Swiri (1999)

North and South Korean superspys battle and fall in love.

Director:

Je-kyu Kang

Writer:

Je-kyu Kang

Stars:

Suk-kyu Han, Min-sik Choi, Yunjin Kim

3 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Suk-kyu Han	...	Jong Won Yu
Min-sik Choi	...	Mu-young Park
Yunjin Kim	...	Myung-hyun Lee / Bang-hee Lee (as Yoon-jin Kim)
Kang-ho Song	...	Jang-gil Lee
Johnny Kim	...	Dae-Ho Jung (as Derek Kim)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jeong-min Hwang
Hyeong-seong Jang
Su-ro Kim
Seung-Shin Lee
Yong-woo Park	...	Sik

Storyline

North Korea's 8th Special Forces hijacks a shipment of CTX, a potent new liquid explosive, and threatens South Korea as part of a plot to re-unify the two countries. Ryu and Lee, special agents of O.P.--South Korea's secret intelligence service--attempt to track down the terrorists and find the CTX. Meanwhile Hee, the 8th's ultra-bad female sniper, resurfaces to wreak havoc and haunt Ryu.

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Plot Keywords:

korea | agent | secret intelligence service | special agent | south korea | 

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Mystery | Romance | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence and some language

Details

Official Sites:

film.ru (Russia) Imagine Pix

Country:

South Korea

Language:

Korean

Release Date:

13 February 1999 (South Korea)

Also Known As:

Shiri

Filming Locations:

"The Hill of Shiri", Joongmoon-Dong, Seogwipo, Cheju Island, South Korea

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$29,156 (USA) (8 February 2002)

Gross:

$97,152 (USA) (22 March 2002)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Kang Je-Kyu Film Co. Ltd., Samsung Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

125 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

German film fans were astonished when this film passed the ratings board FSK (known for its extensive dislike of excessive violence) uncut with a "Not under 16" rating. It was expected that the film would not get a rating at all and had to go for a JK approval from SPIO (Head organization of German film business).

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Goofs

For the hijack of the CTX, the hijackers are waiting for the truck as it emerges from a tunnel. This tunnel is there in shots from the ground, but the shots from the helicopter before it lands were clearly filmed elsewhere, as there is no tunnel in sight behind the hijacked truck.

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Connections

Referenced in Bat sei ching mai (2001)

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Soundtracks

"When I Dream"
Performed by Carol Kidd

User Reviews

Slick, action-packed Korean political thriller

Security agent Ryu stumbles upon a plot by North Korean fanatics (led by terrorist Park and assassin Hee) to disrupt peace and re-unification efforts by North and South politicians using high tech explosives and the hunt is on to stop them. Much gun play follows, as well as much talk about the politics and sociology of possible Korean re-unification. Given North Korea's history of selling weaponry to anyone with hard currency and South Korea's position as an important diplomatic and military ally of the U.S., such discussions are actually of worldwide interest. Since emerging in the mid-90s as a distinct cinematic power, South Korea has become filmdom's leading edge for cult actioners and this movie shows why. It is fast paced, uberviolent, with a polished look, tightly crafted plot line and strong performances by its ensemble cast.