The Spy Gone North

Gongjak or The Spy Gone North is a spy thriller that looks at the complex political world of North and South Korea and relations during the late 1990's. It is a mix of history and fiction in telling the story of a South Korean spy agent who goes to North Korea under the guise of a businessman through China in order to infiltrate North Korea in search of information about the nuclear program.

The movie's biggest strength is in the cinematography portraying the different locales of China, South Korea, and North Korea in its story telling and in the acting pulling in a cast of well established Korean actors. The camera work and soundtrack is also excellent which work together perfectly in creating high tension key points in the story and providing the movie with excellent pacing.

The story is for the most part is more straight forward than what I expected from a spy thriller. It gets more political after the second half of the movie which is expected due to the nature of story between North and South Korea and it adds a level of complexity. What the movie doesn't do well is explain the motivation that drives the actions of supporting characters. The main character's actions were easy to understand but it was a little bit frustrating not understanding the driving cause of some of the other key characters.

The movie ends with a clear message that will polarize viewers based on their political standing but it does so in an interesting way through the relationship between characters which does tie up the movie fairly well. My biggest critique of this film is that it's too predictable for a spy thriller but it does do a great job narrating the journey.

It's slow but if patience is applied, the movie come to life. It's captivating and intriguing to see. Not your gun totting spy movie but brilliant on its own

Gongjak, internationally known as The Spy Gone North, is a gripping mixture of a drama and a thriller based upon historic events. The movie follows a businessman who works as a South Korean secret agent and who is tasked to infiltrate influential North Korean circles by offering the opportunity to shoot commercials for South Korean products in the remote country. He befriends a North Korean economist who hopes to inspire change in his country. Their friendship is put to a test when South Korean politicians try to influence North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il to attack South Korean civilians in order to influence upcoming elections. The businessman and secret agent overhears the abominable conspiracy and must decide whether he lays low and lets an incredible crime happen or whether he risks his identity and life in order to try to make Kim Jong-Il change his mind.

The Spy Gone North convinces on numerous levels. First of all, the actors are absolutely outstanding and especially lead characters Hwang Jun-min as seemingly blunt but naive businessman and Lee Sung-min as intelligent and resilient economist deliver marvelous performances. The intriguing story gets more tense, dramatic and complex as the movie progresses and especially the last forty-five minutes will keep you on the edge of your seat. The settings are remarkable as the movie takes place in the People's Republic of China, Republic of Korea and Democratic People's Republic of Korea. The crew was obviously not allowed to shoot on location in North Korea and recreated those settings in Taiwan but they still look impressively realistic on screen. One has to applaud the fact that the movie avoids spreading propaganda. The South Koreans are depicted as negatively and at times even worse than North Koreans. Kim Jong-Il is shown as eccentric and socially awkward but also diplomatic and intelligent leader which is a rare perspective. Anyone interested in Korean culture, history and society will particularly admire this movie.

In the end, The Spy Gone North is a tense mixture of a drama and thriller partially based upon historic events. The film's perspective is surprisingly balanced and thought-provoking for anyone interested in Korean culture, history and society. The outstanding acting performances make an already great movie an excellent one which is highly recommended.

This high quality drama is an edgy political thriller throughout, and directed brilliantly by Yoon Jong-bin. The cinematography, the strong cast, the pace, minimalist score and crafted camera work dovetail beautifully to produce a fictional re-telling of a story largely based on truth. The ideologies of two opposed political systems rooted in sister countries of North and South Korea confront one another through the actions of Kim Jong-il (Leader, General and King of the North) and the National Intelligence Service of the South. The quest of the NIS is to determine by whatever means they can devise whether the North is developing nuclear capability, and how close that may be to full militarization. Itself no simple matter! The answer the Director of the NIS is instructed to follow is: send one of his prized assets, a soldier Park (Hwang Jung-min), first to China in the guise of a greedy businessman to build a network of contacts, then if possible, eventually move on to Pyongyang, and Seoul to get close to and manipulate General Kim. Assessing the nuclear threat is agent Park's foremost priority.

That said, the already apparent complicated plot is made more so by believable lucrative and labyrinthine business dealings that have to be set-up and we follow in real time. Agent Park, now businessman Park, is under suspicion from the off and continually tested by an ever cautious communist security service chief. Any mistake by Park in his new persona will lead to exposure and imminent death. The tension and austere nature imposed by DPRK security is palpable, and makes very edgy viewing indeed.

However, while Park progresses and begins to infiltrate into the top echelons other complications arise in his home country. The longstanding ruling Party of 50 years faces a general election in which a new opposition Democrat candidate (allegedly a covert communist sympathiser) wants to reaffirm friendships and form closer trade relations with the North. That level of uncertainty (or as seen by some NIS members, a 'threat' that the South dare not tolerate) compels many of the principle protagonists to either switch their allegiances or change their modus operandi, compounding the cinematic intrigue.

In answer to a few Imdb reviewers who suggest that this movie is slow, they could not be more wrong! To enact the largely historically truthful story in all its glorious intricacies any less accurately by going faster, while maintaining such a superb level of entertainment would be nigh on impossible. This movie is acted slickly and make no mistake is superbly directed. The long build-up in the first half seems necessary to make the story intelligible. Without giving away how the story pans out in the latter half, suffice to say, it makes for an enjoyable, entirely satisfactory, time well-spent coherent watch. Director Yoon Jong-bin especially, and others, particularly the scriptwriters, and supporting cast deserve nominations in the Best Foreign Film category at the Oscars. This film comes highly recommended.

What could prove limiting to its worldwide box office appeal is that for English-speaking audiences the dialogue requires subtitles, and that usually reduces audience figures. Don't let that put you off. 'The Spy Gone North' (aka Gongjak) merits 10/10.

Another excellent movie to discover today Strong characters, interesting plot, a movie based in good acting and not in bullets and fighting action