The Girl on a Bulldozer


The Girl on a Bulldozer is a 2022 South Korean mystery film directed by Park Yi-woong, starring Kim Hye-yoon, Park Hyuk-kwon, Oh Man-seok, Yesung, and Park Si-woo. It tells the story of a daughter who digs up her father's whereabouts after a sudden accident. It was released theatrically on April 7, 2022.

Synopsis

The film tells the story of a 19-year-old Goo Hye-young known as a troublemaker, who constantly gets into fights. For now, she must learn to control her anger and take a vocational training course. Then, she decided to learn how to drive a bulldozer, despite being told that it's a job closed off to women. With her tough image projected through her dragon tattoo, she channels most of her rage towards her father, Goo Bon-jin, who is a desperate restaurant owner caught in a cycle of drinking and gambling.
However, everything changes when Bon-jin gets into an accident and ends up in the hospital. Hye-young suddenly has no easy target to hate or blame for her existence and must face the fact that deep down she cares for her father. She must not only assume the responsibility of caring for her younger brother, but also uncover the mystery of how her father got into that accident.

Cast

Release

The Girl on a Bulldozer was first screened at 26th Busan International Film Festival in October 2021 and, received favourable reviews from critics, audiences and the press. It was also screened at 1st Ulsan International Film Festival in December 2021.
In 2022, it was screened at 17th Osaka Asian Film Festival, 20th Florence Korea Film Festival, 4th PyeongChang International Peace Film Festival, 21st New York Asian Film Festival, 28th Nancy International Film Festival, 22nd Kaohsiung Film Festival, 11th Korean Film Festival Frankfurt, and 6th Berlin Korean Independent Film Festival.
The film was then released in theaters on April 7, 2022.

Reception

The film has received positive reviews and was nominated for Best Film at the Osaka Asian Film Festival.
Upon opening, it achieved remarkable success at the box office, securing the first position in the Korean independent film category, while also ranking seventh in the overall box office. The Girl on a Bulldozer then rose to the top 3 at the Korean independent film box office in 2022.
Moreover, upon its release on Netflix in Korea, the film made an impressive debut at number five and subsequently rise to the number one spot, maintaining its position for a week.