KIM Ki-duk, the maverick South Korean filmmaker better known in New York than in Seoul, hits a birdie with “3-Iron.”

As usual, Kim concentrates on outsiders, this time Tae-suk (Jae Hee), a young man on a motorbike who breaks into people’s houses when they’re not home.

He doesn’t steal anything. Rather, he makes himself comfortable, takes a bath, gets a bite to eat, watches TV, even does chores.

In one upscale abode he encounters Sun-hwa (Lee Seung-yeon), a young model who bears bruises inflicted by her businessman husband, who happens to be away.

When the hubby returns, Tae-suk floors him with a few golf balls driven by a 3-iron before fleeing with Sun-hwa.

Tae-suk winds up in jail, where the film’s surrealist moments happen.

Forty-five-year-old Kim has gained a cult following with films as diverse as the contemplative “Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter . . . and Spring” and “The Isle,” in which fish hooks are used as sex toys.

“3-Iron,” which took best-director honors in Venice, is Kim’s wittiest effort to date, with a wordless performance by Jae Hee that recalls Keaton and Chaplin.

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3-IRON

[] (Three stars)

Fore! In Korean, with English subtitles. Running time: 88 minutes. Rated R (sexuality, violence). At the Sunshine and the Lincoln Plaza.