Beomjweui jaeguseong (2004)

Director:

Dong-hun Choi

Writer:

Dong-hun Choi (writer)

Release Date:

16 April 2004 (South Korea)

Genre:

Action | Crime

Plot Keywords:

Scheme | Planning | Fireball | Police | Exploding Car

Awards:

4 wins

Cast

Shin-yang Park	...	Choi Chang-Hyok
Jung-ah Yum	...	Seo In-keong
Yun-shik Baek	...	Mr. Kim
Ho-jin Jeon
Mun-shik Lee	...	Eol-mae
Won-sang Park	...	Swallow
Sang-ho Kim	...	Gas
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Yun-seok Kim	...	Detective Lee
Seon Yu

Also Known As:

The Big Swindle (International: English title)

Runtime:

South Korea:116 min

Country:

South Korea

Language:

Korean

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Certification:

South Korea:15 (cable rating) | South Korea:18 | Singapore:NC-16

Company:

Sidus Pictures

A case of slight style and substance deficiency

Before watching a film like this I think it's no surprise that one wonders if this film will be another unfortunate case of style over substance. While I never had any problems with enjoying movies with either thin or overly confusing plots, they often still sufficed with a colorful cast, memorable one-liners and a generally good flow of story telling, however I found this movie to lack both elements of style and substance. A popularized cinematic style of nifty camera angles and split screen shots, amongst other widely used methods was not entirely present here but that's not really a bad thing at all. If you're expecting something similar to Snatch, in terms of music, humor and wacky characters, then skip those expectations at once, since this movie has other intentions for the most part.

I will not deny my undivided attention for the outcome of the film's main plot, but sadly the characters and what they had to say throughout the big swindle didn't help the film to fully grasp and move me along the way. The light comedic moments were a positive add on, thankfully the action was not over the top, however conflicts between characters weren't strong enough to create any room for the much needed grittiness and suspense that the winning heist dramas contain. It was almost impossible not to remember another Korean film called Memories Of Murder where all these elements (even though set up with different premises) were utilized to their utmost capacity causing me to smile and somber with whatever was happening on the screen, while still keeping me on the edge.

For a 'heist gone wrong' movie it was an entertaining film with a good cast and fine acting, but ultimately nothing ground breaking for the genre. For a first time writer/director this is definitely a good effort with a strongly focused delivery and even greater promise of a bright future. Hopefully next time he'll cook up something more unconventional and intense.