Naebujadeul

Political thrillers have gone out of fashion in the US - and even in Europe - but fortunately South Korea and Japan still know how to make them. It's a very specific genre. Modern audiences - and this didn't start with Gen Z, but with my generation, the Millennials - have become disinterested in politics and consequently in the genre. The problem with thinking little about politics and losing interest in the subject is that... politics is the society we live in. Politics is the world we live in, and if we don't want to know what's happening there, there's more room for us to be controlled, dominated, and mocked by those at the top.

Inside Men is a fantastic film that shows this lack of scruples to achieve one's goals. It doesn't do anything particularly new. Cinematically, many would say the genre can only give us what we expect without major innovations possible. In part, I can agree, although it presents excellent cinematography, well-choreographed action scenes, and a very well-achieved sound. Nonetheless, not all good cinema has to be visually disruptive. Personally, I love a good political thriller, well-written, with good characters (played by great actors), with moral dilemmas mixed in, showing us the rot of a corrupt system that is nothing more than a reflection of what we all are. Politics, journalism, and gangsters go hand in hand in a dirty, cruel, and unscrupulous world, and for everything to remain as it is, people only need to look the other way.

As for the magnificent performances, I don't even know where to start. Lee Byung-hun is at his best, with layers I didn't expect from this character. Cho Seung-woo is flawless, and Yun-shik Baek is perfect, leaving us with goosebumps from the repugnant way he moves in these corridors of power without his image being tarnished. If Min-ho Woo continues with this style (he also gave us the excellent The Man Standing Next), he may never have the admiration of the younger generations, but I will always be eager for his next project. The world still needs these films. Perhaps - now that the younger ones care little about them - more than ever.

I personally think, if this movie was translated into English or other language in t he world, it would be pretty hard to deliver the message. It goes pretty deep that you would understand if you know the language and the culture. I see it could be boring and too stretched out but if you can't see the details, you should just stop watching this. You have to know the culture in order to understand this movie

Is it possible to bring those to justice that are as corrupt and evil as we imagine some to be? I'm not talking any conspiracy theories here, no I'm talking those who are corrupt because ... well you know money! And how to prove their guilt ... in the real world that is quite something to achieve and even if you do that, they mostly have so much power, they walk away with almost nothing to fear.

But this is a movie, so we can expect that at least there is a ... fighting chance of that happening one way or the other. No pun intended. And if you watch a movie about that, why not make it this Korean effort. When it comes to action and intriguing story, South Korea has quite the output. I can really highly recommend quite a lot of their movies. And since they won best movie at least years Oscars the awareness of their industry has been raised (finally). Not for the faint hearted and maybe predictable for quite a lot of people, this still can entertain quite a lot to say the least!

This is actually a dragged out story that is more about the cinematography and the style of it all over a deep story that intrigues. It's a watchable movie but it does feel like the plot is really drawn out. It is a a movie with high quality cinematography for a Korean movie. With some topnotch actors, that really bring a bit exaggerated and yet it works when it comes to the style of this movie. When it comes to the plot it delves in the nasty side of politics, the corruption within it and how some old farts take advantage of the system. While screwing young women during there meeting together and giving idealistic speeches. Lee Byung-hun is a good actor but not really a guy that has integrity in real life. So he puts on a believable performance as a thug that built his way up to the top by doing errands from top officials. He sort of reminded me of the character he played in "A Bittersweet Life" except not as charismatic. Anyways besides the style of this film and some nasty underground stuff that happens in Korean night life. This is actually a forgettable film. The end has the typical clean wrap up that works but isn't all that impactful. Mainly because the build up wasn't all that interesting. It's watchable and I was able to sit through it without checking my time but again it's still a forgettable movie.

6.5/10

When this movie first came out, the majority of viewers criticized it for being over-the-top, hyperbolized. They assessed: politics has its ugly side, but this is too "B," too Tarantino-ish. Well years later, it turns out the movie was PG and reality was much, much worse. This movie became a weird criteria for Koreans to pit reality against and therein lies its merit.

It's true what some of the reviewers said. The subtitles don't do the script justice and some background knowledge about Korean culture helps. And honestly, if you like simple stories... go watch something else?