A Bittersweet Life (2005) User Reviews

Another breathtaking revenge movie from South-Korea

[raweater · 8/10 · 14 August 2005]

I had the luck to watch this gem at the Fantasy-Film-Festival in Frankfurt yesterday. It was shown in a theater with about 600 seats and against my expectations the room was packed with people.

In comparison with Oldboy or Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance the story is not as deep and goes more straightforward to the pure revenge theme. But this does not make the movie less enjoyable. The cinematography is brilliant and the main-character delivers a great performance. It contains beautifully choreographed martial-arts and gunfight scenes with references to masterpieces like Taxi Driver and Kill Bill.

Despite the fact it is very harsh in some scenes the humor does not come to short. The scene with a discussion of Korean-Russian wannabe-gangsters made me nearly wet my pants.

Entertaining enough, if not quite a Ji-woon Kim masterpiece

[Chris_Docker · 7/10 · 20 August 2005]

After Tale of Two Sisters, Ji-woon Kim's new movie has been eagerly anticipated. In his previous film, the marks of originality, intellectual challenge and superb visual style hailed the possibility of a brave new voice in Korean cinema.

A Bittersweet Life commences with similarly awesome photography and ambiance. The wind in the leaves of a tree - Is it the leaves or the wind that moves? asks the disciple of the master. Neither, he replies, it is your mind and heart that moves. Cut to La Dolce Vita, the swish bar restaurant which we are to discover is also the gangland stronghold of Sun-Woo. A single tree in the centre of the restaurant's sky lounge. The colours red and black, glossy and visually forceful in the lounge - they not only play heavily in the film but make any small deviations stand out. Lushness or delicacy is easily conveyed later in the film by colour, a respite to the bloodshed that will almost swamp us. A tinkling piano (Chopin is used as part of the score) adds a delicate counterpoint to what we know will surely be an overload of violence and mayhem.

Sun-Woo has served his boss, President Kang, faithfully for seven years and is now manager of Dolce Vita as well as Kang's right hand man. Background profits, and gang competition, focuses on innocuous little sidelines like the supply of guns or dancing girls, and which countries these should come from. Kang has a secret lover from the 'normal' world, a cellist who is much younger than he, and whom he suspects of infidelity. Kang entrusts Sun-Woo to sort it out and show no mercy. The warfare that follows goes beyond honour, beyond profit, beyond vengeance, . . . beyond any rational point in fact.

Sun-Woo is the ultimate cool bad guy. Indentured to a world of violence and expert in the use of martial arts, knives and guns, he is almost a humanised Bruce Lee who's woken up on a Tarantino set. It sounds almost too good to be true and it is. The story lines are formulaic and derivative, consisting largely of how to engineer more ingenious punch-ups, torture or revenge posturing. Light humour afforded in the contrast between suave topdogs and bumbling henchmen has been done so many times, and many of the entertaining debacles could have been borrowed from Kill Bill. But entertaining it is, on an undemanding level. Sadly it is not the work of the Master that we might have expected from Two Sisters. "The dream I had can't come true," laments the protagonist, and ironically the dreams Ji-woon Kim's fans may justifiably had don't quite come true in A Bittersweet Life, but this otherwise elegant shoot-em-up is still reasonable 'boys night out' night fare.

Pure Asian gangster action

[magnadoodle666 · 7/10 · 8 September 2007]

I can see how this movie is well liked by many people. It's definitely different from a Hollywood movie, and a breath of fresh air from "the formula". At the same time, it's not so different as to cause discomfort or incomprehension. Violence is violence everywhere.

If you compare this movie against other great Asian action movie directors, than I think it's not that special. It's well done, but it's ultimately a light movie. A bit like an Asian version of an Hollywood action movie. There are some moments though (the end comes to mind), where the movie does show some signs of self awareness. But overall, it's a fairly straightforward, over the top gangster movie. If that's what you're looking for, you'll be pleased, but don't expect to be blown away by a masterpiece of cinema.

My interpretations to clear up some confusion

[sugarbomber · 10/10 · 8 April 2006]

This is one of the best films I've seen in my life, with beautiful cinematography, excellent acting, and most importantly, a great script. It's sad to see that some of you are too busy critiquing the lack of complexity in the plot, because it is this simplicity that makes this movie so beautiful.

Since many of you have already reiterated the plot, i'll just cut the chase and try to clear up some confusion, hopefully.

First of all, to understand why he let the girl go and turns against his boss, the flashback towards the end is very crucial. When she plays the cello, he smiles, and as he is dying, he smiles as he listens to her voice. These are the only two occasions in which he smiles throughout the entire movie. Whether this is love, attraction, or because he was thankful that she made him feel good, is open to interpretation. Given that he is an extremely straightforward and honest character(and also given that in this movie, everything is what you see on the screen- there are no hidden motives, twists, whatsoever), I assume that the reason he doesn't answer (or CAN'T answer) when asked why he did it by his boss is because he doesn't know himself.

I think the key to understanding this movie is the title, and the narration at the end of the movie (something along the line of a disciple telling his master that he cries after a sweet dream because he knows it can't come true). For Sunwoo,the girl and his belief(?) that he can kill everyone else and still live are sweet dreams that cannot come true. The reason why he unrealistically gets by after getting shot and stabbed so much, is not simply because he is the main character, but because everything he does after meeting the girl is like a sweet 'dream', a surreal reality(yes, an oxymoron, just like the title- a 'bittersweet' life). The morbid ending is also very fitting- as sweet as the dream was, the more bitter it is when he "wakes up" from it and faces reality(once again relating to the last narration).

Spectacular-South Korea does it again

[mmeyers-4 · 10/10 · 11 February 2006]

This masterpiece comes from the director of Tales of Two Sisters and he delivers an epic tale of revenge.

I can't urge you enough to see this movie. The gun battles are reminiscent of Scarface, the martial arts are gritty and realistic, the poignancy of unrequited love is painful, there is a deep philosophical current that underlies this film, and the camera work is superb-but that's not what carries the movie. The actor who plays the main character is what sets this magnificent movie apart from the trash put out by Hollywood. He's a man's man-sharply dressed in well tailored suits driving in a BMW sedan (like the transporter)through beautiful Seoul (showing what a beautiful, spotless, and vibrant city it is). He reaches the point of no return and his vengeance and determination are a tour de force.

Magnificent. Bravo. South Korean films reign supreme.

A film of two halves but ultimately fails when it shouldn't have

[redrummy · 7/10 · 14 December 2010]

Overall a good film and while it plays with the action and drama, the film has massive potential to be so much more. As my title suggests the film is essentially two different films, which begins brightly before fading fast. The first half effortlessly introduces our protagonist and the majority of the cast effortlessly. While stereotypes are put into play they all show something a little different and the plot at it's quietest plays out quite well and to a high standard expected of korean cinema. Yet as Sun Woo's life begins to break down after a costly mistake, the quality and drama quickly takes a backseat to the all too familiar genre of action and revenge. Yet it is disappointing how a country full of great examples and almost infamously associated with the revenge genre can fail so easily. As with many action films it weaves a lot of style at the expense of logic and only gets worse exponentially as guns are introduced and you have a stylish action film which could've been born out of western cinema that lacks the story telling quality it started with. Muddled with a untidy conclusion the film would've been better if the last hour was taken out and the last few minutes kept in

Chandler meets Woo in a Grind House

[genrebusters · 9/10 · 6 August 2005]

I could sit here and start this review off any number of ways to make this film sound ultra important. I could say, once in a great while a film comes along, blah, blah. Or, Only a select few films ever have reached this, blah, blah. Or I could say, if you see one movie this year, blah, blah. You know the drill. These are the opening sentences the big-boy critics use when they really want you to see a flick and when they want a particular review to really stand out. Well, films that deserve this kind of "special" praise really do only come around once in a great while. Unbelievably, I have seen two in only six months time. The first was what I like to call the first real 21st Century film, and that was Oldboy. And the second film of this status also comes from Korea, believe it or not, and it is Bittersweet Life.

Bittersweet Life is probably one of the most simple, most streamlined modern films I have ever seen. It is lean, mean, and like its lead male, a damn ruthless fighting machine. The film beats along with its Raymond Chandler-like screenplay with all the jazz and style of early 90's John Woo and with the energy and themes of Quentin Tarantino's grind house 70's. Life plays with your emotions, making you care for the bad-guy hero even though he is a vicious killer, and causes one to release tension through laughter when the blood starts gushing like a dozen ruptured fire hoses. Wholesale death, blood by the gallons, broken bones and multiple beatings with humongous pipe-wrenches, two-by-fours, and lead pipes are on order, right after a heaping dish of innocent love and a guy trying for once to do the right thing.

The plot, well you see, it's like this: you can see everything coming a mile away, the movie plays it straight, and follows the exact path you know it will and the exact path you hope it will. There are no twist endings, no complicated triple crosses, no hidden motives for the characters. Everything on screen happens the way you see it, and everything thing ends exactly the way you picture it. And this is a good thing. The film is so on track that it doesn't need a twist or a swerve to make you pay attention. It starts at A, ends at E, and hits B, C and D on the way there. Life is so steeped in its genre tropes of noir character and themes that the ending is know to all of us before it even starts. However, it's the journey that matters, and I'll be damned if you can find a better-looking, more brutally violent journey anywhere.

As much as I try to analyze the film, nothing comes to mind. And this is the purest of all compliments. The film is as shallow as the pools of blood splattered in the hallways, alleyways and run down exteriors of the sets. Often times a director feels the need to bog a simple story down with twists, and a deeper meaning to hide the fact that they are afraid to just let things happen because they need to happen. Bittersweet Life is not one of these films. It exists with its soul laid bare for all to see, and when the carnage is complete, you thank the film for being honest with itself. As the final credits roll you might find yourself asking, "Is that it?" Yes, that is it—cinematic perfection. It is all it needs to be: pure and simple, boisterous and calm, bloody and drenched in gore and an honest movie with nothing to hide.

--genrebusters

A slick and stylish revenge drama.

[BA_Harrison · 7/10 · 4 December 2006]

Very stylish and very bloody, A Bittersweet Life may not be the 'classic' that some have hailed it to be, but it is a very good addition to the Asian gangster genre that is well worth watching. Director Kim Jee-Woon has given us a gripping tale of revenge that treads a well worn path, yet does it with enough panache and style for us to forgive the occasional cliché.

Byung-hun Lee plays Sun-woo, cooler-than-cool right-hand man to crime boss Kang, and manager of a swish hotel. Kang asks Sun-woo to keep an eye on his young girlfriend, Hee-Soo, who he suspects is seeing another man; in the event of his suspicions proving to be true, Sun-woo is to kill the girl and her lover.

But when Sun-woo does eventually discover Hee-Soo with another man, he grants the young couple mercy. Angered at Sun-woo disobeying his orders, Kang instructs his men to hunt him down and make him pay for his treachery.

They catch him, and submit him to mental and physical torture but, before they are able to kill him, Sun-woo escapes. An extremely miffed Sun-woo then sets about exacting revenge on those responsible for trying to bump him off.

With a plot that is neither as fresh or as clever as that other recent great Korean revenge drama, Oldboy, Kim Jee Woon's movie owes a lot of its success to lead actor Byung-hun Lee who puts in a confident performance that is the epitome of cool: dressed in a snappy suit, this hard-as-nails gangster is an unflappable fellow, even faced with what seems like certain death.

As one would expect, there is plenty of violence, which slowly escalates until the inevitable final showdown between Sun-woo and Kang. These scenes are handled with aplomb and will go down well with fans of action cinema.

With an ending that is open to interpretation by the viewer, A Bittersweet Life leaves one thinking about the film long after the credits have rolled. Despite its occasional flaws and peculiarities (I still don't understand why the majority of the Korean gangsters don't have guns?), I recommend fans of Asian cinema seek this one out, before the inevitable Hollywood remake rears its ugly head.

The coolest movie I have ever seen

[taylorb1221 · 10/10 · 19 November 2013]

This is my first review on here, only because I felt compelled to tell someone about this film… When I say "coolest," I don't mean it in a that-movie-was-really-cool kind of way… Coolest, in this case, means that it is the smoothest, well-crafted, stylish, and beautiful films I have ever seen. Everything about the film has a you'll-never-be-this-cool feel, like Jules and Vincent from Pulp Fiction. Not to mention the fact that it has the same sort of humor.

Now, I am a film student who has actually gotten a lot of praise from students and teachers and whatnot for my first film project… That's great and all, but after seeing this film I am reminded of what Steven Spielberg said after he saw The Godfather; "I guess I should quit now, because I will never make something this good." I am, in no way, comparing myself to Spielberg, I'm just describing the feeling of, "holy s***, this is amazing," and "wow, I could never do this ever…"

See this movie before you die… Or before it gets remade.

A Nutshell Review: A Bittersweet Life

[DICK STEEL · 7/10 · 6 September 2005]

This is a revenge movie, pure and simple. When it comes to this genre, the protagonist usually has some injustice (loosely used here) done unto him, and therefore unleashes hell upon those who incurred his wrath, who of course, failed to finish him off in the first place.

Sun-woo (Lee Byung-hun) is a hotel manager. Or so he seems. On the surface, he's calm, cool and collected. But step out of line, he brings upon his fury without remorse, and without sympathy. His cockiness earns him no admirers, but he gives his utmost loyalty towards his boss, President Kang.

He leads a lonely existence without friends, and in his latest mission, strikes a forbidden friendship with his prey that led to his ostracizing from the clan he belongs to. Relying on his personal judgement, in contradiction with his boss's, he consciously interpreted his mission ambiguously, and this led to his downfall. In the mob, as a servant, you do not think, but carry out orders like a faithful dog. Such is his life for seven years, until now.

As with revenge films, those who go against you must die, and you soon find yourself up against impossible odds, and with incredible luck. At times the movie stretches its realism to the limit, but for the purpose of good violent fun. The violence is gratuitous - shootings up close, bleeding by the buckets, hand-breaking, fist-fighting, at times making the audience cringe at too much crimson.

But thumbs up for the action pieces, which were well choreographed, especially the escape fight scene (you must learn, never to give a few minutes to a hit-man), and the climatic shoot out finale. Poetry in motion some might add, at times shot like John Woo's slow-motion style with classical music in the background. Various bad characters are up for our anti-hero's dispatch, and you'll find yourself rooting that he does so with as much pain as possible.

On the other end of the spectrum, this film also had incredible amounts of silence and non-action, which punctuated between the action sequences well. Sort of like a breather - the calm before the next storm.

The relationship element between Sun-woo and Hee-soo (Shin Min-a) however was never fully explored. It was hinted that the cause of the rift between servant and master was the woman, but because of the lack of explicit narrative and dialogue, this was never brought across in a clear manner, and left open to interpretation. Another element that somewhat fell flat was the forced attempts to inject humour with bumbling characters. Felt a bit out of place and the pacing suffered a tad bit.

Nonetheless, as a revenge movie, this film delivered. But there's somewhat a nagging thought in me that it could, and should have reached its full potential given the superb cast, stylish action and of course, bloody violence.

face-dragged-across-the-cinderblock-wall

[info-2513 · 10/10 · 8 July 2005]

For director Kim Jee-woon, humor is a basic element of films. And he says no matter how dark and moody it may seem, his new film ''A Bittersweet Life (Talkomhan Insaeng)¡¯¡¯ is no exception.

''This movie basically deals with relationship breakups resulting from small communication breakdowns,¡¯¡¯ Kim said during a news conference Monday after the preview screening of ''A Bittersweet Life.¡¯¡¯ Without calling it comedy exactly, sometimes audiences have to laugh at very serious or ironic situations, Kim said.

Kim has shown his unique morbid sense of humor in previous movies such as ''The Quiet Family,¡¯¡¯ a black comedy about a family who kill visitors to their cottage, ''The Foul King,¡¯¡¯ a comic drama about an amateur wrestler, and one horror contribution work for the omnibus film ''Three.¡¯¡¯ Kim is also behind ''A Tale of Two Sisters,¡¯¡¯ the psychological horror film that became a summer hit in 2003.

''A Bittersweet Life,¡¯¡¯ starring Lee Byung-hun from ''Everybody Has a Little Secret¡¯¡¯ and Shin Mina from ''Madeleine,¡¯¡¯ portrays the desperate and brutal revenge of Sun-woo (played by Lee) after he is expelled from his gang and comes close to being killed by his boss.

Lee Byung-hun is a hit-man who falls for the girlfriend of his boss in the stylishly violent ¡°A Bittersweet Life.¡± Conventional ideas of causation are put into doubt in director Kim Jee-woon's twist on film noire. ''A Bittersweet Life (Talkomhan Insaeng)'' is what Korean critics are describing as ''Action Noire.'' In it, he tweaks the traditional Korean gangster story line, presenting a work with film noire undertones and stylish cinematography.

Sun-woo (Lee Byung-hun) is a revenging dark angel dressed in black. Gang leader Kang (Kim Young-cheol) assigns Sun-woo, his right-hand man, to watch after his nubile girlfriend/professional cellist Hee-soo (Shin Mina) while he is away and find out about the other guy with whom he suspects she is messing around.

The plot is complicated by Sun-woo's existential decision to stray from the explicit instructions with which he is charged. He is cryptically told time and again to make good on a promise, but he never exactly know what that is.

Much of the action occurs in the long shadows the sprawling megapolis Seoul casts. Here, the gangsters wish they were too cool to be killed. No friend can really be trusted as the good guys are not so good and the bad guys can be down right evil. Importantly, the motivation of his tormentors is shrouded in mystery.

But the movie has been labeled ''action noire'' for a good reason. The stylistic ultra-violence of director Kim is superb. The creepy fisherman killer represents a unique Korean twist on the classic film noire villain. Our hero is not a good, good guy either, and I loved that about him. He is not only tough, but also a stone-face killer _ a tribute to both the director and actor's character interpretation.

After all, gangsters should fight to kill, and that means sometimes going for the knees and other joints, hitting low and dirty to take the guy out quick. In general, the fight scenes were creative. Watch for the face-dragged-across-the-cinderblock-wall scene, perhaps a first for cinematic violence.

Enjoyable and Fast-Paced

[vikingvampireparrot · 7/10 · 16 March 2007]

I first came across A Bittersweet Life browsing my DVD rental site. Although I am not familiar with the director or any of the actors the synopsis sounded interesting so I added it to my list. The story tells of Sun-Woo, a low level gangster working for Mr Kang. He is tasked with watching Mr Kang's young girlfriend while he is away as Kang is suspicious that she is unfaithful. What follows are the events unfolding from this task assigned to Sun-Woo.

There is a considerable amount of violence (as to be expected), which I found believable and not as exaggerated as it can be in some Asian films. But this does not lead to the lack of plot as in some others (Ong-bak for example), which makes this superior to many of its counterparts. The only weakness was the ending, which I found ambiguous and doesn't really conclude anything.

The acting is excellent all round and the movie flows at a nice rapid pace. I found it a little difficult to follow in places but I think this is due to having to concentrate on subtitles which always makes it a little more difficult to follow who is actually talking.

This film is well worth watching, although I am not convinced it will quite make it into my DVD collection. In my opinion it is far superior to Chan-Wook Park's trilogy (Sympathy and Lady I found frankly bland and Oldboy was ruined by the incredibly slow and strung out ending). Enjoyable and fun if not outstanding cinema.

An empty tankard of vengeance

[kluseba · 5/10 · 2 August 2012]

As a big fan of the current South Korean cinema who has seen the amazing vengeance thriller "I Saw The Devil", I was excited to watch an earlier collaboration of director Kim Jee-Woon and actor Lee Byung-Hun in this movie that got internationally known as "A Bittersweet Life". This movie is definitely completely different from the recent masterpiece they have created together and also from "The Good, The Bad, The Weird". This movie is rather influenced by Japanese Yakuza flicks and portrays an enforcer and manager that has faithfully served his brutal boss for seven long years. This man is suddenly led by his emotions when he gets the task to keep an eye on his boss' new young girlfriend during his absence. The loyal man falls for the charming, naive and vivid young woman and doesn't contact his boss when he discovers that his boss' doubts were right and that his new girlfriend was cheating on him and meeting another guy with whom she wants to leave the city. When the boss comes back home, he soon discovers that something is wrong and gets to the conclusion that his faithful right arm betrayed him. He wants to punish him but the manager gets away with his life and takes revenge.

What seems intriguing as a story line at first sight turns out to be quite redundant. First of all, there is no chemistry at all between the manager and his boss' girlfriend and it's hard to believe that he risks everything he has done and become for a beautiful doll and her imprudent boyfriend.

Second, there is a second story line that centres around a conflict between the main actor and a mafia gang that spreads some trouble in his hotel that soon gets quite personal. This side story is also about betrayal and loyalty and is quite interesting but the two stories feel somewhat unfinished and simply don't glue together. It is as if you were watching two different movies from time to time and this doesn't help the film to improve.

Third, the middle part of the story is way too long without explaining the important details. For example, we never really get to know what finally happens to the boss' unfaithful girlfriend or her young lover.

Fourth, there are too many pseudo-philosophical dialogues that create many lengths and from time to time, we even get some completely misplaced slapstick humour. For example, the whole story line around the weapon deal with the Russian mafia is just silly.

Fifth, the vengeance chapter only takes a few minutes and doesn't impress with much action, gripping tension or some brutality. Instead, emotionally driven dialogues are put in between fighting sequences and slow the flow. The main character suddenly gets quite tender in between all the shooting scenes which feels unreal and weird.

Each time, you expect something gripping to happen, it just doesn't. There are some appetizers and promising turnings now and then but the rhythm always quickly slows down. The movie has many ups and downs and is ultimately too long and a little bit hard to sit through. Something really gripping, surprising or twisted as in a Takashi Miike movie is definitely missing here. The acting is only of an average quality and the story more or less predictable. Only a couple of vivid passages and the good job of some supporting actors made this flick at least watchable and enjoyable from time to time but I have really expected more. In the end, I wouldn't recommend to watch this kind of overlong and emotionally shattered mafia thriller.

A truly excellent movie!

[siapanta-1 · 10/10 · 3 June 2006]

I had the opportunity to watch this brilliant movie at home, while translating it from English to Greek for the viewers of the Thessaloniki Film Festival in November, 2005.

I was impressed by the stunning performance of the leading actor, as well as of the other actors. The music of the film was also wisely selected.

Some -few- funny moments in the film help the viewer lighten up and get ready for what I saw as brilliantly directed fighting scenes, that neither bored me nor made me look away.

At the end of the film, when the desciple was crying for "a dream that can never come true" I was absolutely sure that what I saw was nothing less than a true work of art.

Life is bittersweet...

[sandgbingham · 9/10 · 29 April 2006]

When you sit back to watch this film, be prepared for a film that will open your mind,a film that will make you question humanity, and be prepared to be floored by a visual masterpiece which is rare by gangster movie standards.

From the first few shots we are feasted with beautiful shots, angles and little references that are simply delightful. The story unfolds showing the brighter side of life, the sweet side if you like. This is portrayed by Sunwoo eating a desert in the opening scene and then more food as the first half continues. The film then plays out to its darker half and we are shown the bitter side of life, which i wont go into and destroy for you.

Everything about this film just...Works, even the martial arts scenes are well edited and seem clever, rather than tricking us with quick camera cuts, we get a raw and violent slice of brutal gangster revenge, which again simply delights in a strange bitter way.

Simply put, A bittersweet life is simple plot, filmed and played exactly how it is meant to be, exactly how you want it to be. Every scene is fresh with humour or suspense which is so rare by todays standards.

This films plays out exactly how you want it to, with the exact camera angles it should, with the perfect music to back it all up. This film is a dark and visual spectacle that must be seen to be believed.

9/10

Korean action that plays like a pumped-up HK crime film but at the cost of banal emotion

[chaos-rampant · 8 December 2010]

I'm writing this mostly to put thoughts into order on the idea of a film manipulating the audience. It comes up on film forums now and then and I can agree in principle because I recognize it from personal experience, that some films enable the viewer to experience a feeling while other films demand it of him, but watching KJW's film made it more clear for me. The formula of the revenge film is put in full practice here as a plot, in the first half we get the cruel injustice, in the second half the furious vengeance, yet KJW believes he's making more than a revenge film. The trouble here is that stock characters are put through the motions of living stock feelings and the bodyguard ordered to watch his boss's girlfriend falls in love because the film demands it of him. The film opens with a shot of trees blowing in the wind and a quote of the most banal philosophy (-"is it the branches moving or the wind?" -"it's your heart and mind"). This is trying to resemble a Wong Kar Wai film with the crucial difference that the sadness and longing feel artificial, not the result of personal conviction but rather that these ideas would look good on the film. That may be because KJW relishes the bloodshed. No other part of the film receives the care and attention of the scenes of violence.

Yet by the end of it, KJW isn't satisfied with a crime flick where blood gushes out of bullet holes (of which it's a good one), he wants emotion to pour out of the finale. For all this to work for me, for me to be able to acquiesce to the experience as something worth opening myself to, I need to hear the film play itself. Like a music instrument, a film that plays itself is music to my ears, good or bad at least it's an effort. I want to be able to see the film absorbed by its music like it doesn't even matter I'm there. KJW's film wants to play me, to use me as the music instrument to create emotion. A melancholy piano tunes in the right moment, we get a shot of the protagonist shedding a tear, this fabricated emotion is then cut by the loud bang of a pistol. To get back to what I wrote above, some films let me determine whether I will be sad or angry, A Bittersweet Life anxiously expects it of me, it's like the film is studying my reactions to see will I shed a tear. To the degree that all films are artifice, it could have something to do with different levels of transparency to that artifice.

I don't know if KJW's problem is that he doesn't have obsessions as a filmmaker. This is the third of his films I've actively disliked and all three of them are vastly different to each other. He's good with technique but, like Tarantino, he seems he doesn't have anything personal to share. In place of nothing to exorcize, he seems to pick every time a different genre to stave off boredom. As though anxious to prevent that same boredom in his audience, he fills his movies with passing thrills. At the same time he aspires to more than passing thrills, yet when the time comes for his film to express a conviction that the world is a certain way we get banalities.

Extreme, but extremely linear and generally predictable

[dilbertsuperman · 6/10 · 18 December 2006]

This movie delivers on gangster action and torture scenes but flops on the love side of the story and the plot twists. This is a linear movie where you almost know the end before it starts and are just watching to see the details of how it goes. It's well shot, well cast but no story to speak of that would keep your attention. What I liked in this movie was some of fight scenes were a bit rough and crude and not as dance-like while others were very slick- it gave a good feel for the different ways a fight can go down.

PLOT: A man's world goes all to crap in the gangster business and he can't seem to figure out why even though the answer is so obvious. Asian fight scenes and automatic weaponry with a fetish for knives abounds. Other movies do the same thing better such as "hard boiled"- one of the classics. Sure I think that was Chinese and not Korean but.. hey.. bullets is bullets.

Punished for doing the right thing

[CuriosityKilledShawn · 9/10 · 31 May 2006]

Sun-Woo is the manager of sleek modern restaurant in uptown Seoul called La Dolce Vita, but that's not his only employment. He is also the errand-boy of underworld Kingpin Mr Kang. A job he fulfils ruthlessly and efficiently, until the day Mr Kang takes off for a week, leaving Sun-Woo to mind his much younger girlfriend Hee-Soo to make sure she doesn't sleep around. If she does, he is to execute both of them. Hee-Soo cheats. Sun-Woo almost sentences them to death, but has a sober moment and realises that letting them go is the right thing to do.

In Mr Kang's absence a rival crime syndicate, headed by President Baek and his over-confident son is becoming more and more impatient to force a business merger with Kang. Despite Kang's reluctance to go through with this deal one of his own men, Sun-Woo's cohort, Min-Gi welcomes the business with Baek and his son and complicates matters.

Upon Kang's return he figures out Sun-Woo's failure to carry out his orders and demands he be killed unless he apologises. At this moment, Sun-Woo is about to be tortured to death by Baek Jr. but is returned to Kang on the promise that he will do business.

It's out of the frying pan and into the deepest pits of fiery hell for Sun-Woo. Already bashed and bruised and beaten he is cast down in the mud during a heavy rainstorm and forced to apologise. He resists. His hand is crushed with a massive wrench he is buried alive.

He survives and breaks through the loose soil. Sun-Woo and the audience breathe a sigh of relief. But it's far from over. Min-Ji and a large group of thugs are still waiting by the shallow grave. They drag him into a old building and give him 15 minutes to call Mr. Kang and beg for his life. Still he refuses. And when those 15 minutes are up Sun-Woo unleashes an incredibly lethal and jaw-droppingly furious ass-kicking like you have never seen. He goes through about 20 men like they weren't even there and dishes out agonising, blood-soaked punishment in one of the most nail-biting escapes you'll ever see.

It's now time for Sun-Woo to plan his revenge. And that he does with lovingly violent detail.

A Bittersweet Life comes in 3 large acts that make the 120-minute running time pass in a breeze. The set-up and story are so simple and honest that you can literally start-watching the film at any point and still become immersed in the action. But, I feel that many viewers may be missing the twist at the end.

By 'twist' I mean after Sun-Woo's death the film goes back to the beginning, revealing that he only fantasised the whole thing. He says the cruelty of any sweet dream is waking up to find yourself back in the real world. He is still in his restaurant and when no one is looking, insecurely looking over his shoulder to make sure, Sun-Woo shadow boxes for fun or curiosity. Hardly the kind of behavior you would expect from a man who has just annihilated 50 baddies.

But, regardless of the final outcome, it's the high-octane journey you take to get there that really matters right? And A Bittersweet Life is one movie you'll want to watch over and over again.

Nothing Bitter, Very Sweet

[view_and_review · 7/10 · 17 July 2021]

I'm noticing that Korean movies always have to have an element of tragedy. I have yet to see a happily ever after. They're more like this-is-the-best-you're-going-to-get ever after. And I'm not mad.

"A Bittersweet Life" is about a faithful and effective right-hand-man for a mob boss named Sunwoo (Lee Byung Hun). He is cool under pressure and good with his hands and feet. The boss, Mr. Kang (Yeong-cheol Kim), gave him the task of tailing his young girlfriend Hee Soo (Shin Min-a) while he was away on business. If Sunwoo saw Mr. Kang's girlfriend with another man, then he was to dispose of both of them.

At first I thought this was a tale about falling in love with the boss's girl. It kind of was and kind of wasn't. Sunwoo did see Hee Soo with another man, but that little piece of him that had feelings for her wouldn't allow him to harm her. And that was his big mistake. He suffered greatly for that mistake, and he would repay his suffering as well.

"A Bittersweet Life" was a solid movie. The characters were lively and interesting as well as the plot. I've seen similar American movies with varying degrees of enthusiasm. This one had the right elements to make it good. A likeable protagonist, proper motivation, and some good fight scenes. There was nothing bitter about this.

'Jin Shim' (truth-fully)

[lil-augio · 10/10 · 20 September 2005]

Everything is believable, from the small things like the way in which the main character first falls in love with his boss's girlfriend because of the delicate curve of her neck and the way the main character fumbles with a gun for the first time while he tries to put it together, to the theme of revenge that this films is propelled by.

The main character (Sun-Woo) has lived most of his life serving his 'Hyong-Nim' (Korean for boss in the gangster underworld). He has in fact dedicated 7 years of his life to him, taking care of the dirty work his dirty work. His boss (Mr.Kang) sees Sun-Woo as one of his most trusted 'Ah-Ho' (Korean for underling), and this is where you recognised that family-based element of the gangster underworld. In Korea, the society is largely based on a strict hierarchal system, where you must respect your elders and demand respect from people younger than you. Although right now, Korea is slowly moving away from convention and traditions, the underworld of gangs stills strictly upholds this hierarchal system. The theme of revenge stems from this, as Mr.Kang feels like a betrayed father, with his underling, Sun-Woo protects his boss's girlfriend from getting caught cheating. Mr. Kang follows the protocol of the underworld and decides to punish Sun-Woo who has been like a son to him. Before Sun-Woo suffers the punishment, Mr.Kang asks him why did he betray him, to which Sun-Woo replies, "I thought if she promised never to cheat on you, everything would be back to normal... I thought everything would be OK." To this, Mr.Kang says, "No, its OK, tell me the truth... It's because you fell for her, isn't it?" Sun-Woo cannot lie as he stays silent, confused. As he kneels down in the mud in this scene, you see on the main characters face the realisation that after all this time of never falling in love with anyone, the one girl that turned his head was his boss's girlfriend. Earlier in the movie, there is a scene where Mr.Kang and Sun-Woo have dinner together as father and son in a family of the underworld, where Mr.Kang says that he hates being lied to and that if Sun-Woo caught his young girlfriend cheating, that Sun-Woo should kill her. Mr.Kang contradicts himself here, as he is in fact married with a wife who he is cheating on by being with this new younger girlfriend. Mr.Kang believes that in the underworld of gangsters, if your boss says something and he is wrong, you must still agree and follow his lead. There is a Japanese gangster saying, "If your boss says black is white and white is black, you must agree. If he says there is no sky, then to you there is no sky." Mr.Kang punishes Sun-Woo for what he says is betrayal of the code of master and disciple hierarchy. Sun-Woo almost loses his life as he refuses to be punished, fighting against gangsters that he was once the general of. This is where the main character's 'Hamlet-styled' contemplation of revenge takes place. As the story shows the audience Sun-Woo breaking away from tradition and convention by refusing punishment set down by his elder, we also see the main character breaking away from the tradition of close quarter combat as he tries to acquire firearms. To the main character, his boss's actions confuse him. Sun-Woo spent 7 years of his life serving Mr.Kang, and in the final scene Sun-Woo confronts Mr.Kang with this fact. Sun-Woo screams, "I rotted away serving you for 7 years! Were you really going to kill me?!" To Sun-Woo, Mr.Kang's actions were too severe. Ironically, this time its Sun-Woo asking Mr.Kang "No, its OK, tell me the truth... Tell me why you really tried to kill me." At this moment, we see that Mr.Kang chose to punish Sun-Woo, not because he wanted to uphold the law of the underworld, but because he was simply jealous of Sun-Woo, of Sun-Woo's youth. Mr.Kang's reason for cheating on his own wife with a younger woman may also suggest Mr.Kang's thirst for youth. Sun-Woo points pistol at his own boss, his father his mentor and I truly expected him not to fire, but I was totally wrong. As Mr.Kang's character may symbolize tradition and convention, Sun-Woo strikes him down as a unpredictable force of chaos and revolution. The way in which we try and control our lives could be seen as the convention of the hierarchal system where humans try to uphold peace and order. Through the main character, this story depicts how bullshit the 'system' is and that life can prove to be utter chaos the more we try to control it and bring order to it. The most powerful scene in this movie I thought was really breathtaking was the final scene where after having been shot numerous times and barely breathing, the main character calls the girl he has recently fallen for. As she picks up, he drops the phone and can only hear her voice. Comforted only by her voice saying "Yeo Boh Sae Yo?" (Korean way of asking who is it on the phone) he looks up to see wind blowing in the leaves of a tree. He then seems to be lost in a dream, in his final moments of living. But then his dream is cut very shot, ALL OF A SUDDEN by a single shot to his head. It almost as if he was dreaming and then woke up to see his life, to see nothing.

A hot actor, but film nothing special.

[zoe_smith · 6/10 · 30 June 2006]

I lived in South Korea for 3 years, and Lee Byung Hun who play Sun Woo is my favorite Korean actor - admittedly, I think he's very handsome, but I also think he has some genuine acting talent too - and that's why I had high hopes for Dalkomhan Insaeng. I was also hoping for improvements on Byung Hun's previous two movies of one year earlier, which didn't really do anything to raise his acting stakes.

I think Byung Hun played the gangster part quite nicely. He has the right poses and skills to be convincing. Do you know he has a 2nd dan black belt in Taekwondo, and a racing driver's license? Both skills were utilized in the movie. He also already had experience in a gangster role to much better effect in the successful Korean TV drama series, All In. Dalkomhan certainly didn't suffer by casting him in the lead role.

Whilst the attempt at creativity and an aspiration for the cutting edge was in evidence, it didn't quite pull off as a truly memorable movie, however. Many reviewers here are saying how great the backgrounds and subtle effects were. Quite frankly, you can find such similar effects in quite a few other movies. I was just not convinced that there was a real point for this movie other than to make an action movie. I think there needed to be more twists and more original purpose to the thrust of the story. I also wasn't convinced at how Sun Woo could resurrect himself from near death several times and take on so many gangsters single-handedly. Also, the fixation with the girl developed too suddenly. Her stature in the movie just didn't entrance me.

If you want to see an even better Korean movie about revenge, may I suggest my favorite Korean movie to date: Sympathy for Mr Vengeance.

Absolutely perfect

[casanova_tester · 10/10 · 7 February 2006]

This was possibly the greatest film I have ever seen. It was superb on so many different levels. The script, the fighting, the special effects all mould the perfect film. Within the first ten minutes i knew this film was going to keep me on the edge of my seat. I have never been so excited by action scenes before and never laughed with so much shock at the extent of brutal fighting. It is a genre of its own as it has none of that Hollywood business where the bad guys always fail and the main character is invincible and although love is a factor it is not overplayed. This film is electrifying to say the very least. It has more fist action than all the ROCKYs put together, more blood than Goodfellas and is as exciting if not more than a Tarantino film.

Bittersweet life, bit of a mixed bag

[FilmFlaneur · 7/10 · 30 June 2006]

A Bittersweet Life's narrative walks a difficult and stylish tightrope between philosophy and violence, reflection and recklessness. Partially redeemed by some well-choreographed action set pieces, it sits between the more meditative type of Asian gangster film epitomised by Burning Fire (1997), and the more common angel-of-revenge tale, such as was to be seen lately in Oldboy. After early critical successes director Kim Ji-woon is flagged as a talent to watch in the emerging Korean cinema. The subtleties of his A Tale of Two Sisters created a disturbing cocktail of suspenseful horror, one in which the audience was often left guessing as to the exact relationship between major characters. In Bittersweet, although there remains a central question of the heart of the narrative just as subtle - the exact emotional attachment between Sun-woo and Hee-soo - other relationships are far more stereotypical and less imaginative: the tough gang boss, bound by codes of honour for instance; or his femme fatale girlfriend, who throws such a dangerous attraction over her minder; the threatening criminal rivals, the swaggering henchman, etc. Kim Ji-woon's film works best when one instead concentrates on its more interesting aspects, notably the exact mental state of the hero, the bloody transformation from a man who starts out as a loyal employee who pours out his master's drink, to end as a blood soaked avenger, holding a gun at his head.

Sun-woo is a reliable man who has served his boss without complaint for seven years. His attraction for Boss Kang is that he has apparently never been in love, or even had a girlfriend, an un-distracted state of affairs that allows him to give his role full dedication. He does his job, as evidenced by the opening scenes, very efficiently and reliably. Like his boss, an honourable man, who knows how "One mistake can undo the work of many years." In the light of this daunting recognition, the question the film ultimately poses is whether it is wise to restrict an emotional life around blind loyalty, or whether the heart and mind can ultimately make something else out of that which seems almost mechanical. Ultimately one cannot just 'erase memories' or the start of real human feeling just like overcoming an opponent, even though such concerns can be hidden behind fierce notions of honour.

When Sun-woo is given the three-day job of monitoring his boss' girlfriend, the coming drama seems obvious. Most films would promptly have minder and moll strike sparks off each other before falling into a predictable game of dangerous sexual intrigue. Kim Ji-woon's approach is more interesting: following his boss' strict instructions, Sun-woo finds that he is still given a choice of whether to report any liaison or to handle it "in his own way" - a fatal phrasing which allows him, for whatever reason, to exercise some humanity while giving the director a chance to suggest his awakening interest in the girl. But any connection between the two is largely one sided, suggested without passion. Instead Sun-Woo is permitted something which is best described as a moment of spiritual affirmation, listening to the girl play the cello. Much is just suggested, until the audience almost reads into innocuous events a love story of its own devising (in fact it is not until Hee-soo opens her present at the end that anything concrete is really confirmed between them and then obliquely).

Rigorous in following instructions in the case of the girlfriend, and unbending when facing down the threatened predations of gangland rivals, Sun-woo is a proud to the point of recklessness in fact, as his refusal to say "three little words" to avoid a crisis shows. Such refusal can be equated to his lack of verbalisation in the romantic sphere, when he cannot admit to his boss the likelihood of human interest outside of duty, even at pain of death. Whether or not its because he does not know himself is central to our understanding of events, and hard to decide. Like a novice gazing at trees caught by the wind (a key image), he's not yet learnt to project his emotions outwards to interpret the world. During a press conference after the film's premiere the director apparently emphasised the way lack of communication is at the heart of his film. To be more precise, one might restate this lack as being of missing *empathy*. And where either minor or major misunderstandings easily happen, its absence can lead to disaster.

But in a bittersweet world besides sadness and tragedy there's room here for some comedic moments, notably in the scenes where Sun-woo attempts to buy guns from some incompetent gangsters; even in some of the shootouts where the tough guy, being presumably unused to working with guns rather than fists, proves an unreliable shot. The ambiguity of the main character (although arguably one of the film's strengths), the temporary change in tone to black humour after Sun-woo's initial downfall from grace, as well as the stereotypical nature of various character elements, I think, are hard to reconcile. Two or three powerhouse action sequences - a standout being Sun-woo's escape - redeem matters considerably, but one yearns for more imagination amongst incidentals, echoing the central theme which relates the implied vacuum in a hard man's heart to his empty lifestyle. Ultimately, like a man shadow boxing in a window, the question of why he does it, and for whom, remains a mystery.

Nothing but cliché...

[drpavlovic1611 · 3/10 · 27 March 2012]

When you see so many good reviews,you ask yourself: hmm...did we see the same movie????!!! 'The best Korean movie ever', 'fantastic'... It can be that I watched some other movie???!!

This movie is totally predictable. From the start you know who will make the hell of life to our hero, you could see what kind of boss our hero has..., the task what he gets can be end up only in two ways... Everything has been seen so many times.

I must admit that this movie is real,close to the real life,it is not that the main character can beat 1000 guys with one kick,but..., who knows, maybe with some more fantastic fight scenes the movie would be more interesting. This way, you can predict almost the whole movie. The ones who consider this is the best Korean movie ever..., they obviously haven't seen enough Korean movies and their excellent cinematography.

The sum: a movie's goal is not to be totally unpredictable, always to give some new perspective, to have some great scenes..., but this one is nothing but a gangster cliché. To obey to your boss entirely, or not? It is so normal when somebody reaches the point when it is not so easy to obey 100%, the reason is not important.

Even the punch line: How did we get to this point and why? is not so impressive, because every 'why' has its reason. So, this movie can be depicted as NOT ENOUGH of anything which is important for a good movie (it doesn't matter if we seek for a deep movie, a good action or some other kind of movie).

Slick revenge tale with added depth

[Leofwine_draca · 10/10 · 13 January 2012]

A dark story of revenge from South Korea, this film manages to be effortlessly cool while at the same time full of suppressed emotion and, eventually, complete chaos. Yes, it's another sometimes devastating Korean gangster story, made with all the slickness and style of far eastern cinema.

It's a downbeat and depressing film that explores the very depths of the human condition, and I have to say that I found the main character's journey to be pretty upsetting. Lee Byung-hun went on to bigger things after this (a Hollywood career and I SAW THE DEVIL) and it's no surprise, because he's excellent in the central role: extremely subtle and yet with his eyes brimming with feeling.

As the title would indicate, A BITTERSWEET LIFE isn't a feel-good action film with the hero blasting away various well-dressed criminals: this is a crime film in which every action has a consequence, and you can guarantee there won't be a happy ending. It's occasionally disturbing, sometimes blackly funny, and gripping throughout. All of the gangster action you could wish for is here, in spades, and it's very bloody too; however, there's plenty of visual artistry too, and some scenes of breathtaking and touching beauty which transcend the film's genre to reach out and touch the viewer's very heart. The ending, in particular, is quite stunning.