Bumchoiwaui junjaeng: Nabbeunnomdeul jeonsungshidae

This is a movie about a wannabe gangster who is a survivor. He repeatedly wriggles out of tight spots without knowing how he got there, or how he got out. He is a civil servant at the docks of Busan, So. Korea, who stumbles upon a robbery, chases off the robbers, and discovers they were after several pounds of heroin. His co-worker is 'connected' and knows a big-time dealer. One thing leads to another (see the above review), and he becomes a kingpin - a neophyte in the drug trade.

The film was interesting, but a few things worked against further appreciation of the film. I couldn't grasp the significance of the importance of family relationships and how this could save him from death numerous times. This was very crucial to one's understanding of the story, because in an American gangster movie, he would have been toast quickly, and this would have been a film short.

Over and above that, he is beaten up several times and emerges with nary a scratch. In addition, he (Choi) is a rumpled and unattractive man who lacks a moral compass; as a result, I was unable to generate any sympathy or rooting interest, and the supporting cast fell into the same category. I also think there was an occasional continuity lapse. For instance, in one scene, one of the major drug dealers is stabbed in the abdomen and bleeds profusely. In the next scene, he is his old, menacing self, as if nothing happened to him. Many meetings and dinners take place seemingly without relevance or time frame; who are these people, and why are they there? And where are they?

I did the best I could to keep up and there were several violent scenes with fights and beatings and apparently no one in Korea uses guns, which would have ended some of those fight scenes pretty quickly. Sound was amplified for the fights and beatings - having seen many gangster pictures, the slaps and blows are never that loud.

I rated it a six - perhaps I would have appreciated it more if I had a better understanding of Korean customs and culture. Or maybe if I were given a reason to root for the protagonist.

Totally agree with all the positive reviews, quite original plot and very very entertaining!!

9/10

Stellar Korean Gangster Movie , even Roger Ebert said it's was great and an article . Loved every minute . The acting , the cinematography, the music , the director .Amazeing ! 10 easy

Loyalty, deception, greed, arrogance, corruption, integrity, well it just holds too many elements in storytelling of being an epic gangster movie with some comical. You'll find a fascinating tale of how one small custom officer rose to the top of Busan's underworld and then fell back down.

South Korea declared war on organized crime in 1990. Thousands of people were arrested, from bodyguards to kingpins. Nameless Criminal: Rules of the Time begins in 1990 with the arrest of Choi Ik-Hyun (Choi Min-Sik), a leading gangster in Busan. He claims to be a civil servant, but who would believe a reputed gangster? He finds a significant amount of drugs while working and sells it to the mob. That specific mob is run by Choi Hyung-Bae (Ha Jung-Woo), a distant cousin of Ik-Hyun. And so begins Ik-Hyun's entrance into the shabby underworld. It's a classic case of muscle and intellect. Ik-hyun is a businessman who recognizes that the world they live in is ruled by corruption and greed. He pursued politicians and prosecutors, while Hyung-bae ruthlessly eliminated competing gangs in order to expand their territory. Over the course of a decade, they evolve to become the city's two most prominent criminal lords. However, in a gangster film, a beautiful climb is followed by a self-inflicted fall. Ik-hyun and Hyun-bae had already turned on each other by the time the authorities commence their assault on organized crime.

This smartly written drama revolves around the two leads' difficult interplay, despite consistently devoted performances. Female roles are rare in organized crime films, but Kim Hye-eun stands out as a cold-blooded nightclub queen.

Ha Jung Woo and Choi Min Sik are two of Korea's most versatile actors, and their performances in 'I Saw the Devil' and 'Oldboy' prove that they are equally capable of bringing a new level of realism to the film. Great job!

This movie is kind of like Goodfellas, a classic from Martin Scorsese. Both movies did establish a tense presenting an underground character's long shot career in order to generate both our sympathy and revulsion towards them.

You should give it a shot if you're seeking for a well-written tale of the underworld of gangs.

NAMELESS GANGSTER is a fictional gangster biopic from South Korea that's nonetheless closely based on real-life characters and with a strongly realistic political backdrop of the 1980s to bolster it. It's very much the Korean answer to Scorsese's 1990s hits like GOODFELLAS and CASINO, charting small-time smuggler Choi Min-sik's rise to power after he befriends a distant relative and small-time gangster. Ha Jung-woo, one of my favourite Korean stars, plays this associate and steals all of his scenes while Min-sik compels in a thoroughly weaselly role. The film shies away from action in favourite of strong characterisation and involved plotting. It's an engaging watch.