Little Chung,` has made a movie with a unique message titled `Where is the Toilet?` In the movie, the toilet is a place for birth, life, illness and death.

It`s hard to tell the story complicatedly intertwined between four young men, who are in search for a cure-all drug.

Dong Dong (Abe Tsyoshi), born and abandoned in a public toilet in Beijing, is now in search for a cure for his grandmother dying of cancer. On his way to Busan, he met Kim Sun-bak (Jang Hyok), who is traveling with a little girl he found in a toilet. The girl said she is a sea creature and Kim is also looking for a drug to treat her bone deficiency.

Two other main characters are Cho (Cho In-sung), who is heading for Beijing for a cure for his disease, and Sam (Lee Chan-sam), a hired killer who has to earn money to pay his mother`s hospital bills.

It`s hard to understand the director`s message, but the toilet in the movie is not a place for discharging. People with different stories meet and communicate each other in the toilet. `Where is the toilet?` therefore means `What is life?` for young people struggling to find an answer.

`Digital Nega` financed this project movie joined by three Asian directors Park Gi-hyung (Korea), Nakada Hidel (Japan) and Fruit Chan (China). The movie won a special comment award in Venice Film Festival in September. Aged 12 or above. Released on November 29.

Soo-Kyung Kim skkim@donga.com