An ace crisis negotiator faces off against a cold-blooded hostage taker. Over the course of 21 hours, she attempts to crack his unusually calm demeanor and force him to reveal his motivations.
Dong-Chul (Don Lee) and Ji-Soo (Song Ji-Hyo) are a happily married couple. One day, Dong-Chul comes home to find his house in disarray and his wife is missing.
The son of a high-ranking North Korean official is suspected of committing serial murders around the world, and is chased by South Korea, North Korea and Interpol.
A high school student with amnesia tries to uncover what has happened to her. All leading her into deeper troubles ultimately revealing a darkness she could not have imagined.
Director:
Hoon-jung Park
Stars:
Seung-chul Baek,
Kim Byung-Ok,
Woo-sik Choi
A father goes all out to clear his daughter from any wrong doing in the murder of his fiance. When all evidence points to her, he takes matters into to his own hands to save his daughter and outwit the judiciary system.
Based on real events, this crime action film depicts a Seoul detective's attempts to keep peace while two Chinese-Korean gangs battle over turf in the neighborhood.
Upon its release, the film became not only the first South Korean film to reach 1 million moviegoers but also the fastest South Korean movie to reach 3 million moviegoers, both in 2018. See more »
Quotes
[last lines]
Won-ho:
Have you ever been happy in your life?
See more »
Crazy Credits
Before the closing credits, a line "In the memory of Ju-hyuk Kim." is shown. See more »
Alternate Versions
An extended version of the film has a duration of 131 minutes 32 seconds and is 8 minutes 12 seconds longer than the theatrical cut which had a duration of 123 minutes 20 seconds. Both versions have the similar 15+ rating. See more »
I'm very impressed with this South Korean crime action film, BELIEVER.
I guess the original will also be very entertaining since its remake has succeeded in hitting all the notes perfectly. Ranging from action to twists to performances to background score: BELIEVER excels in all the departments. Seriously, BELIEVE me.
I could say this is one of the best movies made on this theme. It is perfectly edited at 123 minutes (though I've heard there's a longer version too) and on the way delivers loads of action and some unique plot twists with pulsating music. The director has successfully extracted brilliant performances from the cast, especially Cho Jin-woong, Ryu Jun-yeol and the belated Kim Joo-hyuk.
Without extending the character drama to an overboard limit, BELIEVER remains engaging for the most part. It's the execution which even makes me wonder if this is the best crime action film I've ever seen. The film holds its ground on the technical front. The splendid cinematography does justice to the film's mood and tone.
BELIEVER doesn't intend to evoke emotions; it intends to entertain with its thrilling storyline and heart-stopping action sequences. It uses twists in limit, and without the plot getting too convoluted, it becomes an easily likable film. And as far as the action sequences are concerned, I like the way how a particular setup leads up to the big ones. Hand to hand combat, gunfights, explosions, destruction: there is everything an entertaining action film would have and all of these action blocks are simply outstanding.
And I mean it; every single action scene is spectacular and worth repeated viewings.
To sum it all up, BELIEVER is a film I will highly recommend to anyone who likes crime action movies with a great climax which allows thoughts to flow in. If you haven't already seen it, see it now!
5 of 8 people found this review helpful.
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I have not seen the original film, DRUG WAR yet.
I'm very impressed with this South Korean crime action film, BELIEVER.
I guess the original will also be very entertaining since its remake has succeeded in hitting all the notes perfectly. Ranging from action to twists to performances to background score: BELIEVER excels in all the departments. Seriously, BELIEVE me.
I could say this is one of the best movies made on this theme. It is perfectly edited at 123 minutes (though I've heard there's a longer version too) and on the way delivers loads of action and some unique plot twists with pulsating music. The director has successfully extracted brilliant performances from the cast, especially Cho Jin-woong, Ryu Jun-yeol and the belated Kim Joo-hyuk.
Without extending the character drama to an overboard limit, BELIEVER remains engaging for the most part. It's the execution which even makes me wonder if this is the best crime action film I've ever seen. The film holds its ground on the technical front. The splendid cinematography does justice to the film's mood and tone.
BELIEVER doesn't intend to evoke emotions; it intends to entertain with its thrilling storyline and heart-stopping action sequences. It uses twists in limit, and without the plot getting too convoluted, it becomes an easily likable film. And as far as the action sequences are concerned, I like the way how a particular setup leads up to the big ones. Hand to hand combat, gunfights, explosions, destruction: there is everything an entertaining action film would have and all of these action blocks are simply outstanding.
And I mean it; every single action scene is spectacular and worth repeated viewings.
To sum it all up, BELIEVER is a film I will highly recommend to anyone who likes crime action movies with a great climax which allows thoughts to flow in. If you haven't already seen it, see it now!