“The Wild” Theatrical Poster
Director: Kim Bong-han
Cast: Park Sung-woong, Oh Dae-hwan, Seo Ji-hye, Joo Suk-tae, Oh Dal-soo, Hwang Se-In
Running Time: 110 min.
By Paul Bramhall
When Korean cinema broke out internationally in the early 2000’s it was the countries gangster genre that quickly gained a favourable reputation, defined by an aesthetic that never shone away from brutal violence, and populated by memorable characters who were usually lucky to make it to the end credits. By the time the 2010’s hit the genre was at its peak, and as with any genre that achieves a certain level of commercial success, countless derivative productions began to populate the screen, lazily recycling the tropes of the movies that influenced them. It wasn’t even halfway through the decade that the sharp suited, stab happy gangster movie that was once synonymous with the Korean film industry had all but disappeared.
Since 2017 the Korean gangster genre has evolved to be almost exclusively defined by the Ma Dong-seok brand of punching people in the face, swapping out the stern-faced machismo of yesteryears gangster beatdowns for a slightly lighter, more humorous approach. However the 2020’s have seen an unexpected revival of the 2000’s era gangster – sharp suited, foul mouthed, and stab happy – with productions like Paid in Blood and Hot Blooded hedging their bets on harking back to an earlier time. The budgets may not be as big as they Continue reading →
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