The Chaser (2008)

A disgraced ex-policeman who runs a small ring of prostitutes finds himself in a race against time when one of his women goes missing.

Director:

Hong-jin Na

Writers:

Won-Chan Hong, Shinho Lee

Stars:

Yoon-Seok Kim, Jung-woo Ha, Yeong-hie Seo

22 wins & 23 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Yoon-Seok Kim	...	Joong-ho Eom (as Yoon-suk Kim)
Jung-woo Ha	...	Young-min Jee
Yeong-hie Seo	...	Mi-jin Kim
Yoo-Jeong Kim	...	Eun-ji
In-gi Jeong	...	Detective Lee
Hyo-ju Park	...	Detective Oh
Bon-woong Ko	...	Oh-jot
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Seong-kwang Ha	...	Detective Park
Deok-jae Jo
Jong-goo Lee	...	Profiler
Sang-hee Lee
Woo-jeong Oh	...	Sung-Hee
Moo-yeong Yeo	...	Police commissioner

Storyline

Joong-ho is a dirty detective turned pimp in financial trouble as several of his girls have recently disappeared without clearing their debts. While trying to track them down, he finds a clue that the vanished girls were all called up by a same client whom one of his girls is meeting with right now.

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Plot Keywords:

police detective | pursuit | anti hero | social commentary | anger | 

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Taglines:

The hunter and the hunted, the ultimate chase begins

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Haut et Court [France] Official site [Japan]

Country:

South Korea

Language:

Korean

Release Date:

14 February 2008 (South Korea)

Also Known As:

The Chaser

Filming Locations:

Seoul, South Korea

Box Office

Budget:

$2,650,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$206,875, 31 December 2008

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$31,118,014, 31 December 2008

Company Credits

Production Co:

Big House, Vantage Holdings, Showbox Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

125 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Young-Min and Joong-Ho's chase scene in the alley was shot in 7 days.

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Connections

Remade as The Chaser

User Reviews

Nice psycho-thriller! Slow burner but great climax!

Wow! I caught wind of this through a magazine review and checked it out and was very glad I did. Some of the great stuff coming out of South Korea will blow your mind and this is no exception. The references people made to this movie being in the caliber of Oldboy and Memories of Murder are well substantiated but I would liken it more to Memories of Murder and not quite in the same league as Oldboy. The only movie in league with Oldboy is Seven. While the plot kind of reminded me of some of the classic 80s and 90s psycho-killer thrillers we have had come out of the US, it does hold up well on its own for being a foreign film. Not the most original plot but a decent twist on it nonetheless. Nothing in the plot or sequence of events stood out as unbelievable and there are some real gripping scenes that'll make you white-knuckle. There are some good character developments and reversals that I enjoyed as we see our main character, a former cop turned pimp, trying to find the guy who's been killing his girls and coming to grips with his personal responsibilities and justice. I don't want to give away the plot other than that as it would detract from your enjoyment. It does burn a little slow after the first 20 minutes of the movie as we see events unfold so be prepared for the reward in the last 30 minutes of the movie as the sequence of events crescendo. I'll be keeping an eye on this great director.