ASSASSINATION reviewed; debuts on home video tomorrow

Well Go USA

presents

Assassination

Directed by CHOI Dong-hoon

South Korea, 2015, 139 minutes

Assassination is an epic action film from director CHOI Dong-hoon. It debuts  tomorrow, Tuesday, December 1, 2015, on Blu-ray™, DVD and Digital HD on December 1st from Well Go USA Entertainment. This review is based on watching the Blu-ray version.

Set primarily in 1933, when Korea was a colony of Japan, the film tells the tale of three Koreans tasked by the Korean Provisional Government with a deadly mission. Captain Yem (LEE Jung-jae, Il Mare, New World) is the resistance fighter who recruits sharpshooter Ahn Okyun (actress Gianna Jun, a.k.a. JUN Ji-hyun, Blood: The Last Vampire, The Thieves), Chu Sang-ok  (also known as "Big Gun"), and Hwang Duk-am (CHOI Deok-moon, The Admiral). Their targets are Japanese general Kawaguchi Mamoru, who led the massacre of over 3,000 Koreans in Manchuria, and Kang In-guk, the leading pro-Japanese lapdog.

Ahn expects the operation to take five minutes and for the three to come back alive. Unfortunately, the plan goes awry because there is a traitor within the ranks of the Korean Provisional government. He has arranged for a team of hit men, "Hawaii Pistol (HA Jung-woo, Kundo: Age of the Rampant) and his partner (played by OH Dal-soo, Oldboy, The Attorney).

Director CHOI Dong-hoon's is perhaps best know in the West for his 2012 hit The Thieves, which was Korea’s biggest box office hit of that year. His other films are The Big Swindle (2004), Tazza: The High Rollers (2006) and Woochi (2009). Gianna Jun and LEE Jung-jae both starred in The Thieves.

Disc Specs:
-- Audio: Korean DTS 5.1 HDMA or 2.0 stereo
-- Subtitles: English / Off
-- Extras: trailer for assassination and three other Well Go USA releases (Memories of the Sword, The Pirates, and The Thieves)

Assassination is a beautiful period piece with great acting, opulent sets and terrific action sequences, especially a lengthy shoot-out at a wedding. It has exciting plot twists and makes for great entertainment. Even with the paucity of extras, it's most definitely a release that's well-worth owning.

AsianCineFest Rating: 4 out of 4 stars; most highly recommended.

THE BERLIN FILE becomes available on Region 1 DVD this Wednesday

CJ Entertainment

Presents

The Berlin File

Written and directed by RYOO Seung-wan

Starring Ha Jung-woo, HAN Suk-kyu,

RYU Seung-beom, and Gianna JUN

South Korea, 2013, 120 minutes

Get ready for an action-packed espionage thriller in which the clandestine operatives of the two parts of Korea, the only remaining country of those that were divided in the immediate post-WWII period, go at one another in the formerly divided city that was the focus of so much Cold War intrigue. The Berlin File arrives on Region 1 DVD on Wednesday, December 24th.

The Berlin File set attendance records in South Korea after it opened at the end of January, 2013. South Korean filmmakers BONG Joon-ho (The Host), CHOI Dong-hoon (The Thieves) and LEE Joon-ik (The King and the Clown) have each praised it and for good reason. It's top-drawer entertainment.

North Korean "ghost" agent PYO Jong-seong (HA Jung-woo)

The film, which was written and directed by RYOO Seung-wan (The City of Violence), centers around PYO Jong-seong, a North Korean operative played by HA Jung-woo (The Yellow Sea, Nameless Gangster). Currently stationed in Berlin, where his wife is a translator for the North Korean ambassador, PYO is called the hero of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. However, he is not known to the intelligence agencies of South Korea (a.k.a. the Republic of Korea), the United States, Britain, or Israel.

Such an agent is termed a “ghost” and that’s what South Korean intelligence agent JUNG Jin-soo (HAN Suk-kyu, Green Fish, Shiri, A Bloody Aria) calls him when he’s seen on surveillance cameras at an arms deal taking place in a hotel room. PYO is arranging, via a Russian broker, for the sale of North Korean weapons to a member of an Arab “anti-imperialist” terrorist organization. When a third party interrupts the meeting, all hell breaks loose, and JUNG’s quest to capture the resourceful and elusive PYO begins.

RYUN Jung-hee (Gianna JUN) is PYO's wife and a translater for the North Korean ambassador

The story is further complicated because PYO’s wife, RYUN Jung-hee (played by Gianna JUN, a.k.a. JUN Ji-hyun, Blood: The Last Vampire, My Sassy Girl, Il Mare), is suspected of treason. DONG Myung-soo, a vicious North Korean agent and son of a powerful political figure, has been sent to deal with the situation. He gives PYO, who begins to have some of his own suspicions about his wife, forty-eight hours to clear her. RYOO Seung-bum (Doomsday Book, Foxy Festival, No Mercy), brother of director RYOO Seung-wan, plays the role of DONG with truly relentless, sinister menace. (I have no idea why their family name is spelled RYOO for one RYU for the other, but that's how they appear in publicity materials and at IMDb.)

South Korean intelligence agent JUNG Jin-soo (HAN Suk-kyu)

To say that the film has a dense story line is almost an understatement. In addition to the North and South Korean intelligence and diplomatic factions and the Arab terrorists, there is involvement of the U.S. CIA and Israel’s Mossad, suspicions of defection, and a $4 billion fund supposedly squirreled away by North Korea’s supreme leader KIM Jong-il before he died. Individuals are often not what they seem to be and are rarely to be trusted. In the world of espionage, after all, duplicity is the name of the game. Still, it’s easy enough to follow along and enjoy the show.

Dong Myung-soo (RYU Seung-bum, brother of director RYOO Seung-wan) is a ruthless North Korean operative

Terrific, stylish, high-adrenaline action scenes frequently punctuate the film. Great credit must be given to JUNG Doo-hong, the film’s action coordinator, as well as to the actors and stunt personnel involved.

The audio and video on the DVD are fine. There's absolutely nothing to find fault with nor to complain about, although I must confess that I'd love it if CJ Entertainment would start making their films available on Blu-ray discs as well as DVDs (like Well Go USA does) or as Blu-ray/DVD combo editions (as The Criterion Collection is now doing).

There are four language track options: the original Korean soundtrack with English subtitles or an English dubbed version, both available as either 5.1 or 2.0.

The Berlin File disc extras include "The Making of The Berlin File," a much better than average behind-the-scenes featurette that clocks in about 83 minutes. There are some very interesting bits of information that come to light, especially from action coordinator JUNG and from a woman formerly from North Korea who advised the cast on the various accents they employed and which were based on the social status of their characters.  Some deleted scenes are also included.

The Berlin File is taut, well-paced, action-packed thriller with an outstanding all-star cast. ACF Rating: 3.5 out of 4 stars; highly recommended.

Some other reviews of the film, not the DVD per se, can be found at:
Film Business Asia

The New York Times 

Modern Korean Cinema

Screen Daily

ACF 1805: THE BERLIN FILE opens nationwide in U.S. tomorrow

Get ready for an action-packed espionage thriller in which the clandestine representatives of the two parts of Korea, the only remaining country that was divided in the post-WWII period, go at one another in the city that was the focus of so much Cold War intrigue. THE BERLIN FILE opens nationwide in select U.S. cities on Friday, February 15, 2013. Locations include New York (AMC Empire, AMC Bay Terrace), New Jersey (AMC Ridgefield Park), Philadelphia (AMC Plymouth Meeting), Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Seattle, and Honolulu. (An up-to-date list and further information about the film is available at THE BERLIN FILE official webpage)

THE BERLIN FILE set attendance records in South Korea after it began screening at 5:00 p.m. this past January 29th, the day before its official release there. South Korean filmmakers BONG Joon-ho (THE HOST), CHOI Dong-hoon (THE THIEVES, and LEE Joon-ik (THE KING AND THE CLOWN) have each praised it.

North Korean "ghost" agent PYO Jong-seong (HA Jung-woo)

The film, which was written and directed by Ryoo Seung-wan (THE CITY OF VIOLENCE), centers around PYO Jong-seong, a North Korean operative played by HA Jung-woo (THE YELLOW SEA, NAMELESS GANGSTER). Currently stationed in Berlin, where his wife is a translator for the North Korean ambassador, PYO is called the hero of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. However, he is not known to the intelligence agencies of South Korea (a.k.a. the Republic of Korea), the United States, Britain, or Israel.

Such an agent is termed a “ghost” and that’s what South Korean intelligence agent JUNG Jin-soo (HAN Suk-kyu, GREEN FISH, SHIRI, A BLOODY ARIA) calls him when he’s seen on surveillance cameras at an arms deal taking place in a hotel room. PYO is arranging, via a Russian broker, for the sale of North Korean weapons to a member of an Arab “anti-imperialist” terrorist organization. When a third party interrupts the meeting, all hell breaks loose, and JUNG’s quest to capture the resourceful and elusive PYO begins.

RYUN Jung-hee (Gianna JUN) is PYO's wife and a translater for the North Korean ambassador

The story is further complicated because PYO’s wife, RYUN Jung-hee (played by Gianna JUN, a.k.a. JUN Ji-hyun, BLOOD: THE LAST VAMPIRE, MY SASSY GIRL, IL MARE), is suspected of treason. DONG Myung-soo, a vicious North Korean agent and son of a powerful political figure, has been sent to deal with the situation. He gives PYO, who begins to have some of his own suspicions about his wife, forty-eight hours to clear her. RYOO Seung-bum (DOOMSDAY BOOK, FOXY FESTIVAL, NO MERCY), brother of director RYOO Seung-wan, plays the role of DONG with truly relentless, sinister menace.

South Korean intelligence agent JUNG Jin-soo (HAN Suk-kyu)

To say that the film has a dense story line is almost an understatement. In addition to the North and South Korean intelligence and diplomatic factions and the Arab terrorists, there is involvement of the U.S. CIA and Israel’s Mossad, suspicions of defection, and a $4 billion fund supposedly squirreled away by North Korea’s supreme leader KIM Jong-il before he died. Individuals are often not what they seem to be and are rarely to be trusted. In the world of espionage, after all, duplicity is the name of the game. Still, it’s easy enough to follow along and enjoy the show.

While the film is primarily in Korean, with easy to read subtitles, a fair portion is in English, and it’s here that the film’s main problem crops up. None of the Korean actors seem totally comfortable speaking English. HAN Suk-kyu, whom I respect and admire as an actor, has the most difficulty; at times I wished that there were subtitles for his lines of dialogue in English.

Dong Myung-soo (RYOO Seung-bum, brother of director RYOO Seung-wan) is a ruthless North Korean operative

Terrific, stylish, high-adrenaline action scenes frequently punctuate the film. I must give credit here to JUNG Doo-hong, who is listed at IMDb as the film’s action coordinator, but who is mysteriously not included in the otherwise extensive list of cast and crew in the press information provided with the screener I received.

When all is said and done, I found THE BERLIN FILE to be crackin’ good entertainment, a well paced, thriller with an outstanding all-star cast.

ACF Rating: 3.5 out of 4 stars; highly recommended.

Note: This review first appeared in slightly different form at 24Framespersecond.

ACF 234: Blood: The Last Vampire

Blood: The Last Vampire opened yesterday. As regular readers know, my policy is to post a review on or before a films theatrical release, but obviously I'm a day late in this case. It's particularly unfortunate because I had seen an advance screening of the film and subsequently had a chance to talk with Bill Kong, one of the film's producers. (Abel Nahmias is the other producer.) Among the films that Mr. Kong has previously produced are Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (which I rank tied for #1 with Seven Samurai as my favorite Asian film of all time) and Hero, which is also terrific.

The delay in my review - which even now will have to be a short one - is that I'm moving out of my apartment, and have to be gone by July 15th, instead of the 30th, as I'd expected. So it's been a crazy, hectic time.

On the other hand, the delay has meant that I've had a chance to read the reviews in the Village Voice and The New York Times, both of which, shall we say have been less than laudatory. In both cases, I think these reviewers have been less than fair to the film.

In case you're not familiar with it, this film is a live-action, English language remake of a very fine Japanese anime of the same name from a few years ago. Both start with an opening sequence set on a subway train in which Saya (here played by Korean star Gianna Jun in her first action role) kills a vampire. Thing is that though she looks like a teen-ager, she's something like 400 years old and is 1/2 vampire herself, on her mother's side.

Similarly, the main action then shifts to a U.S. air field in Japan in the early '70's. On and around the base are a slew of vampire demons that need to be dispatched, something that Saya excels at.

One of the main differences between the anime and this live-action version is that in the original, the secondary female character was an adult nurse. The new film features Alice McKee as Allison Miller, the daughter of the base commander and a student in Saya's class. This gives the demon hunter a peer to play off of.

Chris Nahon, whose previous works include the Jet Li vehicle Kiss of the Dragon directed, and Corey Yuen, whose credits are legend, served as action director.

The Village Voice and The New York Times, and perhaps other reviews I haven't read, have come down on the film for several things, including its monsters and CGI effects. But I think that the film's look was a deliberate decision of Hahon's. He's not the world's greatest director, but he damn sure knows what he's doing. One reviewer called the monster "Ray Harryhausen throwbacks."

Harryhausen's name came to my mind also, but I think the director was consciously pursuing a retro look. In other words, shooting a film with contemporary action choreography, but with the look of a film that was shot at the time it was set, namely in the '70's.

ACF 324: Blood: The Last Vampire

Blood: The Last Vampire
Directed by Chris Nahon
Hong Kong/Japan/France/Argentina 2009, 91 minutes
In English and some Japanese (with English subtitles)

Blood: The Last Vampire is set to open in theaters in the U.S. on July 10th, 2009. It's an English language live-action version of the original 2000 Japanese anime feature film. Gianna Jun (My Sassy Girl, Il Mare) stars as Saya, a 400-year-old demon-hunting vampire slayer working undercover in Japan for a secret organization, on a mission in the Vietnam War era.

The cast also includes Koyuki (The Last Samurai, Always: Sunset on Third Street), Michael Byrne (Beyond the Sea, Gangs of New York), Colin Salmon (Resident Evil, Punisher: War Zone, Clubbed), and Allison Miller (Kings).

The film features stunts choreographed by Cory Yuen (Transporter 3, Red Cliff), is produced by Bill Kong and Abel Nahmias, with screenplay by Chris Chow.
I'll have more on this one before the release date. In the meanwhile, here are some links well worth checking out:

Blood: The Last Vampire Official Website

Download the trailer!

Photos of Korean star Gianna Jun in Hollywood