The Technicians

기술자들

The Con Artists
Romanization: Gisooljadeul
Genre: Action / Team Heist
Writer: Kim Yang joong, Kim Hong sun
Release Date: Dec, 2014

Cast

Kim Woo bin                                        Ko Chang seok                                            Lee Hyun woo                            

Plot

Three con men are enlisted by a fourth to steal 150 billion won hidden within Incheon Customs, and they have a 40-minute time frame to get the job done. ~Han Cinema (w/edits)

Review

The Moorim School babyface (Lee Hyun woo) is Jong bae, a professional hacker and not-very-nice guy who gets involved with Woo bin's Ji hyeok, a young man with an Art degree, and his side-kick, Koo in (Ko Chang seok).

The 'Art Degree' just means Ji hyeok is capable of things like forgery, counterfeit, and replication.

Koo in's talent lies in the technical aspects of Ji hyeok's 'profession' and the two work well together, amassing a small fortune when Ji hyeok decides it's time to go after larger gain -- a safe inside a jewelry shop.

He's also busy chatting up a pretty woman who runs a gallery, and we find out why later in the movie.

Things get interesting in a nail-biter way when another con artist and gangpae-style mob boss enters the picture, enlisting Ji hyeok's help in cracking another 'safe', as it were, so that he can get back at the politicians who snubbed him at campaign time, costing him a congressional seat.

Because the pissed off dude is thug, Ji hyeok and his two buddies are forced to participate in a far-fetched scheme to replace 150 billion won with coupons that look like real won.

This is an action-packed thrill ride and received a 5-star review because of that fact, because it starred Woo bin, because the director didn't make the police look like assholes, and because even the soundtrack (especially the end track) was great.

Twists and turns abound as well, making it an even more delightful watch.

The subs were off by a few seconds throughout, but at least I didn't have to pay to watch this one (take that, Dramafever).

And now I leave you with some screen captures.

Kim Woo bin

Kim Woo bin

Kim Woo bin Shower Scene

Kim Woo bin great guns

Kim Woo bin Smile

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FRIEND (Chingu) 2001, 2009, and 2013

친구

Director - Kwak Kyung-Taek
Writer -  Kwak Kyung-Taek
Genre -  Gangpae, Reminisce
Related titles -  Friend, Our Legend | Chingoo, Woorideului Jeonseol (MBC / 2009)
                          Friend, The Great Legacy | Chingoo 2 (2013)
Release Date -  March 31, 2001

Cast

Plot

The director's experience with his real friends, a semi-autobiographical account set in Busan. The actors speak with a strong Busan dialect.
Joon-suk, son of a vigilant gang boss; Dong-su, only son of an undertaker; Sang-taek, a diligent student; and Joong-ho, who never keeps his mouth shut. They walked the streets with their heads held high, shoulders straight, and chests out, fearing nothing when they were together. Friends who share their porn magazine fantasies and awe of Bruce Lee's Kungfu. Each life takes a different turn. Joon-suk becomes the leading henchman of his father's crime ring and Dong-su is serving for Joon-suk's rival gang. Sang-taek and Joong-ho find themselves helplessly watching their two best friends wield knives at each other.   ~DramaWiki (w/edits)

Friend was nominated for five awards and won three. At the 46th Asia-Pacific Film Festival, Yu Oh-seong and Jang Dong-gun won the Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor awards.

Review

Gritty, intense, and bloody account of four young men growing up in Busan back in the seventies and through approximately twenty years, when lives climax and fade away.

It is obvious why this film garnered nominations, awards, and is one of the highest watched films from Korea.

Long-running as well, with a 2009 MBC remake, Friend, Our Legend, directed by Kwak Kyung-taek, was 20-episodes for television and starred Hyun Bin as Dong-su and Kim Min-joon as Joon-seok.

This was an adaptation of the original movie and was far more bloody and indepth than the original, with greater emphasis falling back on the personal lives of all four boys, their connection to one another throughout, and their eminent demise toward the end -- except for the narrator (writer) who chose an entirely separate path from the other three.

And Friend: The Great Legacy, Director:Writer Kwak Kyung taek (again) is the 2013 sequel where Yu Oh-seong reprises his role. It takes place seventeen years after the events of the original film. In it, Joon-seok meets the grown-up son of Dong-su (Kim Woo-bin), and is interspersed with scenes of Joon-seok's own father (Joo Jin-mo) in 1963.

친구 2

Plot

Joon seok (Yu Oh-Seong) is in prison for almost 17 years now when a woman comes to the prison and requests that Joon seok protect her son from other gang members. Joon seok then takes Sung hoon under his wing in prison.

When Joon seok is released from prison, he learns that Eun ki (Jung Ho-Bin) has gotten rid of his men and now dominates the gang which Joon seok's father (Joo Jin-Mo) started. Joon seok plots to take back control.

When Sung hoon is released from prison, he works for Joon seok in a power struggle against Eun ki.



My introduction to this story came with the MBC Television remake that starred Hyun bin, which I watched three times over the years.

This is my very first viewing of the original movie (2001), and last night I finally watched the sequel that stars Kim Woo bin.

The direction that the 2001 movie and its 2013 sequel take are more obvious about who is actually behind the scenes and calling a majority of the shots (writer, director Kwak Kyung taek) since this is his story and his childhood we're watching unfold.

A lot of the original cast (those who weren't massacred in 2001, that is) returned for the 2013 sequel, which added depth and interest.

2001 is about the four boys and their lives after coming-of-age, and the 2013 sequel centers around Woo bin's character. The sequel also delves a little deeper into the life of Lee Jun seok's father, the original gangpae wizard.

Loose ends are cleared up in the 2013 version as well, but for those of you who haven't watched either yet, I can't say anything that won't end up being a spoiler, so . . .

I thought that Yu Oh seong did a terrific job in both. He's a bad ass through and through and has that look that terrifies, doesn't he?

As for our young, brash Woo bin, he's a keeper.

Like Oh seong, Woo bin has the look, and both men use their eyes to convey a whole lot, without the need of words or a loud voice to get their message across.

It's as sexy as it is terrifying, but I love it in either case because it is so compelling.

The cigarette drop toward the end of 2001 comes up again in 2013, but after having watched both movies (in a row), I still don't see or comprehend Jun seok's knowledge of what occurred as a result.

Well, I do and I don't, and maybe that has something to do with Jun seok's reaction in 2013.

I'd recommend both movies as a 'pass some time' event, but not if you're squeamish (like me) because you'll be turning away from the screen on more than one occasion.

Woo bin's performance is worth the anxiety, though.

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Kim Nam jin Come-back?

Kim, Nam jin "strong force"

Okay, so years ago I 'liked' Kim Nam jin on Facebook, and this morning while browsing through the new 'pages' there, I eventually came across this post :

김남진 (Kim Nam Jin, キム・ナムジン)[관능의법칙 시사회]

김남진 '우월한 모델 포스'[포토]
media.daum.net
[엑스포츠뉴스 = 김성진 기자] 4일 오후 서울 광진구 자양동 롯데시네마 건대입구점에서 열린 영화 '관능의 법칙' VIP시사회에 김남진이 포즈를 취하고 있다.

Below is the translated (of course) from Hangul version at their Daum.Media website, of which I'm not a member and didn't feel the need to 'create' or 'join', but that isn't the point.

The point is, I'm unable to find anything in real English about him or the movie/drama and haven't been able to for quite some time now. Is this just a picture of him appearing at the Premiere? He's not actually IN the movie but just invited to watch?

Regardless of his age, his status over where he lives, whatever, I adore this man and always have. As some of you may know, my intro to K-Do and very first drama watched was A Thousand Years of Love starring him and another of my favorites, So Ji sup.

Since then I have grown to love, adore, admire, loathe, detest, and come to realistic terms with a host of leading men and women, dramas, movies, and their writers.

Still, nothing can ever compare with that eye-opening moment in life, can it? Which is why I keep a light shining brightly for my Oppa, Nam jin.

I discovered awhile back that he became this sports ambassador of sorts and ended up walking away from (or being dissed by) the model/actor limelight. Again, I have no idea what the truth is because it was impossible to find or understand anything about the guy online.

Yes, I've seen his video

JAURIM(자우림) - 스물다섯, 스물하나

and I even read that he's married - though like everything else about the guy - the facts are sketchy and vague - nonexistent practically. When? To whom? Pictures?

Below I've posted what I could obtain from the Facebook nod, and it would appear my long-awaited wish might finally be coming true? Sir Nam jin will be acting in a movie? With another of my favorites, Miss Jung hwa?

I sure hope it's true, and I hope even more that the REAL title evolves as quickly as my anticipations, and that someone - somewhere will bother to sub the entire thing for me and let me watch it somewhere down the line.

Please don't let this be just another 'Hey, I showed up for another Premiere but I'm not starring in the movie!' publicity shot. Sigh - this might end up being my Where's Waldo chapter in life. What ever happened to this guy, and why isn't he doing anything anymore? Page after page I turn searching and searching for answers that never appear before my eyes.

Excerpt from: Daum

Uhm Jung Hwa, Moon Sori, jominsu 40 actresses, including the representative of the Republic of Korea and the colorful cast of 'Singles',' Some Like It Hot 'and delicately pierce the psychology of women's new director of gwonchilin anticipated film "Law of sensuality' is coming is scheduled to open on the 13th.

[executive Edaily gimhanjun reporter news@tvdaily.co.kr] providing news and press releases news@tvdaily.co.kr [Copyright ⓒ Korean * to *新World Entertainment specializes in online media executive Edaily (www. tvdaily.co.kr) / all rights reserved]

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무림여대생 / Murim yeodaesaeng

My Mighty Princess

2008 Korean movie that stars Shin Min a (So hwi), On Ju wan (Il young), and Yu geon (Jun mo) in a sort a sci/fi, fantasy type story about the daughter of highly gifted and quite secret-society martial arts parents.

So hwi is as talented as her parents and has learned from her father the secrets of her late mother's sword-play.

Her super-human strength turns off the boys her age, which depresses her so she decides to give up being unlike all the other girls and tries acting like everyone else so she can win the heart of a new boy on campus (who happens to have a mother-complex crush on an older woman).

Meanwhile, something in the secret martial arts world is afoot, and her father's friends are being defeated one by one by the evil Heuk bong, who is determined to become master of the martial arts society.

An old acquaintance of So hwi appears for whatever reason,

On Ju wan as Il young

and though Il young is adorable in a sexy-boyish kind of way, she shows no interest and continues to try winning the attention of the hot hockey player, Jun mo, who thinks she is as strange as everyone else does.

Il young's skills are on par with So hwi's, but she has a special talent that no one aside from her late mother can possess.

When her father ends up getting seriously hurt by the bad guy, So hwi reluctantly but inevitably discards her personal emotions for hockey hotty in order to avenge her father.

There is a lot of wire-fu and nonsense involved, along with some pretty hilarious scenes, but there is also a latent love story that kind of took me by surprise and made me realize how silly I'd behaved at the beginning of this good movie.

I recommend this to anyone in need of a chance to escape the ordinary and get lost for a few hours in attractive fantasy with slightly dark undertones.

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3-Iron

Bin jip



2004 Korean movie that stars Lee Hyun kyoon as a drifter who posts circulars on doors and then returns to see which houses haven't touched them so he can break in, browse through their personal shit, eat their food, take some candid shots of him with the owners (via portraits he poses beside), and he maybe does some laundry for them before eventually leaving.

Aside from a few run-in's with the homeowners, this movie had little dialogue; not a bad thing considering the flow of the storyline and the simple fact that words weren't necessary - but, I think it's funny to note the fact that some of the 'critics' praising this film seemed insistent on mentioning the fact that the man who 'wrote' this movie only needs a few weeks, and that the entire film was shot within a month.

Um ~ yea, so without dialogue, it would stand to reason that ANY movie would take that long to shoot since no one has to memorize lines that they'll flub up?

Anyway, the last home our lead enters is a ritzy place owned by a grizzled, old man with a super-model for a wife whom he beats and berates to ... um, well, utter silence.

When the lead enters the house, he thinks its empty, but she's there, hiding in the bathroom in tears and likely contemplating her latest escape from the husband who just left on yet, another business trip.

Hyun kyoon's character is immediately taken by the woman of the house since her images are hung on most, every wall - and while she has figured out that there is a stranger lurking about, he continues on his appointed rounds - checking out the fridge, peeking into every room, and then pulling out his cell phone to take a picture of him standing beside a portrait of the beautiful lady of the house.



That night, after he takes a shower and washing his clothes in a bucket on the floor of the bathroom, he crawls into the master's bed naked, and with a picture of the wifey at his side - when he proceeds to ... well,




She says nothing, and he says nothing - but when the old man returns after his wife refuses to pick up his calls, the two flee and spend the rest of the movie sharing his vagrant routine - illegally entering unoccupied houses, rummaging through their belongings, eating their food, washing their clothes, and then taking pictures of themselves beside the family portraits.

The title of the movie comes from the fact that while Hyun kyoon's character was at the woman's mansion, he stole her husbands 3-Iron and from there, he drilled a hole into a golf ball, inserted a wire, and roped it around the trunks of trees to practice his swing.

During one of their street lay-overs between break-ins, he's practicing his swing when the ball leaves the wire, hitting the windshield of a nearby car and injuring the female passenger.

The Buddhist Zen factor enters the equation at this point, and I'm sure it was when a lot of viewers became confused or even annoyed with the rest of the plot, but that minor incident signaled the downfall of our Hyun kyoon's character.

The husband sics his dogs on the guy, the wife returns to the manse, and our lead hero ends up in jail, where he's brutally and mercilessly beaten by a heartless and unforgiving guard.

While in his bedless, toiletless cell, our main man becomes obsessed with his shadow and begins to practice steps that will eventually lead him to becoming nothing more than just that ... a shadow.

Upon his release, he returns to the homes he once broke into, and while no one can see him, his presence is still felt.

At last he returns to the woman's house and ... moves in.

She can see him, but her husband can't - and I think that is where the writer of this movie wants us to believe that the story remains: with the overbearing husband living with a shadow of a wife who is in love with ... a shadow of a man only she can see.

Since its release, this movie has garnered a lot of attention as well as critical acclaim from both sides of the globe, and while I remained anxious to watch ~ I kept putting it off for whatever reason until finally, I chose to take the plunge (last weekend).

Here in the States, it was shown at select theaters, and all of them the artsy sort located in upscale neighborhoods where doubtless 'educated' few went to see it and probably enjoyed it as well.

I didn't, though.

It was a disappointment after everything I read and heard about it, but that doesn't mean you won't like it - so, if you have a few hours to spare, give this one a chance and see what you think.

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Le Grand Chef 2: Kimchi Battle / Kim-chi-jeon-jaeng

2010 Korean movie that once-again pits our hero, Sung Chan, against a rival chef in another cook-off - this time, Kimchi.

It's a new actor portraying the descendant of a royal chef, but strangely he somehow resembles Kim Rae won in that he could definitely pass for a younger brother.

The guy from Le Grand Chef reminded me of Kwon Sang woo.

Anyhow - in this version of the saga (based on Korean manga) "Sik Gaek", our humble chef still sells staples from the back of his truck on street corners, traveling around the countryside learning more and more about his natural talent.

He's returned 'home', however - to an adopted mother who runs a traditional but popular restaurant from her home.

She's ill and there are creditors hounding her to relinquish the land and restaurant when her world-famous chef daughter decides to leave her posh job and return to Gwangju, to do-in her omanee for all the shame she suffered as the child of a husband-less mother.

Her intent is to destroy the restaurant, but it is already closed - and since Sung chan intends to do whatever it takes to keep the place running, Jang Eun decides to challenge her in-a-round-about-kind-of-way adopted brother to a Kimchi cook-off.

If she wins, he has to turn-tail and leave so she can dismantle the restaurant/house piece by piece - but if she loses to him, she has to forget about her plans for revenge.

I was very confused throughout this movie since the writers decided to stray from the original plot - and suddenly our Sung chan had a mother; his father isn't mentioned at all, and I have no idea if it's the same Sung chan from the first movie who is the descendant of a royal chef, or if he's just some kid off the street with mad culinary skills.

To be honest, I've only had kimchi once in my life, and it came from a jar sold at a Chinese outlet store somewhere in Ann Arbor - and when I opened the jar, the smell hit me in a way that was less than pleasant - which may have ruined it for me, but the taste was beyond disappointing and I never finished my meal.

That incident is being removed from memory, and I have every intention of trying again, but at an official, Korean restaurant this time - where I will insist that they serve me traditional, Korean food and not their idea of what I, an American, would like to eat.

I want the real thing, and since there isn't likely to be a chance for me to fly to Korea and eat the real thing, I'll settle for places like Goram, Hana, and Korea House for my dining pleasure.

In this movie, they again used Russians, Germans, and Australians to represent Americans - something I'm growing to resent now - and regardless of where they find these 'white' people to represent 'me' - they are NOT me, and I don't appreciate being lumped into a generic category of stuffy fools with no taste buds or sense of adventure.

Okay, so Kimchi Battle was interesting, and the characters our Sung chan encountered in order to gain more life experience were touching - enough to bring tears to my eyes on occasion - but, the confusion about just, who was Sung chan supposed to be this time took away from any amount of true enjoyment for me.

... hence the three flowers out of five.

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Mr. Socrates

2005 Korean movie that stars Kim Rae won as Ku Dong hyuk, a street dog with mad fight skills and no conscience who even has no issue with his begging money off his old man, a wastrel behind bars for a string of petty theft crimes.

Oppa Kim is great, though, and despite the feral character he portrays, one can't help but smile and insist it can't be true of a guy like him - because he's got that kind of a face.

You know, the eyes with a hint of a smile behind them, clean-shaven handsome mug, and even in scruffy garb, you can't help but get the feeling that he reeks of suave sophistication.

Early in this movie, and after he's beaten down a number of no-accounts, Ku is kidnapped in the same, abrupt and violent fashion as he's been living since they put away his father.

This is where the title comes into play.

Guys at the top with lots of money and little in the way of brains are doing shady things, like recruiting thugs and transforming them into upstanding citizens who will work for them or suffer the consequences.

They've chosen Ku as their latest disciple.

Being stubborn, he refuses at first and is beaten horrendously while also being made to suffer some pretty intense forms of torture until at last he acquiesces, studying daily to pass a high-school equivalency exam before going on to become a street cop.

This was actually kind of funny in places, and like I mentioned earlier, Kim's eyes make you want to giggle anyhow.

After studying his profile, it surprised me to note that this was the first time I ever saw him act - but that ...ing, Love Story at Harvard, Say You Love Me, Attic Cat, What Star Did You Come From, and My Love Patzzi are and have been on my list of 'watch' for awhile now at aznv.tv.

I like him, too, because for one thing, he's no Ken doll, and for another, I think he'd be the type of guy to make me laugh for no, other reason than to see me smile.

I worried, too, that Mr. Socrates was going to be one of them bloody messes filled with violent gore that turn my stomach and make me regret having watched, but it wasn't - despite the violence, torture, and seemingly mindless death scenes interspersed throughout this interesting movie.

No random sex scenes or the down-n-out hot chick for our leading man to mess around with, either!

The ending didn't come as much of a surprise, but it was still a good one.

I recommend Mr. Socrates to anyone with a few hours to kill who has the time to concentrate on the movie and nothing else, or you're liable to miss the whole point.

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Humming / 허밍

2007 Korean movie that starred Lee Chun hee and Han Ji hye; lovers gone complacent in their long relationship, and while she is anticipating a marriage proposal, he is contemplating an extended stay at the South Pole for work research - and, we're meant to believe that he likes the idea because he wants to get away from the relationship.

He's irritable around her, and her quirky ways annoy him until the day she enters his apartment behaving normal when his cell phone rings and her sister is tearfully trying to explain to him about an accident his girlfriend just experienced; landing her in the hospital.

It makes no sense to him, and even after he arrives at the hospital and sees his girl lying comatose in bed, he can't believe what just occurred.

For the duration of this film, we watch as he retraces the last steps of his dying girlfriend - everything from his desperately trying to find the yellow bike he saw her ride up to the complex on to his thinking about every, little nuance of her personality as it unfolds from memory (now pleasant) in the quiet, lonely apartment.

Lee Min ki made a subtle appearance in this, playing the lead man's buddy from work, and once in awhile he's there to offer advice or support to his slowly going mad friend.

We're supposed to take away from this one the idea that 'you never know what you've got til you lose it' ... but, for me, it was more like 'be honest and stop messing with the feelings of others'

It was poignant at best, and highly predictable, but still artsy enough to be enjoyable.

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그 남자의 책 198쪽 / Keu Namjaui Chak 198Jjeuk

Heartbreak Library

who is she?

2008 Korean movie that stars Lee Dong wook as Jun oh and Eugene as Cho Eun su.

She is a librarian who catches the culprit who has been ripping out page 198 of most every book in the library.



Jun oh is a tall, quiet man who is trying without success to find the answer to a riddle his late girlfriend, who loved to read and checked out more than 400 books at that, particular library, left him: Look on p. 198

He seems a bit surprised to know that he could have just copied page 198 from all of the books he had thus far searched for the answer, and soon Eun su is helping Jun oh in his quest for the answer.



Jun oh is quiet as well as wealthy and a learned Sushi chef with his own restaurant.

Eun su is brash and hardened by a recent break-up, so at first it doesn't seem as if the two will strike up a romantic relationship, but the story was so well-written that one could not help but want to root for them just the same.

After Eun su hears Jun oh's story, she begins to settle down a bit while also struggling to maintain a sense of decorum about her past as much as about her seemingly budding feelings for Jun oh.



Jun oh didn't realize it right away, but he did, eventually accept the fact that what happened was an accident, and that he needed to move on while also remembering to thank the helpful Eun su for all her help.

The acting was marvelous and the story flowed without interruption or too, many flashbacks to add to the confusion that sometimes can occur in movies of this caliber.

Heartbreak Library received only three-flower bouquets from me because while I thoroughly enjoyed the story and thought that the acting was superb, it left some reservations in my heart about the eventual outcome - but since I'm not one to spoil things for others, I'll leave it up to you to decide what you think about this, particular movie.

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