Ajeossi
Directed by:
Jeong-beom LeeScreenplay:
Jeong-beom LeeCinematography:
Tae-yoon LeeComposer:
Hyun-jung ShimCast:
Bin Won, Sae-ron Kim, Hyo-seo Kim, Hee-won Kim, Seong-oh Kim, Thanayong Wongtrakul, Tae-hoon Kim, Jong-pil Lee, Min-sung Jung, Do-won Gwak, Jae-yun Jo (more)Plots(1)
A retired special agent forges an unlikely bond with his neglected young neighbour, and vows to bring the girl back home safely after she's kidnapped by violent criminals. When Tae-Shik hung up his guns to open a small pawn shop, he also shut himself off from the world. Tae-Shik prefers to live in solitude, yet he still takes a liking to his precocious neighbour So-mi, whose mother pay her little attention. When So-Mi's mother crosses a local gang of criminals who respond by kidnapping the desperate mother and daughter, Tae-Shik realizes that he may be their only hope of making it out of the situation alive. After entering into a tenuous agreement with the local mob, Tae-Shik becomes the target of an intense police manhunt and finds himself besieged on all sides. Now the closer Tae-Shik gets to So-Mi and her mother, the more his dark past finally begins coming into focus. (official distributor synopsis)
(more)Reviews (3)
I loved the determination from beginning to end. The main character doesn't say much, but his looks and actions speak volumes. Bin Won was definitely a great choice for the role. This (un)rewarding subject has once again fallen into good hands. 5 stars.
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A revealing probe into human organ trafficking in Korea. A classic story about a tough guy, pursued by ghosts from his past, rescuing a kidnapped little girl; spiced up with Lee’s bloodthirsty interludes. The first-rate action towards the end and the uncompromising brutality balance out the rather over-sentimental beginning. And Bin Won is the spitting image of Jet Li.
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The Professional (especially the beginning), 96 Hours (especially the end), Bourne, Oldboy, Edge of Darkness, Kiss of the Dragon... All these films came to my mind while watching The Man from Nowhere. I'm not saying that's a bad thing, not at all. Although I do know that if I didn't know them, I would be at least one star more excited. So the pros: 1) An admittedly old familiar story about a man with a mysterious past who gets screwed over by the wrong guys in the wrong way... Ok, why not. At least it wasn't completely stupid. 2) Definitely the cinematography, direction and choreography of the action scenes - the final showdown on the knife really worked. 3) The main character gets a haircut.__Cons: 1) Before the main character gets a haircut, he has an incredibly idiotic haircut (sorry, Pete) and I feel like punching him. 2) The film is cruelly long and after an hour and a quarter it started to bore me (fortunately it got moving towards the end - see Pro No. 2.). 3) The little girl was terribly annoying, so actually I didn't really understand why there was any need to save something like that. 4) "POSSIBLE SPOILER" The theme of children slaving in drug production came too late - it was as if the screenwriter remembered it the day before the deadline and wanted to cram it into the film. "END OF THE POSSIBLE SPOILER".__For all this, I give it an above-average 3.5 stars. I'd round them up if I knew I'd ever watch The Man from Nowhere again. But that's not likely to happen.
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