Green Fish

Mak-dong is discharged from the military and boards the train home. He leans toward the platform and notices Mi-ae in the car ahead. A pink scarf slips from Mi-ae and lands on his face, blinding him briefly.

The scarf lands on his face, blinding him briefly. He retrieves the scarf and returns to Mi-ae's car, only to be dragged into a fight with thugs harassing her. This violent encounter marks the start of Mak-dong's entanglement with the criminal world and Mi-ae.

Mak-dong returns to Ilsan to find a transformed town, with fields and rice paddies replaced by high-rise apartments. He discovers his mother works as a house maid and most of his siblings have left home, leaving only his mentally disabled elder brother. He dreams of a united family running a business, but the family pressures pull him in another direction.

While seeking work in Seoul, Mak-dong spots Mi-ae again and follows her into a nightclub where she sings. He defends her from gang thugs trying to force her into a car and ends up beaten. At Mi-ae's urging, a gang boss provides him a job reference for a parking-lot job.

He is given the opportunity to earn money by inciting a fight against a councilman blocking Bae Tae-gon's building permit. To appear convincing, Mak-dong slams his own fingers in a door. Pleased, Bae promotes him to full gang member and lets him call him 'hyung'.

As the new member of 'the family', Mak-dong and Mi-ae discover a shared sense of hopelessness and are drawn to each other. On a train, he offers her a photo of the large green tree in front of his home, revealing a simple, naïve side. Mi-ae remarks on his innocence and virginity, hinting at a fragile vulnerability beneath his loyalty.

One night, Bae Tae-gon has Mi-ae sent to the prosecutor's hotel room as a sexual 'favor', and she endures abuse. Mak-dong witnesses the slap and drives her home, angering him. She then offers herself to Mak-dong, acknowledging the dirtiness of her situation.

Kim Yang-kil, the former boss, returns from years behind bars to seize his empire and humiliates Bae Tae-gon in front of his own underlings. The challenge to Bae's authority steepens the power struggle that Mak-dong becomes entangled in. Mak-dong watches, weighing his loyalty and future actions.

In a brutal moment, Mak-dong stabs Kim Yang-kil to death in a men's bathroom. Blood pools around him as he collapses, overwhelmed by the weight of his choice. The act triggers a wave of fear and retribution among the rival faction.

Immediately after the killing, Mak-dong calls his family from a phone booth and recalls the river where they used to fish. He asks his 'big brother' if he remembers, highlighting their almost childlike memory of simpler times. The moment underscores the personal cost of his choices.

Bae Tae-gon drives Mak-dong to a deserted building and fatally shoots him, ending his rapid rise. Mak-dong staggers and collapses onto the windshield of Bae's car, dying as Mi-ae screams in horror.

Months later, Bae Tae-gon and Mi-ae move to Ilsan New Town, signaling a new middle-class life. They visit an old-style restaurant where Mi-ae appears pregnant, and a chicken is slaughtered before them to echo the sacrifice Mak-dong made. Mi-ae recognizes the green tree from Mak-dong's photo and realizes it is their family home.