Yong-eui-ja

The Suspect is the type of espionage thriller that starts very good but as usually happens with Asian movies, loses a lot of time with personal dramas and love / hate relations among enemies. The first half of the movie is so fast that it is almost impossible to follow (specially with subtitles). A dissident North Korean highly trained spy called Ji Dong-cheol; working as a chauffeur for an important industrial and political person, witness his boss assassination by a people of the South Korean Secret Service.

Ji Dong-cheol is able to fight the killers, so before dying, his boss gives him a pair of lenses with some secret information (the Mc Guffin).

Of course, Secret Service blames Ji Dong-cheol for the assassination and and start chasing him all over Seoul unsuccessfully. A retired Special Forces, is summoned to capture Ji Dong-cheol; but there is some old history between them.

The first half of the movie, the action is NON-STOP; however during the second half, personal past issues of the main characters are explained via flash backs or dialog; slowing down the action (and the main story line too much). There is still plenty of action and violence filmed in a way only Hong Kong or Korean movies can; but the interest decays.

It is common for Asian movies to include some over-dramatic moments but in this case, the pace changes too much and the events depicted are not that believable or properly developed.

In brief; a decent Korean action thriller with could have benefited for a 20 or 30 minutes trimming or with better written script and a director capable of handling drama without boring.

''The Suspect'' is a South Korean action-thriller in the vein of several contemporary spy movies like ''The Berlin File''. The movie tells the story of a North Korean defector who has once been a top special forces agent. After years of loyal service to his country, he became the victim of a conspiracy and purge. While the defector was able to make it to South Korea, his wife and young daughter were killed. Filled with grief and anger, the defector is now working as a chauffeur for a warm-hearted chairman who wants to help the North Korean people by developing a chemical product that could improve agriculture and prevent future famines. One day before a crucial meeting in North Korea, the chairman gets assassinated by some obscure members of the South Korean intelligence service. The defector witnesses the crime and fights the assassins but he can't save his boss. The dying chairman though gives him his glasses which hide the formula for the chemical product. The defector gets now hunted by the South Korean intelligence service who accuse him for the murder of the chairman and want to get the formula. The manhunt is led by a tough colonel who wants to eliminate the defector at all costs but who soon realizes that his boss is hiding a sinister secret and that things are more complicated than they appear. With the help of an ambitious journalist, the defector wants to uncover the secret of the chairman's glasses, clear his name and fight the true murderers and also find the man who killed his family.

On the positive side of the movie, one gets a twisted and tension-filled story line. The movie is gripping and entertaining and never gets boring despite a running time of almost two hours and a half. The acting is solid and especially the defector, the colonel and the main villain are portrayed in authentic ways. The movie has some character development and spends enough time to add some depth by telling a few side-stories in form of flashbacks. The action scenes in the movie are of the highest quality and at least as good as similar contemporary Hollywood movies. One gets to see agile and yet brutal martial arts fighting scenes, brutal shootings and breathtaking car chases. Some of these scenes are unrealistic and over the top but they are definitely fun to watch. Despite all the action and brutality, the movies manages to keep a human core and comes around with a moving ending.

On the negative side, I must admit that this movie obviously picks up several ideas from past South Korean but also international spy flicks. The story line of the movie is not really original and several parts of the film are in fact quite predictable for genre fans. The script could have been more innovative in my opinion.

Despite this obvious flaw, genre fans should still watch this movie as it's among the better South Korean spy movies of the last years. It easily beats ''The Berlin File'' and is probably on one level with movies like ''New World'' but obviously less groundbreaking than ''Shiri''. For international fans, you will probably appreciate this movie if you liked the films of the Bourne franchise.

THE SUSPECT is another in a long line of Bourne-influenced spy thrillers from South Korea, films that predictably mine North/South tension for their thrills. This one has much in common with THE BERLIN FILE in its tale of a North Korean defector who finds himself pursued by both the bad guys and authorities in his quest for vengeance.

The worst thing about this film is the slightly confusing, complicated nature of the narrative - at least, when you watch it for the first time. It actually tells a simple, two-fold tale: there's a straightforward revenge narrative here mixed in with a mystery involving a conspiracy so that the viewer spends his or her time trying to work out who the bad guy is. The first half of the film is particularly muddled but it does all become clear towards the end, although it's probably a film you'll need to watch twice to get full enjoyment from. In fact, I did just that, and found myself enjoying it much more the second time around once I knew what was going on.

THE SUSPECT is a very well made movie and it's absolutely action packed. There are car chases, fights and shoot-outs galore here, all dealt with with maximum intensity and captured in loving detail by the director. The cast are also strong in their roles, and as with a lot of these movies, there's a strong emotional core which gives it heart as well as muscle. However, be warned: this is a film that employs extreme shaky-cam throughout, so if you're not a fan of that particular style then this probably isn't the movie for you.

The two stunning set pieces, both involving car chases, are so inspired and teeth-grittingly determined that they make the case for the possibility of individual heroism in a harrowingly venal world.

Fast-paced and energetic, this Korean 'Bourne' is thrilling and exciting. The film's editing and photography is awesome. The film is very, very intriguing and there's a lot of information to digest which can be confusing at times. Ultimately, though, this is a fantastic action adventure with great acting by Yoo Gong (Train to Busan). Wonderful ending!