Frankly, I'll go a long way to see a Korean movie. While this film doesn't quite have the exuberance or originality of some recent examples, it is an entertaining example of the Asian cops vs gangsters format. But the field is very well stocked, and to be fair this film ticks the boxes without standing out.
The acting and direction of the main protagonists keeps the important development tight, while allowing for those languorous scenes that Hollywood directors remove. But the characters are so watchable, even when fishing in a warehouse, and cursing each other in a language I understand none of.
There are a couple of notably stylish action sequences, as well as slightly too many standard scenes (funeral, boardroom, hospital etc) that we are all too familiar with. If you have seen Infernal Affairs, then you won't struggle to follow the plot.
Korean cinema is now big enough to carry the merely good along with the excellent. And while this effort should be enjoyed in that vein.
The acting and direction of the main protagonists keeps the important development tight, while allowing for those languorous scenes that Hollywood directors remove. But the characters are so watchable, even when fishing in a warehouse, and cursing each other in a language I understand none of.
There are a couple of notably stylish action sequences, as well as slightly too many standard scenes (funeral, boardroom, hospital etc) that we are all too familiar with. If you have seen Infernal Affairs, then you won't struggle to follow the plot.
Korean cinema is now big enough to carry the merely good along with the excellent. And while this effort should be enjoyed in that vein.