Reaction to

Miracle in Cell
No

What would you feel if you were wrongly convicted, or even framed for a
crime you didnt do? Worse, you are convicted of a heinous crime whose
punishment is life imprisonment or even death sentence. In the movie, Yong-Goo,
the mentally-ill father, was wrongly convicted and was given the worst possible case
scenario for a convict. For one, he ticked off the wrong person who is the head of
police by seemingly killing his daughter. He was convicted of statutory rape (raping
a minor) and homicide, and the society hes in is disdainfully disgusted by the
crime, so everyone, even his fellow convicts, at first, treated him badly, even with
violence. The government also wants to make an example of his case to show that
they look down on heinous crime-committers, so Yong Goos case was being hurried
and he wasnt given enough chances to explain himself. Also, his mental illness
wasnt noticed and wasnt taken account for. All these instances show the loophole
of the justice system in Korea, in the Philippines, or perhaps in any part of the world.
All these show that an innocent man can be convicted, his child orphaned, and
whose life be ultimately wrecked.
This is the bad part about death penalty. What if the convict was really
innocent? Even if all the evidences point to him, what if those were fabricated?
What if it really was an accident? I dont want to speak badly of our justice system
or any countrys justice system for the matter, but, implementing death penalty
while the justice system still allows innocent men to be wrongly convicted is simply
wrong. Yes it does give the family of the victim some sense of justice, but is it
enough to purposely kill a man? Are we supposed to feel justified in killing
someone? Arent we deviating from the utopia we yearn to achieve which gives
importance to rights, in this case, the right to live? Are we being civilized? We might
be thinking that were achieving justice, but maybe, all the while, its really revenge.
And even if the convicted was guilty, what if he was truly sorry and wants to
change? Arent we denying them the opportunity to change, or at least, pay for
their sins? We might be denying them the chance to ask for forgiveness and be
forgiven. In the Bible, God told us that he would forgive us 70 times seven times,
which means he would forgive us infinitely, and however grave the sin that we
committed might be. Couldnt we be the same? I know these all seem so preachy,
but with the preference of many countries to implement death penalty, I would like
to strike many to a realization, that most have turned to the worse, and digressed
from the teachings of God.

Fortunately, our inner goodness could be felt, even when everyone would say
youre a bad person. Yong-Goo, with his happy-go-lucky actions, you definitely
would be estranged and question whether he really is someone who rapes children.
Seeing his deep love for his daughter Ye-Seung, his begging to call her even when
the police wouldnt allow it would show that he couldnt and he wouldnt hurt
children. When he sacrificed himself, getting brutally wounded in the process, to
save the life of a fellow convict whom he even barely knew and who was to be
stabbed, he didnt look like a villain, rather a hero. And to think, that convict whose
life was saved treated Yong-Goo with violence after hearing Yong-Goos crime. It was
the same case with the warden who, at first, bullied Yong-Goo because of his
alleged crime. Yong-Goo saved the warden from a fire that ravaged the prison.
Yong-Goo got seriously burned, but in effect, the warden felt his innate goodness,
even wondering how a man, who would risk his life in an instant to save other
people, be convicted of a heinous crime. So, in gratitude and utter concern for YongGoo, the warden and the inmates ultimately prepared for a retrial to prove YongGoos innocence. However, to their dismay, Yong-Goo was forced by the head of
police (father of the girl whom Yong-Goo seemingly killed) to accept the crime even
if he really didnt do it; else, his daughter Ye-Seung would be in danger. And worse,
Yong-Goo was even sentenced to die. The inmates even thought to break Yong-Goo
out of prison in a hot air balloon, which was, however, a failed attempt. After YongGoos death, the warden took in Ye-Seung and educated her, even to law school. YeSeung, all grown-up now, cleared his fathers name in a mock trial.
Why was the title Miracle in Cell No. 7? It probably refers to the wondrous
things that the inmates in cell no. 7. Motivated by the love and joy that simply
overflows from Yong-Goo, the inmates worked together to bring in Ye-Seung, to
unite the two gang leaders in the prison, to prove Yong-Goos innocence at a retrial,
and to even make an awe-striking hot air balloon to break Yong-Goo out of jail. Of
course, the movie does not want us to smuggle people or things in jail or to break
someone out of jail, rather, it wants us to also be reeking of love and happiness, as
it gives hope to even the most unlikely of people to have hope, that is, in the movie,
the stage 4 (serious) criminals sentenced to life imprisonment.