Veteran

Overall, pretty good. While not my favorite Korean action film, if you like the genre you will probably enjoy it. Overall story and tropes will be broadly familiar to anyone who watches much Korean crime/action.

My one criticism is that the antagonist is cartoonishly evil - a genuine sadist - and his sadism is demonstrated probably more than is necessary, and in more extreme ways than is necessary, for a film which is trying to be more comedic.

Other than that, some good casting/actors, many of whom will be familiar to fans of the genre, including a cameo by Ma Dong-seok, probably my favorite actor in the genre.

Brilliantly directed and even more effectively presented by all the actors. Ground breaking storyline backed by excellent dialogues and acting. Worth your precious time for sure. But I bet that in reality this super rich are too powerful and beyond the reach of cops. Let's hope that one day this will happen in reality as well.

With a summer filled with less than mediocre domestic films busting blocks in box office we get a quality entertainment from director Ryu Seung-Wan. This is not an entirely original film but Ryu packs it with enough real life relevance and intrigue in the plot to keep the audience thoroughly entertained.

The plot which has the same structure as "The Public Enemy" series, very popular and also from Korea, follows a hardboiled cop trying to take down a psychotic rich kid after his acquaintance ends up in hospital. Both parties do what they do best. One follows leads and the other does whatever it takes cover it up.

As mentioned above, the film's action scenes and its general tone (comic reliefs, charismatic yet evil rich baddies) are very similar to Public Enemy series. However the story is more focused here with director Ryu's confidence in his own style.

The entire cast turns in solid performances but the standout is Ah In Yoo, making a real nasty playboy who can convincingly smirk and get under your skin. Also worth mentioning is Hae Jin Yoo who's presence in a film almost always indicate solid performances. He plays a man who needs to juggle around running the company and keeping the young maniac under control. In its final action sequence, fans of Korean cinema will chuckle at a familiar face making a goofy cameo.

So far Ryu hasn't made a single film that wasn't worth the admission price. Sure, his film can come off cheesy at times but they were never boring. Ryu's style can also compensate for not entirely original plots in films like "Veteran" and "Berlin Files". A great success in box office, this film will pretty much guarantee the director to make any film he wants to make next. Anything he makes, I'll be first in line.

Seo Do-cheol is a righteous cop with a great team and boss, entangled in the deceit of a mad rich businessman Jo Tae-oh. Tae-oh uses his power to buy everything and everyone which stand against him. Do-cheol rises against Tae-oh against all odds and the events are just magnificent how Do-cheol fervently takes everything on his hands to destroy the supremacy and menace of Tae-oh

Veteran is a classy action-comedy which perfectly takes the social milieu and delivers in a splendid manner. The screenplay is pretty consistent with all the layers of story unfolding at the right moments; it never breaks the momentum of the viewer. The characterization is almost near the realism as every actor lives the life of the characters.

Jeong-min Hwang is a natural actor and has already given some of the best performances in Korean Cinema. He impeccably embodies the character of an upright cop who is agile and stands for morals. Ah In Yoo astonishingly portrays the character of a wrathful and treacherous businessman and his madness on the screen will make you cringe. Hae-jin Yoo and Dal-su Oh are remarkable in the supporting characters, both complement the screenplay effortlessly. Rest is cast has done pure justice to the characters.

Veteran has a slick action which packs the right punches and martial are never goes over the top. The cinematography works splendidly in the action scenes which are well choreographed too with lot of gags.

Korean Movies are quintessentially awesome when it comes to crime-action-comedy. The blend of dark humor with stylish action is a genre shift which is a hard nut to crack. Korean movies have already mastered in the genre and also there are also lot invocations. Veteran is an epitome of the same genre

I rarely watch Asian movies, I made an exception for this one because I liked the description and the poster. I didn't regret watching it. The way the drama/comedy/detective/action is combined is truly amazing. It made me cry a little, laugh a lot, smile and be sad trough the movie. The detective's perseverance and the limits that he pushes makes it a wonderful story. I liked that we get to see a bad ass woman detective in a secondary role that we rarely see in Hollywood, (a thing that is something normal in Asian movies). Also, the fact that the main character was not a martial arts master is a big plus. A truly inspiring family and friends relationships between characters and real life situations is what makes this movie almost a masterpiece. The level of the actors, their playing deserves and Oscar or at least some international appreciation.