Idk how much more of his backstory we’re gonna get in s3 to know if Inho hit all the marks but there’s a few ways to look at it I guess. Was the game his trials with the final game being his supreme ordeal, the money his prize? Did the supreme ordeal come later, after the death of his wife, with the role of frontman being his prize? Or had he been in the trials for years leading up to s1, the supreme ordeal a literal brother battle? The prize perhaps gaining the power that was Ilnam’s?

Or, did his path kind of take him through the journey more than once (and fail both times)? The games/death of his wife was journey 1, but he gets stuck in the refusal to return, skips the final two legs of the journey, and receives the second call to adventure— to return as front man, thus embarking on journey 2. This would be an interesting way to look at it bc it would mean his hero’s journey was intentionally interrupted to push him down the villain’s journey.

Either way, he failed to return. To the ordinary world. To his family. To the person he was before, perhaps?

The hero and the villain are so similar; their journeys are similar. The even both linger in the refusal to return. They even both maybe receive the call twice (Gihun’s being s2-3). But as people they are so fundamentally different.

But Inho’s and Gihun’s journeys didn’t end with their games.

I’ve thought about s2-3 in terms of a second hero’s journey for Gihun, but I’m leaning toward s1 being a false or unfinished hero’s journey, with s2-3 being the resolution of the (sacrificial) hero’s journey.

Was Gihun’s return at the end of s1 “real”, given what we learned from s2-3 (or even based on the very last scene of s1)? Gihun physically returned. For a time. But part of him never left that world. He became fixated on it, on finding it again, on getting back, on destroying it.

I think Gihun’s return at the end of s1 could be viewed as the actual refusal of the call, made to look like return. Crossing the threshold happened in that airport. The trials were the subsequent years of isolation and then once again joining as a player. Gihun’s final battle was an ideological one. Which he of course won.

But reward? Return? No. It ended in sacrifice instead.

Someone returned though. Inho returned. Inho, stalled for years in the refusal, exiled from the rest of the journey, witnessed the sacrifice and in a way was transformed. Gihun’s death was Inho’s call to return. And he didn’t return to his world, he didn’t complete his journey. He completed Gihun’s, in a way. He took the flight. He gave Gihun’s daughter closure. He (presumably) adopted more of Gihun’s ideology. A proxy return.

Staging Positions

Back to Camera: Anonymous. Conveys emotional isolation. Frames the subject as alone against the world. “I.”

I've wanted to make this post for ages (thank you to Joanne for giving me the push I needed)-- I mentioned on here ages ago that I was sure HDH was a huge Kubrick fanboy. These are some of the similarities and reasons I had that thought! In general a lot of Squid Game just vibes Kubrick to me. I'm not a huge Kubrick fan, but I do love The Shining, and recognize what an amazing director he was, so even though I don't really dig most of his movies, I have watched most of them.

Some of these are more along the lines of things Kubrick films and Squid Game have in common because Kubrick has such a wide influence over filmmaking, where others are more I think HDH meant them as an intentional homage.

Music

The Dies Irae: to be fair, it's an incredibly common musical motif! Originally (I believe) from the 13th C Gregorian chant (the Dies Irae poem is much older but this is the melody):

This motif is featured in the iconic Pink Soldiers Theme! if you can read music or are familiar with the Dies Irae melody and have seen Kubrick's The Shining, you'll recognize it from the opening score of movie as well! Fun fact: it also features in the Kpop Demon Hunters Song Your Idol (like. the actual words, lol).

Blue Danube: The piece that plays before each game in Squid Game (and I think during the final dinner scene in s1?) HEAVILY associated with Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. To be fair, if you're saying "huh?", the associated is probably stronger with people over ~35 and film buffs, but HDH is both!

Also Sprach Zarathustra: A reach, perhaps, but the book the musical piece was named for (Nietzsche's Thus Spoke Zarathustra) is one of the books in In-ho's s1 apartment (I'm 90% sure? although some people have said it's a different Nietzsche book and I haven't had the chance to investigate which one lol). If Blue Danube is heavily associated with 2001, Also Sprach Zarathustra is basically permanently attached to the movie in the cultural zeitgeist.

Also just-- the somewhat out of place use of classical music in general reminded me of A Clockwork Orange.

Set and Costume design

The white waiting rooms:

On the left- moon lobby from 2001, on the right- the all white game lobbies in Squid Game. The pink of the chairs even matches the pink of the guards uniforms.

Human furniture:

On the left- human (mannequin) furniture in A Clockwork Orange, the right- Squid Game human furniture.

The bunk beds:

On the left- bunks in Full Metal Jacket, on the right, bunks in Squid Game. Obviously the Squid Game ones are stacked much higher, but they are very reminiscent of each other in design!

Dinner scenes:

The candelabras caught my eye here. On the left, Barry Lyndon, on the right, Squid Game finalists dinner.

Masks:

The left, the masks the secret society millionaire elitists wear in Eyes Wide Shut, on the right, Squid Game VIP masks

Death bed:

Saw this one discussed on Reddit and it really pinged something in my brain! On the left, 2001. Dave Bowman as an old man in his death bed, the black monolith appearing before him, then he dies/is reborn. On the right, Squid Game. Oh Il-nam on his death bed, Gihun dressed all in black at the foot of his bed, then he dies (and Gihun is reborn?). The blanket/sheets are also very similar in color?

Specific shots/framing

The Kubrick Stare:

Very well-known (and the topic that finally motivated me to make this post!). The stare that signals someone is dangerous! In-ho spends half of s2 Kubrick staring at people. Gihun does this a lot at the beginning of s3 (rip Daeho).

One point perspective:

Kubrick was really well-known as a director for one-point perspective shots. I'm not an expert in filmmaking or anything so I'm describing this as a layperson, but it's basically what makes those super symmetrical shots- the shot has a single vanishing point which is generally right in the center of the frame.

This shot from Full Metal Jacket has the perspective lines drawn on it, probably explains it better than I did:

A few more examples from Kubrick- The Shining and 2001.

and some similar shots from Squid Game

Like the color match is kinda crazy, right? The sheets to the rug, blanket to blanket? It’s making me think about Gihun as the monolith and the what the monolith represents.

I’m one of those people who doesn’t love 2001 the movie. It’s ok, there are parts that I think are really great (HAL singing as he dies, ugh, so eerie and well done). But I LOVED the book. I read it when I was maybe 11 or 12, it was the first grownup book that I read in one sitting (it’s not terribly long) and I was mesmerized. When Dave said “my god it’s full of stars”?????? I got goosebumps.

Anyway. Kubrick referred of the design of the monolith as a “Jungian archetype”, something that is innate in the psyche of all human beings. The “collective unconscious” of humanity. (Note to self: gifset of Gihun embodying the 12 jungian personality archetypes)

At its most basic, the monolith is a “tool”. It basically serves to push humanity forward, a catalyst for evolution. It transforms us.

And down this way there are 4 dead bodies on 4 beds and no empty 5th bed:

Not long now! We’re entering the “oh shit it’s real” portion of the countdown. It’s not time to panic, I promise!! But it is time to prioritize and make future-you’s life easier.

Authors— this is a good time to look at what still needs to happen before your fic is ready to post. Ending? Editing? Beta reading? Formatting? Tags/warnings? Maybe make a list now so it doesn’t overwhelm you at the last minute.

Artists— same goes for art! What still needs doing? Sketching? Coloring? Rendering? Maybe you need updated details from your author, or to pick an image hosting site? Have a tentative plan to make it easier on you when it comes time to post!

Tiny goal for this week: make a “must finish” list and a “nice if I have time” list. Be honest with yourself AND be kind to yourself. Perfection is the enemy of fucking everything creative. Honest, beautiful, moving, thought-provoking, hot, funny, joyful, heart-breaking… all of these beat perfection.