People and Meat

People and Meat is a 2025 South Korean film directed by Yang Jong-hyun which follows three elderly people in Seoul who dash out of restaurants without paying. It premiered at the 2025 Tribeca Festival.[1][2][3]

The movie stars Park Keun Hyong, Jang Yong, and Ye Soo-jung. The screenplay was written by Lim Namoo and is a commentary on how South Korean society neglects the elderly.[2]

Plot

The film follows three characters: U-sik, Hyeon-jung, and Hwa-jin. U-sik and Hyeon-jung are men in their eighties who browse the streets in the early mornings, looking to find cardboard to sell for pennies at a time. Hwa-jin, also elderly, makes her living selling on the street vegetables discarded by the vegetable market.[2]

After initially coming to blows over cardboard in front of Hwa-jin's stall, U-sik and Hyeon-jung befriend each other. Neither of them have the skill to cook a certain dish they'd like to eat, and so rope in Hwa-jin to help. And thus, partly out of loneliness, the three become friends, gradually telling their life stories.

One day, U-sik invites the other two out for dinner. They enjoy a meal mostly consisting of delicious meats. U-sik reveals at the end of the meal, however, that he does not have money to pay for it, and tells his companions how to leave the restaurant without paying. While initially surprised, Hyeon-jung and Hwa-jin follow U-sik's plan. The three companions altogether experience a thrill from not paying. On one occasion U-sik collapses in the restaurant, and at the hospital it is revealed that he has cancer. They nevertheless continue with their escapade. They are eventually caught, but due to their age are given just a fine. However, U-sik causes a disturbance in the court house, accusing the judge of being corrupt; and even later finds out where he lives and destroys part of his house in an arson attack - for which he is then sent to prison. On his release he moves in with Hyeon-jung, who has been selling his possessions to get by. One morning he wakes to find U-sik gone, leaving a message saying he'll keep in touch. Hyeon-jung and Hwa-jin next hear that he has died. At his funeral a single guest appears, who tells them that he was U-sik's student and that U-sik was in fact a published poet, something that Hyeon-jung and Hwa-jin didn't know about their friend. He himself had told them that he had accomplished nothing in life and that the greatest moments of his life was the three of them dining and dashing from restaurants.[2]

Cast

  • Jang Yong as U-sik
  • Park Keun Hyong as Hyeon-jung
  • Ye Soo-jung as Hwa-jin

Production

The film was produced by KT Studios, directed by Yang Jong-hyun with the screenplay written by Lim Namoo.[2]

Reception

Joan MacDonald of Forbes observes "In this film the stolen meals become a metaphor for the nourishment these characters derive from engaging with each other."[3] She writes "The film also becomes a wistful poem about life and aging, one that observes the injustice of old age with humor and kindness."[3]

References

  1. ^ "At the Tribeca Festival, Standouts Come From Near and Far". 2025-06-03. Retrieved 2025-09-18.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Tribeca 2025 Review: PEOPLE AND MEAT, Korean GOING IN STYLE Goes Dine and Dash". ScreenAnarchy. 2025-06-10. Retrieved 2025-09-18.
  3. ^ a b c MacDonald, Joan. "'People And Meat' Introduces Three Hard To Forget Characters". Forbes. Retrieved 2025-09-18.
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