FilmFan
10-26-2009, 11:56 PM
http://img509.imageshack.us/img509/8955/abittersweetlifelo7.jpg
A Bittersweet Life aka Dalkomhan insaeng
Running time: 120 minutes
Directed by: Ji-woon Kim
Starring: Byung-hun Lee
IMDB rating: 7.8
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0456912/
Sun Woo is an enforcer for Kang, the head of a powerful criminal organisation, and he runs one of his hotels. In a scene early on, members of a rival criminal family outstay their welcome at the hotel. After they refuse to leave, Sun Woo attacks them, beats them up and throws them out. that he has long been a loyal, trusted and effective employee. But the same qualities that make him perfect as an enforcer look as if they may prove his undoing, as the rival family are understandable pissed off about his earlier actions. They approach him with the message that a simple apology will end the matter, but he refuses to budge an inch.
When his boss has to go out of town, he instructs Sun Woo to look in on his much younger girlfriend, as he suspects that she may be unfaithful. Should that be the case, his orders are to kill her and the man she is with.
Upon spending some time with the girl, Sun Woo starts to fall for her. One evening he notices that she is not alone in her apartment, and sneaks in, finding her with another man. Torn between his affection for the girl and the boss he has long been loyal to, he tells the couple he will spare their lives if they promise to never see each other again.
These two decisions both combine to put his life in danger, and he ends up beaten and tortured, before managing to turn the tables. In a ridiculously over the top (yet very enjoyable) scene, he manages to fight off a small gang of people, and sets about settling the score with the people who came after him and the bosses that gave them the order.
I really enjoyed this film. If you don't care for the plot, it still has enough great action scenes to satisfy fans of the genre, and even if you're not a fan of shootouts and martial arts, the story is strong enough to make it worth seeing. Personally I liked both, and it's the sort of movie I could see myself re-watching before too long. Byung-hun Lee is great in the lead role, and it's a shame that (in an attempt to make it big in America, perhaps?) his most recent offering is the turkey GI Joe.
7.75/10
A Bittersweet Life aka Dalkomhan insaeng
Running time: 120 minutes
Directed by: Ji-woon Kim
Starring: Byung-hun Lee
IMDB rating: 7.8
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0456912/
Sun Woo is an enforcer for Kang, the head of a powerful criminal organisation, and he runs one of his hotels. In a scene early on, members of a rival criminal family outstay their welcome at the hotel. After they refuse to leave, Sun Woo attacks them, beats them up and throws them out. that he has long been a loyal, trusted and effective employee. But the same qualities that make him perfect as an enforcer look as if they may prove his undoing, as the rival family are understandable pissed off about his earlier actions. They approach him with the message that a simple apology will end the matter, but he refuses to budge an inch.
When his boss has to go out of town, he instructs Sun Woo to look in on his much younger girlfriend, as he suspects that she may be unfaithful. Should that be the case, his orders are to kill her and the man she is with.
Upon spending some time with the girl, Sun Woo starts to fall for her. One evening he notices that she is not alone in her apartment, and sneaks in, finding her with another man. Torn between his affection for the girl and the boss he has long been loyal to, he tells the couple he will spare their lives if they promise to never see each other again.
These two decisions both combine to put his life in danger, and he ends up beaten and tortured, before managing to turn the tables. In a ridiculously over the top (yet very enjoyable) scene, he manages to fight off a small gang of people, and sets about settling the score with the people who came after him and the bosses that gave them the order.
I really enjoyed this film. If you don't care for the plot, it still has enough great action scenes to satisfy fans of the genre, and even if you're not a fan of shootouts and martial arts, the story is strong enough to make it worth seeing. Personally I liked both, and it's the sort of movie I could see myself re-watching before too long. Byung-hun Lee is great in the lead role, and it's a shame that (in an attempt to make it big in America, perhaps?) his most recent offering is the turkey GI Joe.
7.75/10