South Korean Movie Reviews »
Man on the Edge (aka The Gangster Shaman, 2012) Movie Review
Gangster comedies have been only too common in Korean cinema for more than a decade now, so it’s not too surprising that the genre has of late been running out of steam both in...
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Juvenile Offender (2012) Movie Review
Produced and supported by the National Human Rights Commission of Korea, “Juvenile Offender” is a humanistic and socially aware look at the country’s youth justice system, and more importantly at the struggle of a...
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National Security (2012) Movie Review
Director Chung Ji Young delivers another no holds barred look at Korean justice and politics in “National Security”, following up his multiple award winning “Unbowed”, which starred Ahn Sung Ki as a real life...
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SIFF ’13 Review: Pieta (2012)
After a sojourn into other realms, and a self-imposed year-long hiatus from the industry—sort of, he did release the documentary “Arirang” in the interim—controversial director Kim Ki-duk is back to doing what he does...
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I am the King (2012) Movie Review
“I am the King” is a Joseon Dynasty set Korean comedy which takes a light hearted look at the mysteriously undocumented period before Sejong the Great took the throne, supposing what might have happened...
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Marrying the Mafia 5: Return of the Family (2012) Movie Review
The “Marrying the Mafia” series has proved one of the most enduring and popular in Korean cinema, now reaching its fifth instalment and marking its tenth anniversary with “Return of the Family”. This fourth...
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Confession of Murder (2012) Movie Review
Korean writer/director Jung Byung Gil makes his commercial feature debut with “Confession of Murder”, following up on his acclaimed 2008 stuntman documentary “Action Boys”. The film takes the usually serious and gloomy serial killer...
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Barbie (2011) Movie Review
Writer director Lee Sang Woo, who caused quite a stir on the Korean indie scene with his hard hitting features “Mother is a Whore” and “Father is a Dog”, returns with “Barbie”, another scathing...
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A Werewolf Boy (2012) Movie Review
Romantic fantasy “A Werewolf Boy” emerged as of the biggest Korean hits of 2012, not to mention the country’s biggest grossing melodrama to date. Written and directed by Jo Sung Hee, his second feature...
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Codename: Jackal (2012) Movie Review
“Codename: Jackal” (aka “Jackal is Coming”) got a lot of interest for the fact that it stars K-pop star and JYJ member Kim Jae Joong in the male lead role, marking his big screen...
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Perfect Number (2012) Movie Review
“Perfect Number” sees Korea turning to Japan for inspiration, an adaptation of the acclaimed Higashino Keigo novel “Yogisha X no Kenshin” (“The Devotion of Suspect X”), which previously made it to the big screen...
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The Spies (2012) Movie Review
The Korean divide rears its head again in “The Spies”, following a gang of agents from the North who find themselves reluctantly reactivated after spending most of their lives in the South. The film...
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The Traffickers (2012) Movie Review
The gruesome subject of organ theft has long been popular in Korean cinema, ripped from the headlines style tales of unfortunate people having their vitals forcibly removed having made for a number of very...
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Almost Che (2012) Movie Review
“Almost Che” is a Korean comedy that re-teams writer director Yook Sang Hyo and actor Kim In Kwon, who last worked together to great success on the 2010 hit “He’s on Duty”. Their latest...
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A Company Man (2012) Movie Review
That ever popular darling of genre cinema, the strong, silent and stylishly dressed hitman returns in Korean thriller “A Company Man”, marking the debut of writer director Lim Sang Yoon. To be fair, Lim...
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The Thieves (2012) Movie Review #2
Rarely do event films come as big or as eagerly anticipated as Korean blockbuster “The Thieves”, boasting an amazing ensemble cast of top pan-Asian talent, exotic shooting locales and a heist caper plot which...
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The Neighbors (2012) Movie Review
“The Neighbors” is another Korean serial killer drama in which a psycho snatches children and keeps them imprisoned in his basement, an enduringly popular subject on the country’s screens. Based on an internet comic...
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Two Moons (2012) Movie Review
Pretty much every summer sees a clutch of horror films hitting Korean cinemas, and 2012 was no exception, one of which was “Two Moons” (a.k.a. “The Sleepless”), a chiller revolving around a group of...
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The Grand Heist (2012) Movie Review
Korean cinema loves a good caper, and “The Grand Heist” offers a twist on the formula by setting the action back during the Joseon era of the 18th century, following a bunch of miscreants...
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Ghost Sweepers (2012) Movie Review
Attempting to inject a little originality into the horror genre is a laudable endeavour indeed, and something which has characterised the career to date of Korean director Shin Jung Won, who previously gave fans...
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