Well...I guess I like violent, bloody prison movies now. :) I have never been one for crime/action/thriller flicks like this but the Koreans are making me over.
First of all, the acting from top to bottom is first-rate, Oscar-caliber awesome. Every primary character, even the ones played by actors I am now becoming familiar with from other roles in other movies, are fully-realized, completely and totally real people, distinct from the characters they have played elsewhere.
Secondly, the extreme violence, in the top-quality Korean flicks like this, is ultra-realistic but somehow never feels gratuitous to me. This is not even close to being a splatter flick, though at times there is blood everywhere. How do they do that? :) For one thing, there aren't unnecessary gross-out closeups of organs falling out or a hand being cut off. The acting and body language make everything more than clear.
The hard, hard work of choreographing these fights, learning all the moves and who is where at all times and then seamlessly executing the "dance," as it were, is just mind-blowing to me. Again, I watched closely during the fight scenes and I did not see even one slightly fake-looking move from anyone, including the support actors.
I know top-quality editing works magic too but many of these scenes do not rely on constant jump-cuts; there are significant flowing moments when we really are seeing actors/stunt-men all work together and give it all the energy it needs to be real. I would imagine injuries sustained by actors during these scenes are not terribly unusual.
I do think the film would have benefited from a little more screen time devoted to establishing a close, loving (and macho, of course, this being a Korean flick) relationship between the brothers having existed before what took place. A little more attention to the emotional/tragic side of this would have been nice.
Finally, why is there never any tender behind-bars-boy-love in any of these prison flicks? It's a prison, for god's sake! It happens! :)
Great little short. I about pissed myself a few times. Second-best exorcism flick I've ever seen and the other one was a big-budget, American feature. But what happened to the cream on his lip? ;)
7.3/10, my ass! What the hell? This is a solid 9/10
I mean she was quite useful. also why are you wasting so much time on a show you hated you are all over comment…
You told me to "shut up." lol Is that "polite?" You're apparently too immature or intellectually challenged to understand what I wrote above. Also, how is it possible for anyone to say they don't like ANY shows, not even one, out of a specific country, in your case Korea? That is just dumb.
I didn't like it and Kang Dong Won is one of my favorite korean actors but he didn't make me like the movie. I…
I agree about KDW as I mentioned above. I feel he got increasingly stereotypical and over-acted as the movie progressed. I find him highly talented and entertaining but I think this is the second movie in which other characters seem to constantly be mentioning how handsome or pretty he is and I just don't see it. I would say he is good-looking in an interesting way with that beak nose and thin lips, but maybe people are picking up on his natural charisma and magnetism and misreading that as physical attractiveness.
Kang Dong Won, an actor I didn't know existed before about six weeks ago, is not one of my lifetime favorites. He had me laughing out loud a few times, especially with his little, innocent, apology face and voice he would pull out when he needed it. lol I think he got too hammy in the last third of the movie though, and began playing his role as a caricature, not the character he'd developed to that point. Having watched him in several other movies lately, I admire his versatility a great deal. A moving dramatic actor as well as a natural comic.
Really enjoyed Hwang Jung Min too. Great actor. As is Lee Sung Min as the slimy public servant/politician. He is damn sexy too. No new ground covered or explored here, just a very well-done and entertaining crime comedy/drama, which is all it needs to be.
Again I ask: What is it with Korean professionals hitting each other in the head and kicking each others' shins as standard business behavior? No one ever answers me on this. lol
I mean she was quite useful. also why are you wasting so much time on a show you hated you are all over comment…
You are like the little K-Pop fangirls who have been convinced by huge production conglomerates that it is their job to guarantee, promote, and cheerlead the careers of their stars and the garbage they produce, no matter how bad it is. In return you get to feel a part of a much bigger in-crowd and that fantasy helps fill the void at the center of your soul. You, and the fangirls, are too dense to understand all they want is your brainless loyalty and steady access to your $$$.
Comment sections are for EVERYBODY, not just you and the fangirls. Those of us who see this show for the dreck it is have just as much right to post here as do you. I know it doesn't appear to be the case, but the actors in this show and the entire production crew are professionals and everything they produce is fair game for critique, good or bad. Doesn't matter how "many ppl worked hard on it." This isn't Kindergarten where you get points just for trying.
I'm sorry to have to conclude that you are mentally challenged. You wrote "she wasn't killed off in the drama?" (which is, in fact, a question, complete with a QUESTION MARK lol) two comments up, yet now you say "its not a question." Sadly, it's clear you are a nut case. It is fascinating sometimes the weirdos one meets in the comments.
Exactly why are you asking me? I wrote above "I'm glad to HEAR she was killed off..." from another commenter. As you know, I quit watching after two episodes, and given your energetic cheerleading of this show I assumed you watched the entire train wreck. Accordingly, please direct this question to yourself.
Goodness. What a hidden treasure this movie is. Xiao Hai Bi delivers what I'm pretty sure is the finest example of a child actor delivering such a skillful, under-played performance, which is all the more powerful and moving for his restraint. When I saw him walking down the street in the opening scene there was no missing his aura of calm, self-possessed knowledge beyond his years. He is nearly magical, as we see as the film progresses.
Can't say enough good things about ALL the actors and their portrrayals. Not one hint of trying too hard or straining to evoke an emotion, it is all just THERE on the screen. As loathsome as the stepdad is, he is perfectly believable and not a caricature. Likewise the mom, who seems to be a very decent, caring woman, though we never learn any details of her past with Xiang's father.
From the first frame to the final, this is for me a near-perfect film, an instant favorite. Asian cinema has taught me how much I enjoy and thrive on quiet, intense psychological thrillers of this type. No jump scares, no melodrama, just expert acting, directing and cinematography in service to a gripping story.
I mean she was quite useful. also why are you wasting so much time on a show you hated you are all over comment…
"useful?" lol It's a comment section. I comment, people reply to me with...comments, which I then reply to with...comments, etc. That's why it's called a comment section. Why do you care how many times a random Internet person comments on a series? Does that bother you somehow? I like discussion of films, series, plays, whatever, so I reply to feedback. It's weird that you care how many comments I leave. But actually, it's not. If my comments had been positive toward the show, you wouldn't have mentioned their frequency.
Seriously, like I said: I have shared my complaints about this show, especially because it is so popular on Netflix in the U.S. so I checked it out and thought it was dumb. But a lot of dumb things are popular here in the U.S. so I'm not surprised. You seem to be confusing the actor with the character. Just because you think the actor did great doesn't mean that her character gets to live til the end. As for me, I'm glad to hear she was killed off.
Regarding the criticizing of her character, the reasons why are written right here in our comments. You disagree. That's fine, just enjoy your show, don't let us spoil it for you.
I often like Asian films that almost no one else likes or even watches. lol. I don't care. It doesn't change my ability to enjoy the movie.
Of course I can. I saw two hours, the length of most feature films, of her terrible acting. Why is it so important to you that this actor succeed? sister? Mother? Auntie? Uncle?
People aren't complaining because these actors are "young." They are complaining because they are lousy actors.…
Her acting was "great" compared to what? Your standards are frighteningly low. Please explain why I would be "butthurt" over this show, I have no skin in this game, I just think it sucks. "Throwing a big sulk..." Jesus. Her character and the actress suck. No sulking required. I hope she never gets another part but I doubt I will stalk her online or anything. And what is your skin in this game that you are so "butthurt" over anyone who comments negatively here? Just watch your lame show, enjoy it, and that's that.
"her acting was great..." lol Like when that zombie in the cafeteria was on top of her on the floor about to eat her face off and she just looked blankly at him from two inches away and batted her eyes...as though she hasn't one grain of instinctive will to survive or a natural aversion to being eaten alive or anything. Totally blank. If she was directed to act as though she was in shock and couldn't act in her own defense, she did a terrible job of it. Perhaps her character is mentally disabled. That would explain why her next-door boy-buddy had to drag her around the cafeteria for ten minutes while she remained in a senseless stupor. One of the many not-credible sequences in this show: she would have been killed within a minute and her friend would have been bitten trying to protect her.
Man, think of the zombies' disappointment when they rip her scalp off to eat her brains and THERE ARE NO BRAINS THERE.
People aren't complaining because these actors are "young." They are complaining because they are lousy actors.…
Ummm...I'm replying to comments that reply to my comments, dumb ass. That's what a comment section is for. If you don't like my comments, don't read them, brainiac. Also, I see you in this section trying to pump up this lame show. What's your excuse?
Well...I guess I like violent, bloody prison movies now. :)
I have never been one for crime/action/thriller flicks like this but the Koreans are making me over.
First of all, the acting from top to bottom is first-rate, Oscar-caliber awesome. Every primary character, even the ones played by actors I am now becoming familiar with from other roles in other movies, are fully-realized, completely and totally real people, distinct from the characters they have played elsewhere.
Secondly, the extreme violence, in the top-quality Korean flicks like this, is ultra-realistic but somehow never feels gratuitous to me. This is not even close to being a splatter flick, though at times there is blood everywhere. How do they do that? :) For one thing, there aren't unnecessary gross-out closeups of organs falling out or a hand being cut off. The acting and body language make everything more than clear.
The hard, hard work of choreographing these fights, learning all the moves and who is where at all times and then seamlessly executing the "dance," as it were, is just mind-blowing to me. Again, I watched closely during the fight scenes and I did not see even one slightly fake-looking move from anyone, including the support actors.
I know top-quality editing works magic too but many of these scenes do not rely on constant jump-cuts; there are significant flowing moments when we really are seeing actors/stunt-men all work together and give it all the energy it needs to be real. I would imagine injuries sustained by actors during these scenes are not terribly unusual.
I do think the film would have benefited from a little more screen time devoted to establishing a close, loving (and macho, of course, this being a Korean flick) relationship between the brothers having existed before what took place. A little more attention to the emotional/tragic side of this would have been nice.
Finally, why is there never any tender behind-bars-boy-love in any of these prison flicks? It's a prison, for god's sake! It happens! :)
BRAVO! Rated for its genre: 9/10
Second-best exorcism flick I've ever seen and the other one was a big-budget, American feature.
But what happened to the cream on his lip? ;)
7.3/10, my ass! What the hell?
This is a solid 9/10
His dancing scene was hysterical.
Really enjoyed Hwang Jung Min too. Great actor. As is Lee Sung Min as the slimy public servant/politician. He is damn sexy too. No new ground covered or explored here, just a very well-done and entertaining crime comedy/drama, which is all it needs to be.
Again I ask: What is it with Korean professionals hitting each other in the head and kicking each others' shins as standard business behavior? No one ever answers me on this. lol
You, and the fangirls, are too dense to understand all they want is your brainless loyalty and steady access to your $$$.
Comment sections are for EVERYBODY, not just you and the fangirls. Those of us who see this show for the dreck it is have just as much right to post here as do you. I know it doesn't appear to be the case, but the actors in this show and the entire production crew are professionals and everything they produce is fair game for critique, good or bad. Doesn't matter how "many ppl worked hard on it." This isn't Kindergarten where you get points just for trying.
So take your "shut up" and shove it, fangirl.
Can't say enough good things about ALL the actors and their portrrayals. Not one hint of trying too hard or straining to evoke an emotion, it is all just THERE on the screen. As loathsome as the stepdad is, he is perfectly believable and not a caricature. Likewise the mom, who seems to be a very decent, caring woman, though we never learn any details of her past with Xiang's father.
From the first frame to the final, this is for me a near-perfect film, an instant favorite. Asian cinema has taught me how much I enjoy and thrive on quiet, intense psychological thrillers of this type. No jump scares, no melodrama, just expert acting, directing and cinematography in service to a gripping story.
The cast photo of Xiao Hai Bi is perfection.
9.5/10
Regarding the criticizing of her character, the reasons why are written right here in our comments. You disagree. That's fine, just enjoy your show, don't let us spoil it for you.
I often like Asian films that almost no one else likes or even watches. lol. I don't care. It doesn't change my ability to enjoy the movie.
"her acting was great..." lol Like when that zombie in the cafeteria was on top of her on the floor about to eat her face off and she just looked blankly at him from two inches away and batted her eyes...as though she hasn't one grain of instinctive will to survive or a natural aversion to being eaten alive or anything. Totally blank. If she was directed to act as though she was in shock and couldn't act in her own defense, she did a terrible job of it. Perhaps her character is mentally disabled. That would explain why her next-door boy-buddy had to drag her around the cafeteria for ten minutes while she remained in a senseless stupor. One of the many not-credible sequences in this show: she would have been killed within a minute and her friend would have been bitten trying to protect her.
Man, think of the zombies' disappointment when they rip her scalp off to eat her brains and THERE ARE NO BRAINS THERE.