Up until last night I had had two experiences with Korean cinema. The first, Tae-guk gi (otherwise known as the Brotherhood of War) was fantastic, and I recommend it certainly to any war movie buff, and to anyone who enjoys good film-making. The other, Oldboy....was not such a hit with me. Actually, I still use it as a point of reference when discussing the amount of trust one should put into IMDB and other online ratings. So "The Chaser", another one highly regarded on the internet, was the third foray. How did it turn out? Glad you asked.....
Very, very good. Now, I will add in the caveat that this may not be in everyone's taste. It can be pretty violent at times (really only in two scenes is it a bit gratuitous) and some might find the story a touch over the top, but it is enthralling, and I think very original. Jung-ho (the character's name, I am not going to bother with the actors, nobody will know them anyway, unless I have Korean readers) is a former detective from the Seoul police department who is now a pimp, and some of his girl's have been disappearing. At first he is under the assumption that they are being kidnapped and sold, it becomes more and more apparent that the girls are actually meeting brutal deaths. Now, the interesting part to this movie is that we find out who the murderer is very early on, about 20 minutes in. After he and Jung-ho confront one another and are arrested (Jung-ho briefly detained), the culprit willingly admits to a series of killings that had been stumping the police. However, he refuses to divulge the whereabouts of the last girl sent to service him (who may or may not still be alive) and where he has been burying the bodies, and this takes up much of the story. What makes it so engrossing is the progression we see of Jung-ho, transforming from a pissed off pimp to a worried guardian, particularly once he comes in contact with the missing woman's little daughter. Him using the skills and know-how from his previous job to track down the killer's house/hideout, all while the Seoul police buggle about, was a great touch, and what really makes the film so unique, at least for me.
There are some comedic elements to the film, a couple of scenes here and there. Any of you with a decent memory will know I like the movies with serious undertones to remain serious, but in this instance it didn't take anything away, I was too happy with the other stuff. The acting was by-and-large pretty decent, though some of the lines were a bit dumb, but this could just be poor translation, or just the fact that some things (particularly from a language like Korean, so different from English) can't be translated properly. Some of the events in the film are rather implausible, but there was nothing massive that immediately comes to mind. Nothing, at least, that made me shake my head and think "just like in fucking Contraband" or something like that. Again, for some people it might not be their style. Overall it is a very dark film, and the ending will probably disappoint many (I definitely was a bit) but all this has to compared against the fact that the story-line captures you and doesn't let you go. The suspense, and awesome story (or so I think) make it easy to overlook any deficiencies. Two other points: Some decent shots of Seoul in this one (a city your humble correspondent has explored) particularly in the older part of the city, where a couple of foot chase scenes take place. Also, some the actresses employed for this film are gorgeous.
Verdict: Even with the aforementioned caveat, you really should see it. Grade: A-
If you liked this movie you might also like: Not sure what comparable movies from Hollywood there are...maybe Tom Cruise's "Collateral"?
Very, very good. Now, I will add in the caveat that this may not be in everyone's taste. It can be pretty violent at times (really only in two scenes is it a bit gratuitous) and some might find the story a touch over the top, but it is enthralling, and I think very original. Jung-ho (the character's name, I am not going to bother with the actors, nobody will know them anyway, unless I have Korean readers) is a former detective from the Seoul police department who is now a pimp, and some of his girl's have been disappearing. At first he is under the assumption that they are being kidnapped and sold, it becomes more and more apparent that the girls are actually meeting brutal deaths. Now, the interesting part to this movie is that we find out who the murderer is very early on, about 20 minutes in. After he and Jung-ho confront one another and are arrested (Jung-ho briefly detained), the culprit willingly admits to a series of killings that had been stumping the police. However, he refuses to divulge the whereabouts of the last girl sent to service him (who may or may not still be alive) and where he has been burying the bodies, and this takes up much of the story. What makes it so engrossing is the progression we see of Jung-ho, transforming from a pissed off pimp to a worried guardian, particularly once he comes in contact with the missing woman's little daughter. Him using the skills and know-how from his previous job to track down the killer's house/hideout, all while the Seoul police buggle about, was a great touch, and what really makes the film so unique, at least for me.
There are some comedic elements to the film, a couple of scenes here and there. Any of you with a decent memory will know I like the movies with serious undertones to remain serious, but in this instance it didn't take anything away, I was too happy with the other stuff. The acting was by-and-large pretty decent, though some of the lines were a bit dumb, but this could just be poor translation, or just the fact that some things (particularly from a language like Korean, so different from English) can't be translated properly. Some of the events in the film are rather implausible, but there was nothing massive that immediately comes to mind. Nothing, at least, that made me shake my head and think "just like in fucking Contraband" or something like that. Again, for some people it might not be their style. Overall it is a very dark film, and the ending will probably disappoint many (I definitely was a bit) but all this has to compared against the fact that the story-line captures you and doesn't let you go. The suspense, and awesome story (or so I think) make it easy to overlook any deficiencies. Two other points: Some decent shots of Seoul in this one (a city your humble correspondent has explored) particularly in the older part of the city, where a couple of foot chase scenes take place. Also, some the actresses employed for this film are gorgeous.
Verdict: Even with the aforementioned caveat, you really should see it. Grade: A-
If you liked this movie you might also like: Not sure what comparable movies from Hollywood there are...maybe Tom Cruise's "Collateral"?
No comments:
Post a Comment