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This wasn't nearly as tightly written as Jeong-beom Lee's hit The Man from Nowhere 2010, as it was riddled with convoluted scenes and plot holes. The entire almost two-hour runtime didn't flow smoothly, even with the somewhat decent pacing. There was much clarity missing in many scenes, of which some of those could've been omitted. The narrative wasn't as engaging as it should've been. There were also many shake-your-head moments that were either too overdramatic, and/or unbelievable nonsense. It did have amazing action and gore scenes, with enough blood to make even the audience slip on it. The casting and performances were decent - although some cliched. The cinematography and score were on point. Nevertheless, it's not as bad as the critics say, and it's a fun one-time watch. Just don't expect this to be as great as Lee's 2010 gem of a film.

If you enjoyed "The Man From Nowhere", you will most likely enjoy this as well. It's not nearly as flawless as "The Man From Nowhere" which I will explain shortly.

The reason I bring up the "The Man From Nowhere" is that "No Tears For the Dead" (or "Crying Man" in Korean) is a very similar movie but shot on an entirely different canvas. What I mean is you have the typical protagonist or anti-hero with a vague background that gets slowly revealed and starts developing a conscience after botching his last assignment when he accidentally kills an innocent child. He is then hired to go after the child's mother but can't bring himself to do it after he starts developing feelings for her and races to save her from his and her employers.

"No Tears For the Dead" is in no way original and the story is almost forgettable since it's been done to death but the action sequences are what makes it stand apart. The bloody and brutal fight/shooting scenes gets your adrenaline going throughout the movie. The night shots of Los Angeles are especially gorgeous which reminded me of Michael Mann's signature visual shots of Los Angeles in his flawless crime thrillers, "Heat" and "Collateral".

The lack of character development in "No Tears For the Dead" is what makes "The Man From Nowhere" so much better. In "The Man From Nowhere", you actually cared about the characters and what the protagonist goes through to save his neighbor's child. Here, it is almost nonexistent since the action sequences leave no time for them to get acquainted. However, both use the exact same format of revealing the protagonists' past that made them become who they were and it is also effectively done in "No Tears For the Dead". I came to care about the protagonist but there should've been more between the killer and mother.

The ending was also disappointing since it wasn't clear what really happens to everyone. But the final scene was a good way to end the movie on a tragic note which pretty much explains the title of the movie.

Overall, it's not as good as "The Man From Nowhere" in terms of plot and character development, but "No Tears for the Dead" is nevertheless another enjoyable entry from its director.

Another great action thriller from South Korea!

For an action film, the first half might be considered slow, but this is an effective depiction of guilt and we get a very clear idea of the emotions our hero Gon (Dong-Gun Jang) is going through. The film is also a good study of how simple events lead to a scenario of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Dong-Gun Jang is good as a hitman overcome by guilt, and is every bit believable during the intense action scenes and the emotional scenes. The second half of the film is full-on action in a cat and mouse game as the protagonist outwit the antagonists. The action scenes are brutal, fast-paced, and thrilling!

As with most Korean films, this one is also very unpredictable.

NO TEARS FOR THE DEAD is yet another addition to an exemplary list of South Korean action thrillers made in the last decade; such titles include THE BERLIN FILE, THE MAN FROM NOWHERE, A BITTERSWEET LIFE, A COMPANY MAN, and THE SUSPECT. I was long excited for this film as soon as I found out it was a follow-up to the same director's THE MAN FROM NOWHERE, which is one of my all-time favourites.

NO TEARS FOR THE DEAD isn't quite up there with the standard of the earlier film, but it has its moments. This is an exciting story that mixes superbly-shot, hard-hitting action sequences with a tragic human drama at the core. It's dark indeed, featuring heartfelt performances from the central actors who are inevitably playing broken characters, and it's fun to see how the tone shifts from adrenaline-pumping action to gut-wrenching emotion and back again.

The storyline is predictable for the genre: an assassin screws up by failing to take out his intended victim, only to face the wrath of his former employers. The action is blistering, with lightning fast editing and gobbets of grisly violence. But the human drama also draws you in, building to a moving but expected ending. The South Koreans have come up trumps again with this one.

This was a great movie, good plot, good acting, lots of action, with a good story.

Worth a watch for sure.