Veteran - Above the Law

The beginning bit alone is worth watching the movie. Of course the movie has to settle a bit after that much mayhem, but does pick up the pace towards the end again. The comedy action mixture is really fitting and the actors are doing a great job. It's obvious they have fun with the script and the comedy that ensues.

It may seem all over the place and a bit over the top (alright sometimes a lot over the top), but if you don't mind that, you will be entertained as much as I did. South Korea has some really good filmmakers and some great talent in general and here are some on display if you are open minded and love originality, than you should give this a try

Brilliantly directed and even more effectively presented by all the actors. Ground breaking storyline backed by excellent dialogues and acting. Worth your precious time for sure. But I bet that in reality this super rich are too powerful and beyond the reach of cops. Let's hope that one day this will happen in reality as well.

The first act of Veteran consists of utter shenanigans and plenty of nut shots, which might undermine its closer to reality dark story later on. When it introduces the rich mad antagonist it ramps up into one of the best cop dramas from Korea in recent times. The setup is smart, often looking eerily authentic yet still presents a couple of heavy themes with strikingly eccentric characters.

It opens up with simple case of car smuggling which feels as though it's usual Korean drama, while funny it doesn't possess the right gravitas. About half an hour comes the antagonist Tae Oh (Ah In Yoo) who practically turns the tone upside down. From then it's a mental and physical struggle that's utterly bloody and dark. This is quite the brutal chess game of cop versus criminal.

It's definitely a pleasant surprise, delivering harrowing scene of debauchery and corruption. The way the actors carry themselves bring just enough realism to the character, either it's from the daily life or interaction between colleagues or disproportionate respect to boss. The social and public culture is exaggerated, yet it's odd enough to be real. The director knows how to present the characters, both the flawed antagonist and seemingly suave antagonist, and make audience root or despise them.

Action is pretty good, it keeps the tone of actual brawl with real life martial art and has succeeded on portraying impact on its punches and kicks. The visual takes very direct ambiance and aside for a few distinct moments, it keeps the genuine atmosphere intact. If there's a hindrance in the movie, it's that the quirky comedy might not translate well. These types of gags are common for Korean shows, but they do tend to be excessive.

Using far end spectrum from both crime drama and action comedy, Veteran is a fervid and visceral cop thriller with dissonantly relatable social backdrop.

I rarely watch Asian movies, I made an exception for this one because I liked the description and the poster. I didn't regret watching it. The way the drama/comedy/detective/action is combined is truly amazing. It made me cry a little, laugh a lot, smile and be sad trough the movie. The detective's perseverance and the limits that he pushes makes it a wonderful story. I liked that we get to see a bad ass woman detective in a secondary role that we rarely see in Hollywood, (a thing that is something normal in Asian movies). Also, the fact that the main character was not a martial arts master is a big plus. A truly inspiring family and friends relationships between characters and real life situations is what makes this movie almost a masterpiece. The level of the actors, their playing deserves and Oscar or at least some international appreciation.

With a summer filled with less than mediocre domestic films busting blocks in box office we get a quality entertainment from director Ryu Seung-Wan. This is not an entirely original film but Ryu packs it with enough real life relevance and intrigue in the plot to keep the audience thoroughly entertained.

The plot which has the same structure as "The Public Enemy" series, very popular and also from Korea, follows a hardboiled cop trying to take down a psychotic rich kid after his acquaintance ends up in hospital. Both parties do what they do best. One follows leads and the other does whatever it takes cover it up.

As mentioned above, the film's action scenes and its general tone (comic reliefs, charismatic yet evil rich baddies) are very similar to Public Enemy series. However the story is more focused here with director Ryu's confidence in his own style.

The entire cast turns in solid performances but the standout is Ah In Yoo, making a real nasty playboy who can convincingly smirk and get under your skin. Also worth mentioning is Hae Jin Yoo who's presence in a film almost always indicate solid performances. He plays a man who needs to juggle around running the company and keeping the young maniac under control. In its final action sequence, fans of Korean cinema will chuckle at a familiar face making a goofy cameo.

So far Ryu hasn't made a single film that wasn't worth the admission price. Sure, his film can come off cheesy at times but they were never boring. Ryu's style can also compensate for not entirely original plots in films like "Veteran" and "Berlin Files". A great success in box office, this film will pretty much guarantee the director to make any film he wants to make next. Anything he makes, I'll be first in line.