In Korea, this film has been in the midst of scandal. While uniform-clad students flocked to the theaters lending their full support, TV did not hesitate to reproduce imitations. Furthermore, conservative education groups attempted to legally block the screening of this film for "disgracing teachers and distorting the reality of education." Perhaps the reason why such a fantasy could make such waves lies in this films′s shrewdness in presenting a sensitive social issue through rearranged genre conventions. This film subverts the traditional Korean "ghost story" where spirits of those who died miserably cannot go to the other world. Instead, it presents a new genre which combines elements of the thriller film by delaying the real identity of the ghost, and incorporating editing techniques and sound effects that evoke horror and tension. Moreover, this film carries a timeliness that sheds light on the brutal education system in Korea: these problems include competition to get good grades and to enter a good university, the discrimination and violence committed by the teachers, and peer-pressure. The unfair death of Jin-Ju, and Jung-Sook′s suicide after suffering from being second-best, the murdered teachers and their nicknames, ′mad dog′ and ′old fox′, are not only allegories but becoming a horrific reality that exists within the school gates. (Lim Kyung-Hun)