South Korean Movie Reviews »
Art Museum by the Zoo (1998) Movie Review
Jeong-hyang Lee’s “Art Museum by the Zoo” is not a very original movie. Let’s get that out of the way first, shall we? You’ve seen the exact same formula being played out in countless...
Read More »This is Law (2002) Movie Review
Byeong-jin Min’s first effort, This is Law, is the kind of film that should be sued for false advertisement — at least according to what the movie’s poster (as seen above) promises. Not only...
Read More »Friend (2001) Movie Review
Kyung-taek Kwak’s “Friend” is a memoir, a recollection of memories about 4 friends and their divergent paths from childhood to school to adulthood. The film is narrated by one of the 4 friends, middle-class...
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Musa (2001) Movie Review
“Musa” tells the story of an official government convoy from Korea making its way to Nanjing, China; the convoy is under the leadership of young General Choi (Jin-mo Ju), a nobleman with a lot...
Read More »Sorum (2001) Movie Review
I was hesitant to watch Sorum, simply because I’ve seen too many Asian horror films that just didn’t, well, horrify me all that much. The Slow Bore Horror genre, in particular, is wearing thin,...
Read More »My Wife is a Gangster (2001) Movie Review
The most extraordinary thing about My Wife is a Gangster isn’t how well it manages to balance its serious side, its comedy side, and its action side, but how effective the whole thing is....
Read More »Whispering Corridors 2: Memento Mori (1999) Movie Review
“Memento Mori” is a South Korean movie that doesn’t know what it wants to be, and when it finally decides what it should be, it makes the wrong choice. “Memento mori,” for those who...
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My Sassy Girl (2001) Movie Review
The oddest thing about Jae-young Kwak’s “My Sassy Girl” is that its entire premise of a young, 20-something woman acting outrageous and going against the norm of how a “young woman” is supposed to...
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Guns and Talks (2002) Movie Review
There is very little doubt that writer/director Jin Jang (“No Comment”) has a firm technical handle on his new movie, “Guns and Talks”, but I doubt if he knew what he wanted to say,...
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One Fine Spring Day (2001) Movie Review
Love hurts. That simple statement expresses everything there is to know about Jin-ho Hur’s One Fine Spring Day, a movie that is about the awkwardness of attraction and the pain of a burning passion...
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Failan (2001) Movie Review
Kang-Jae is not much of a man. In fact, he’s not much of a human being. He’s boisterous and loud, a tough guy without any toughness in him. His boss abuses him and his...
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Attack the Gas Station (1999) Movie Review
The plot of “Attack the Gas Station” is a simple one. Four robbers, whose names escapes me (maybe that’s because they’re rarely mentioned in the movie), have come to a gas station to rob...
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Beat (1997) Movie Review
Have you ever seen an Asian gangster movie? No? Well, have you ever seen any gangster movie? If the answer is Yes, then you know how this one will end because it’s simply a...
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Bichunmoo (2000) Movie Review
Shin plays the main character, a protagonist with an amazing martial arts prowess that allows him to fight as if he was “flying.” It’s a sword technique that gives Shin the power to explode...
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