Kelly WandA Bittersweet Life
November 18th 2006 00:47
Sun-woo is a mid level gangster in South Korea. He is good at what he does, having at his disposal all the style and poise we have come to expect from a Mafia recruitment poster boy. If there is trouble at the restaurant he fronts, he solves it with swift cool headed brutality that neither messes up his hair or spoils the line of his suit.
His Boss trusts him almost like a son and, when the Boss goes to a conference, he sets Sun-woo a task. The Boss has been having it off with a young Cello player but he suspects she is having an affair. If she is, Sun-woo must deal with her and lover boy in the most permanent way possible. The film teases us with the cliche you are expecting from this well worn plot but turns to a different path. Despite how careful she is, Sun-woo eventually catches her with her lover and - seemingly inexplicably - he lets them live, telling them not to see eachother again and what will happen if they do. It is from this point on, we are reminded of how no good deed goes unpunished.
Directed by Kim Jee-Wan whose "A Tale of Two Sisters" is worth more than a second look, this is the kind of Gangster movie you are always hoping for when you put your money down but seldom receive in return. I keep telling you about the joys of Korean cinema at the moment but who listens? I'm not going to even bother rattling off the lengthy list of superlatives this film deserves. If you don't go and see this film it is your loss, not mine.
His Boss trusts him almost like a son and, when the Boss goes to a conference, he sets Sun-woo a task. The Boss has been having it off with a young Cello player but he suspects she is having an affair. If she is, Sun-woo must deal with her and lover boy in the most permanent way possible. The film teases us with the cliche you are expecting from this well worn plot but turns to a different path. Despite how careful she is, Sun-woo eventually catches her with her lover and - seemingly inexplicably - he lets them live, telling them not to see eachother again and what will happen if they do. It is from this point on, we are reminded of how no good deed goes unpunished.
Directed by Kim Jee-Wan whose "A Tale of Two Sisters" is worth more than a second look, this is the kind of Gangster movie you are always hoping for when you put your money down but seldom receive in return. I keep telling you about the joys of Korean cinema at the moment but who listens? I'm not going to even bother rattling off the lengthy list of superlatives this film deserves. If you don't go and see this film it is your loss, not mine.
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