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.
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.