Spare (2008) Review

“Spare” Korean Theatrical Poster

Director: Lee Seong-han
Cast: Lim Joon-il, Mitsuki Koga, Hitoshi Ozawa, Jung Woo, Kim Soo-hyun, Yang Ki-won, Yoo Sang-seob, Seo Ji-oh, Kang Yeong-mook, Kwak Jin-Seok
Running Time: 105 min.

By Paul Bramhall

There was something about fight flicks made in 2008 that saw some of the best ones simply disappear into the ether. Koichi Sakamoto’s Broken Path was sucked into a blackhole, which save for an obscure South African DVD, would take 4 years before eventually getting a legitimate release on the format in the UK. If fight fans thought that 4 years was a long time to wait though, then that pales in comparison to the long silence that came after the short theatrical run that Spare had in its native South Korea.

2008, and the mid-2000’s in general, was a good time for action cinema in South Korea. The Seoul Action School, a purpose fitted building on the outskirts of Seoul were trainee stuntmen and women go to learn and perfect their craft, had gained much deserved recognition thanks to having a hand in the production of Ryoo Seung-wan’s 2006 beat ‘em up City of Violence. Most of the many fight scenes in City of Violence are populated by graduates from the Action School, all too willing to show off their hard-earned skills on camera, and part of its success led to the insightful 2008 feature documentary Action Boys. Focusing on a group of Action School students and their trails and tribulations on the way to becoming stunt professionals, 12 years later it still stands up as a highly entertaining watch.

Ironically, 12 years is also how long it’s taken for Spare to arrive on DVD, finally getting a release in South Korea in 2020 for no apparent reason whatsoever. Why a distributor would choose to release a low budget fight movie from 2008 on a format which isn’t even considered current is likely to remain one of life’s great mysteries, but frankly, this is a title that I spent most of 2008 (and maybe even some of 2009) waiting for, so at least one person bought it. I mention the Seoul Action School, because one of its alumni takes the starring role in the form of Lim Joon-il. Like many of his contemporaries around the same period, Joon-il can also be seen in action in City of Violence, and also like many of his contemporaries, he hasn’t done a whole lot since. Apart from a minor role in the 2010 music focused omnibus movie Acoustic, Joon-il appears to have left the film industry, leaving only Spare to remember him by.

In it, he plays a layabout who’s heavily indebted to loan sharks, and spends most of his time on efforts to avoid them. A lifeline is provided when a yakuza boss in Japan is betrayed by one of their own, and requires a liver transplant in order to survive, but the fact that they have a rare blood type makes it a tricky proposition. As it happens, Joon-il also shares the same rare blood type, and through his dubious associate, a deal is struck for him to become a donor with a ₩300 million asking price. Cue the yakuza hopping on a flight to Seoul, however when Joon-il’s dubious middle-man associate pockets the money for himself, he finds himself with a trifactor of problems – find his associate who’s bagged the money the yakuza paid, continue avoiding the increasingly inpatient loan sharks, and convince the yakuza not to remove his liver before he gets his money back.

It’s a quirky setup, and at the time of its release Spare was often referred to as a Korean version of Snatch, which isn’t entirely unfair. The promotional material boasted “100-percent real action”, and while there is fight action to be had, what stands out more is first time director Lee Seong-han’s flair for making the most out of what’s obviously a low budget. While the plot itself is relatively straight forward, Seong-han fills his tale with left of field moments that elevate it above the usual trappings of low budget action filmmaking. We watch proceedings along with 2 invisible audience members, who occasionally pipe up to question why the rest of the bad guys turn up conveniently late during a fight scene, or comment on a character’s choice of shoes. It reminded me in some ways of the way Hitoshi Matsumoto would sometimes cut away to the producers discussing what they’re watching in R100, which would come 5 years later.

Seong-han would stick with the action comedy genre after his debut, following up Spare with Wish in 2009 and Hit in 2011. Clearly a fan, his enjoyment of the genre extends to the Japanese casting choices. As the yakuza who travels to Seoul to meet with Joon-il, Mitsuki Koga clocks in an appearance which is essentially worthy of co-star status. Koga had a busy year in 2008, also featuring in Hard Revenge Milly and Ichi on his home soil of Japan, but for action fans he’s most likely remembered as the titular Bushido Man in the 2013 production of the same name. Similarly, fans of the 90’s golden era of V-Cinema will get a kick out of seeing Hitoshi Ozawa as one of the yakuza gang members, with an instantly recognizable face from the likes of Score and Dead or Alive.

The most famous face in Spare is Jung Woo, who plays Joon-il’s associate that takes off with the yakuza’s money. Unexpectedly Woo also shares a City of Violence connection, in which he clocked in a cameo as the teenage version of the main villain. Woo would re-team with Seong-han again for Wish the following year, and is still active today, recently starring in the excellent New Trial, and playing the title character in Heung-boo: The Revolutionist. He may not be much of a fighter, but his presence is a welcome one, as are turns from Kim Soo-hyun (who’s also in City of Violence, along with most of Ryoo Seung-wan’s 00’s output) and Yang Ki-won (Big Match) as the boss and chief enforcer of the loan shark agency that Joon-il is indebted to. 

When the fight action does hit, it’s likely to split audiences. Yes it’s 100% real, but it also suffers from a creative choice which particularly irked me about City of Violence, and that’s the decision has been made to film the fights with no sound effects added in post. What this results in onscreen is very ‘soft’ sounding fights, as essentially what we hear is what was filmed, with there being no discernible difference between a block and a hit. Worse still, some blows come with no audible sound effect at all. Maybe it’s just me and I’ve overdosed on old-school kung fu movies, but I like a bit of “oomph” in my fight scenes, and here it’s completely lacking. It’s enough to make you wish for a return to the exaggerated “whoosh” sound effects from Isaac Florentine’s 2001 magnum opus U.S. Seals 2.

The fight action is choreographed by Yoo Sang-seob (who also cameos as a truck driver), an action director who’s worked on everything from Public Enemy to Parasite and is still very much going strong. While there are a few brief scuffles throughout, the highlight is a 2 vs 2 fight which pairs Joon-il and Koga against a pair of furious footed ‘twins’ played by Action School alumni Seo Ji-oh and Kang Yeong-mook. For fans of the 90’s taekwondo choreography style that The General’s Son Trilogy popularised, there’s much to enjoy, with both Jang-il and Koga needing to dodge a constant flurry of kicks coming from all sides. While the lack of any real (excuse the pun) punch in the sound effects is detrimental, it should be noted that the usage of an accompanying soundtrack comprised solely of traditional Korean instruments is a revelation, and a joy to listen to. Can we get the version of Merantau with its original soundtrack released now as well please? 

Despite a few creative shortcomings when it comes to the action, Seong-han’s creative decisions in every other area make up for it, resulting in Spare being a highly enjoyable watch. More than anything, the just the right amount of absurd streak of humor really works in its favour. Have you ever seen a movie where a villain obliterates a bottle of wine that’s been launched at them with a single kick, only for them to then run to the bathroom because they’re worried the wine has gotten all over their suit? Scenarios like this perfectly sum up the tone that runs throughout Spare, which is one where creativy wins over a low budget. The fact that there’s some entertaining fisticuffs thrown in for good measure is just icing on the cake. Oh, and stick around for the post-credits sequence, it’s far more enjoyable than anything found in those Marvel flicks!

Paul Bramhall’s Rating: 7/10