Pa-gwa

The Old Woman with the Knife

Berlinale Special 2025

Hornclaw is a legendary assassin in her sixties who specialises in eliminating the scum of the earth. Her mundane but bloody life takes an unexpected turn when she meets Bullfight, a promising young killer who wants to work by her side. But an incident from their past casts a dark shadow on their collaboration, even when Bullfight reveals that he remembers her as the first person to ever show him kindness. Hornclaw fails to recognise the young man and his true intentions, and their unresolved misunderstanding leads to an escalation of confrontations and a final face-off with weapons brandished for vengeance and survival.

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by Min Kyu-dong (Director, Screenplay), Kim Dong-wan (Screenplay)
with Hyeyoung Lee, Kim Sung-cheol, Yeon Woo-jin, Kim Moo-yul, Shin Sia South Korea 2025 Korean 131' Colour World premiere

With

Hyeyoung Lee (Hornclaw)
Kim Sung-cheol (Bullfight)
Yeon Woo-jin (Dr. Kang)
Kim Moo-yul (Mr. Ryu)
Shin Sia (Young Hornclaw)

Crew

Director	Min Kyu-dong
Screenplay	Min Kyu-dong, Kim Dong-wan
Cinematography	Lee Jae-woo
Editing	Jeong Ji-eun
Music	Kim Jun-seong
Sound Design	Gong Tae-won
Production Design	Bae Jung-yoon
Producer	Min Jin-soo
Executive Producer	Min Jin-soo

Produced by

SooFilm

World Sales

M-Line Distribution

Photos

Min Kyu-dong

The director studied economics at Seoul National University, attended the Korean Academy of Film Arts and was awarded a master’s degree in film from the University of Paris 8. He made his debut as a director in 1999 with Memento Mori. Since then, he has directed a number of successful feature films in a variety of genres.

Filmography (selection)

1999 Yeogo-goedam 2 (Memento Mori) 2005 Nae saengae gajang areumdaun iljuil (All for Love) 2008 Antique 2009 Kkeutgwa sijak (In My End Is My Beginning) 2011 Sesangeseo gajang areumdaun ibyeol (The Last Blossom) 2012 Nae anaeui modeun geot (All About My Wife) 2015 Gansin (The Treacherous) 2018 Herstory 2021 Ganhojung (The Prayer) 2025 Pa-gwa (The Old Woman with the Knife)

Bio- & filmography as of Berlinale 2025