The Age of Shadows

Mil Jeong (밀정 ~ The Age of Shadows).

Viewed at 2016 Venice FilmFestival. Tremendous Korean epochal drama about life and resistance under the oppressive Japanese occupation in the early decades of the century. Director Kim Jaewoon really knows how to set up drama and suspense mixed with blazing action. There was so much in this film that I felt like I was watching a Beethoven symphony. Dark Sepia toned photography used to good effect enhances period feel. Musical soundtrack employs jazz and adrenaline tensor stretches and the final shootout in the train station is orchestrated deftly to Ravel's Bolero.

139' running time is long and winds up with several anticlimactic codas but never lets you out if its grip. For Koreans this is clearly a film with heavy patriotic messages. The final theme is "Don't let your failures stop you -- build on them and rise to the next level" -- until victory is achieved. I would love to see this film with a Korean audience and would expect to see people on their feet cheering at the end... A young Italian I met afterwards said he loved it even though he knows nothing of the history involved. I could easily see why -- in a way this is something like a Kimchee spaghetti western and charismatic actor Kang-ho Song, 49, has got to be the Korean equivalent of John Wayne, or at least, Robert Mitchum.

Based on the real story that happened during the time that Japan ruled the Korea, The Age of Shadow is very successful history-based movie. It is a fine mixture of Korean characteristics and Western characteristics. Until these days, many Korean movies have sought for ways to put Korean-exclusive stories into the frame of Western film-making. The result has been somewhat successful but also somewhat disappointing. It fulfilled Korean people's wishes to watch Hollywood-ish Korean movies. However, it couldn't convince foreign people of the reason to watch Korean movies instead of Hollywood movies. I mean, no matter how hard Korean movies try, the budget is lower than Hollywood, and spectacles are also lesser.

However, this movie, The Age of Shadow, is different. This one is unique. I'm not going to praise action scenes, or comedy scenes because they were not that outstanding. What I want to praise is atmosphere in this movie that keeps suspense alive throughout the whole running time. Well, for better understanding I could use Quentin Tarantino as an example. Even though he is famous for violence in his movie, many people who watch his movies for the first time find them very non-blockbuster like but still quite amusing. The Age of Shadow is quite similar. This movie's acting, dialogue and visuals give this movie a special atmosphere that keep audiences' focus. I'm not saying that this movie is Tarantino-like though. Kim Jee-Woon and Tarantino are similar in a way that they use special atmosphere throughout the movie but their atmospheres are different. Kim Jee-Woon has the ability to form a Korean-exclusive atmosphere that is based on Korean culture. I'm not sure how to name it but it is something that can move Korean people's heart without stating it in a specific way. And I believe this movie will be quite amusing and also exotic experience for you if you are not Korean. This movie is not like other Korean movies, but also the most Korean-like movie. I recommend it.

This film has strong commercial potential because of its suspenseful narrative structure; the bravado cinematography and editing; the strong acting; the powerfully evocative production design; and the effective musical score. Loved the entire look of the film. Love the sepia tone, the 1920s period costumes and sets, the compelling storyline, and the circularity of the narrative structure. To me, the strongest storytellers working today in cinema are from Asia, and that makes me so very happy as Asian cinema has lost a lot of its standing in World Cinema without the post-War (II) Japanese masters.

Score Grid (out of 4)

Script/Story: 4

Cinematography/Visual Effect: 4+

Editing: 4

Sound/Musical Score: 4

Production Design: 4+

Acting/Performance: 4

Recommend the film? Absolutely. This foreign film has the appeal of today's Hollywood products: the action, suspense, music, etc. The operatic concluding scene -- underscored by Ravel's Bolero -- owes so much to both Scorsese and FFCoppola. Also to Andrze Wajda really in look and feel; wonder if Kim Jee-woon is familiar with the Polish master's work?

Thumbs way up!

South Korean thrillers rarely misfire even if they aren't that well reviewed or rated. Coming for Kim Jee-woon, who masterfully directed "I Saw the Devil" and "A Bittersweet Life", "The Age of Shadows" makes a notable entry to his filmography. The Western audience doesn't really get to see period South Korean film set in early 20th century and it gives us a chance to perceive life on the Eastern front.

"The Age of Shadows" takes place in the 1920's around a back-and-forth game between a group of resistance fighters and Japanese agents. The film is deeply rooted in the Korean independence movement from the Empire of Japan. While most of the people back home wanted to gain independence, they could not do anything in front of the strong Japanese authorities. The key was to form resistance groups to overtake the Japanese dominion.

The film stars two of South Korea's biggest actors working in the industry today, Song Kang-ho and Lee Byung-hun. They have paved the way of the South Korean new wave by delivering outstanding performances that helped the film industry achieve new heights. In "The Age of Shadows" they play on the opposite side of the fences, Song as a Korean police officer charged to sniff out the resistance and Lee as the leader of the resistance fighters. Lee's character begins to sense that the police officer can turn ways and be persuaded to help the resistance by feeding them information. At this point the wheels start to be in motion and it will be a very bumpy and eventful train ride, literally.

"The Age of Shadows" is a good period thriller with twists and turns that will keep you entertaining until the end.

Well, that was a lot of fun. The Age of Shadows is a spy thriller that is basically a ticking bomb and once things go wrong, it just gets brutal and chaotic. The set up for these characters and their plot is well put together enough to be engrossing. And the set pieces are just excitingly executed. The film is unafraid of showing something terrible from their consequences. Though there is one point at the third act where I wished the film had ended. It gets to feel a little too long as it goes on, but man, the train sequence alone is one hell of an exercise for suspense. The production is also too impressive and the acting is quite engaging. Overall, it's a dark and brutal, yet quite an edge of your seat cinematic thrill ride.