Assassination

It's another amazing film from Korea.

There was a lot of stuff to take in, that could be overwhelming for someone like me who has to use subtitles to keep up.

A lot of sub stories were going on around the main story of Japanese occupation of Korea.

Lucky for me the film making was very visual, the best way to weave a movie so it was not hard to understand everything that was going on and there was a lot, but it all fit together beautifully.

The cinematography was well done as well as the costumes designs and I loved the action sequences. There was scenes that used CGI, but they did not over use it which is done too much in pictures.

Very impressive.

If you like to watch movie in 1900s, this is one of the movies you should watch. The movie set brings you back to Japanese colonialism era in Korea. The characters also spark their own personality throughout the movie. I love this movie because of the cinematography as well. This movie has a good plot. However, you might need to focus to watch this as it can be quite confusing in the beginning.

I remember that a few years ago I loved 'Jeon Woo-Chi' from this same director. It was so awesome, the mix between the modern world and ancient myth with the usual Korean style presentation, a little different from other similar western films due to the cultural difference. After that, this the second movie of his I am watching and I had two opposite thoughts in the two halves of the movie.

Initially, I felt I chose a wrong movie. One of the reason was, I could not get the film characters right due to complicated introductions. Too many main characters and that's a too much to recognise if you're not a Korean or not familiar with the Korean faces/actors. Somewhat I was confused, at least in the first quarter. In the second half, especially after the story moved to Korean, I get used to it and afterwards it was very smooth.

The other reason was obviously the length of the movie. Only because of the puzzled opening order. Later the story development was so good, I began to feel comfortable with the narration and after that I did not notice the runtime at all. I have no source to confirm whether it was based on the real or simply a cinematic fiction, but it was very interesting as it progress. So don't force yourself to watch the movie, but it you do, then give it a time in the beginning and be focused, later definitely you will be in a position to get through as easily as I did.

"Damn, we could all die tomorrow. Let's dance."

Actually, it all began in the year 1911, and moved to 20 years later during the Japan's occupation of Korea. The resistance freedom fighters plan a series of assassination of the Japanese leaders in the nation's different regions. One such man was a powerful native business tycoon. When everything goes wrong, the story begins to take a turn, complicates further by revealing the old secret. How much it affects and to whom, followed by the final battle sequence.

Obviously everyone interesting in this film for Jeon Ji-Hyun's presence. Of course, as usual she was very impressive, but her so- star, Ha Jung-Woo with his weird screen name 'Hawaii Pistol' was also equally good. When I first heard Hawaii Pistol is coming, I thought it was the arms supply from Hawaii. Anyway, it was a grand intro, after his entry the movie was set to explore the rest of the story in a style. The other actors like his hilarious partner and the main villain set the tone for the movie.

Certainly it is a movie to pick if you want an historic subject other than your regular Korean themes. Beautifully written for the screen, except like I said the editing was confusing for the lack of proper inception. Don't think it's simply about the brave freedom fighters; betrayal, revenge, family, third person caught in, like that it had many stuffs. It is also very rare to see a woman fighter among them. All the action scenes were really well made, because that's the title isn't. The terrific settings of the 30s as well. I can't say about it is a must see or not, but surely a fine historic movie that I am pleased with.

8/10

Although the first half was some slow paced, the second half of the movie got motion & was overall capturing . Ahn-OK-yun (Jun Ji-Hyun), her small team for assassination mission & Captain Yem (Lee Jung Jae) seemed to be main characters of the plot line in the first place.But then, gradually Hawaii Pistol (Ha Jung-woo) & his sidekick Old Man (Oh Dal-su) got involved , geared up an entertainment show . By the mean time, the plot also developed some momentum to be intrigued. CGI effect,action scenes & the ancient background was so believable & realistic for this movie- so was the acting.By the ending, the movie got some symbolic meaning too.Although it could be a little more jam-packed, more artistic till the last to be memorable & greatly appreciated , Kudos to the director Choi-dong hoon - for accomplishing much improvement from his previous hit- heist movie "The Thieves" (particularly in emotion rendering section).

So if you wanna check the outcome of some tremendous efforts from director & actors to set up an epic, historical drama film based on true event - independence of Korea, it will be worth watching obviously.

My Rating: Somewhere between 7 & 8 . :)

P.S: By watching this movie,completed checking all IMDb enlisted drama-movies of "Sassy girl" Jun Ji-Hyun so far. From TV drama "Happy Together (1999)" to "Assassination (2015)" - there's a daring & frequent transformation from innocent/romantic heroine to hardcore action lady.She's lucky enough so far to receive such co-operative support from directors & co-actors + appraisal from audience along with her ambitious consistency!

The plot to assassinate Japanese high ranking officers takes a group of Korean agents into spiral of betrayal. It is told in surprisingly large scale, shifting back and forth to events preceding and following its historic attempt told by numerous characters. In heart, it is an excellent drama with focus on stylish noir cinematography and slick visceral action.

Story admittedly takes a bit to gain momentum. There's an intricate web of espionage and it might get overwhelming with its many timelines and characters. The back stabbing or direct front shooting could get confusing early on. Fortunately, after it sets the foundation the pace pushes forward relentlessly until the end. Ji-hyun Jun as An Ohk-Yun the lady sniper is impeccable, she's attractive on-screen and also looking very capable for the demanding spy role.

Acting is great all around, considering there are many intersecting personalities, everyone plays their part amicably and these characters are presentably memorable. It offers a few subplots, which might seem overly dramatic or cliché at first, although the presentation is adequately precise in ensuring that it remains a legitimate drama thriller.

The action is superb, capitalizing its last century setting and multitude of fancy oriental scenes. Barrage of bullets and deception are portrayed with massive intensity. It plays with fight scenes as well as gun-slinging action remarkably well. Furthermore, the slick nature resembles the quirky bloody showing from Tarantino movies, the flamboyant flair is a treat for action fans.

There's no lack of treachery, vengeance and sheer animosity in the harsh era which may feel overburdened at times. Still, with exquisite human drama and solid action, Assassination keeps the aim steady to deliver a delightfully exhilarating spy thriller.