[fn Plaza] For Naksoo and Mansoo: Trickle-Downs and Full Cups

Are Naksoo and Mansoo happy now? This question comes to mind when recalling the recent dramas and films that have drawn significant public attention. Last weekend, Joongang Tongyang Broadcasting Company (JTBC)'s drama 'The Dream Life of Mr. Kim' concluded its run, while director Park Chan-wook's Cannes Film Festival entry 'No Other Choice' shone as a seven-time winner at the Blue Dragon Film Awards. Coincidentally, both works feature protagonists who seem like brothers: Mansoo, born in 1970 ('No Other Choice'), and Naksoo, born in 1972 ('The Dream Life of Mr. Kim'). Both find themselves, despite their age and experience, facing the threat of being laid off—a situation that resonates deeply with many office workers who are in similar circumstances or fear they might be. Those who missed the original broadcasts are now binge-watching all 12 episodes of the drama on Netflix or revisiting the film via Video on Demand (VOD), fueling a surge in renewed interest.
Naksoo, born in 1972, is a 25-year veteran at a leading domestic conglomerate and a graduate of a prestigious university. Having never missed a single promotion, he is on the verge of becoming an executive, earning him the nickname 'Manager Kim.' He takes pride in this title, often feeling a sense of accomplishment. Although his apartment in Gangdong-gu, Seoul, is not brand new, he owns it, and his son attends a top private university. He reassures himself, saying, 'Surviving 25 years as a manager at a major company, buying an apartment in Seoul, and sending my child to college—this is a great life.'
Mansoo, born in 1970, is no less accomplished. After 25 years at a leading domestic paper company (now acquired by a foreign firm), he has become a veteran in the industry—able to assess the quality and flaws of paper with just a tap of his small wooden mallet. He possesses all the hallmarks of what society deems success. Living in a beautiful house with a greenhouse and garden, he enjoys bonsai as a sophisticated hobby and takes social dance and tennis lessons with his wife. He also has the financial means to provide cello lessons for his daughter, who is on the autism spectrum. Proud of all he has achieved, he sometimes even marvels at himself.
Yet, both men face the greatest crisis of their lives. Naksoo, who was almost certain of his promotion, is suddenly transferred to a regional factory. Mansoo, who seemed to be on a winning streak, receives a layoff notice—a blow as sharp as an axe (the original novel of the movie is titled 'The Axe'). Having dedicated themselves to their companies, neither can comprehend what is happening. They appeal to senior colleagues and protest to the new foreign management in broken English, but nothing works. Still, they refuse to accept defeat or the loss of everything they have built, pondering their next steps.
What will they do now? Though both face the same disaster of unemployment, Naksoo and Mansoo make different choices in overcoming their crises. Naksoo, while working as the safety manager at the regional factory, could have returned to Seoul by submitting a list of employees to be laid off as requested by headquarters, but instead chooses voluntary resignation. Mansoo, on the other hand, devises a desperate and reckless plan to eliminate his potential competitors one by one in hopes of being rehired by the paper company. As readers, our role is not to judge their decisions as right or wrong, good or bad, but to empathize with their struggles. We must consider why Naksoo’s story of starting a car wash for his second life seems happy yet still tinged with sadness, and why watching Mansoo’s bizarre triple murder attempts for reemployment is uncomfortable yet strangely moving.
In episode 11 of 'The Dream Life of Mr. Kim,' the two versions of Naksoo have a conversation. The present-day Naksoo, who has been dismissed from the company, confides in his past self, Manager Kim, admitting how difficult things have been. The past Naksoo responds with an apology for all the hardship. When the present Naksoo can no longer speak and bows his head, the past Naksoo, in a monologue, urges him to be happy now, to please find happiness. I hope that both Naksoo, born in 1972, and Mansoo, born in 1970, find happiness. May the second lives they have chosen be free of hardship. And just as Hajin, Naksoo’s wife in the drama, once said, I want to say, 'Well done, Manager Kim.'
jsm64@fnnews.com