The Suspect 용의자

[GeneChing]

More from Korea

용의자 (The Suspect) Official Trailer 2013

[GeneChing]

The Suspect Exclusive Trailer

[GeneChing]

I thought we had a thread for The Man From Nowhere here somewhere but it's not coming up on a search at the moment.

The Suspect
23 December, 2013 | By Jason Bechervaise
Dir: Won Shin-yun. South Korea. 2013. 137mins


Sitting somewhere between the Jason Bourne films and South Korean action-thriller The Man From Nowhere (2010), Won Shin-yun’s The Suspect about an ex-North Korean agent on the run in the South is an explosive and engrossing thriller boasting enough set pieces to silence even 007, and while the film could do away with a bit of the excess, it should entertain viewers both home and abroad.

With 2013 having already seen the release of three other South Korean spy features including The Berlin File and Secretly Greatly, which grossed $49.3m and $45.8m respectively, The Suspect is well-placed to exploit the busy Christmas window when it’s released locally in Korea on December 24, but there is always a danger of over-saturation as seen with the lackluster performance of more recent spy-thriller Commitment that struggled in the local box office grossing just $6.6m in November.

On the international stage the film’s relentless pacing along with the audaciously well-choreographed set pieces that can challenge any Hollywood film on a much higher budget will make it appealing for buyers searching for a suitable thriller, while its strong visuals bodes well when it’s released in the US on January 10 through distributor Wellgo USA.

Abandoned by the North, the film follows an ex-agent called Ji Dong-chul (Gong-yoo) who defects to the South in search for the person responsible for the deaths of his wife and daughter, but is forced on the run after he is framed for the murder of a company CEO whom he worked for as a driver. Dong-chul then begins to piece together the truth behind the assassination as well as trying to determine what happened to his family while on the run with the help of a reporter who has ties to the case.

At times it’s difficult to differentiate The Suspect from the Bourne series with a clear homage paid to the successful franchise from the enthralling car chases to its fight sequences including one in a subway station and not to mention the familiar story of an ex-agent being pursued by the authorities using CCTV from a control room to track him down, but derivative as it is, its superb execution more than makes up for any lack of originality.

Director Won has demonstrated before he’s up to the task of orchestrating visual arresting features as illustrated with his slick feature Seven Days (2007) that took $12.9m in the domestic box office, and his 2006 genre film A Bloody Aria (2006) that was released in the UK and US, while not as ambitious, reflects his ability as both a filmmaker and storyteller.

Won, of course, is indebted to a growing number of highly talented professionals in Korea including the film’s choreographer Oh Se-young and cinematographer Lee Sung-je that along with Won’s direction are responsible for the film’s strong technical display.

Local heartthrob Gong-yoo (Silenced, 2011) who is reminiscent of Won-bin in The Man From Nowhere is able to meet the demands of such a physically demanding role, but there is at times too much of an endeavor to convey his physical features to pull in the female demographic, which includes a wholly unnecessary scene of him topless standing next to a North Korean flag.

As for the reminding leads, much like many of his other roles Park Hee-soon (Seven Days) whose character (Colonel Min Se-hoon) is assigned to track down Dong-chul is suitably brazen and tough, while Cho Seung-ha (2012’s Pluto) who plays the Intelligence Service Chief is adequate though at times not overly convincing playing the film’s most undesirable character.

While its most challenging mission going ahead will be competing with the locally well-received legal drama The Attorney that’s currently dominating the local box office, assuming there is enough appetite for another spy-thriller, potential strong word-of-mouth should help the film recoup its $9 million budget.

Production Companies: Showbox/Mediaplex Inc., Greenfish
International Sales: Showbox/Mediaplex Inc., www.showbox.co.kr/english/index.asp
Producers: Lee Hyun-myung, You Jeong-hun
Executive producer: You Jeong-hun
Co-Producer: Shin Chang-hwan
Screenplay: Lim Sang-yun
Cinematography: Lee Sung-je
Editor: Shin Min-kyung
Music: Kim Jun-seong
Main cast: Gong yoo, Park Hee-soon, Cho Seong-ha, Kim Sung-kyun

[Jimbo]

Gene,

This sounds like a can't-miss movie.

I seem to remember a thread on The Man From Nowhere, too. I've also commented on it in another thread, too. IMO, action-wise, it's one of the all-time best. If The Suspect is even half as good, it will be more than worth it.

[GeneChing]

TMfN thread. The issue was with the forum search engine, which rejects terms which appear with high frequency. That includes every word in the title of TMfN. Bothersome, I know.

[GeneChing]

From AMC (Wanda) on Jan 10.

Coming Soon
Synopsis

Dong-chul (Gong Yoo) is the best field agent in North Korea -- until he is abandoned during a mission, his wife and daughter murdered. Hunted and on the run, torn between grief and vengeance, he takes a job as a night driver for the CEO of a powerful corporation. The chairman is brutally assassinated -- but gives Dong-chul a pair of glasses before he dies. Now, he's on the run again. Accused of murder, wanted for treason, and desperate to uncover the volatile national secrets hidden inside the glasses. Dong-Chul wants the truth. And he'll start a war to get it.

Running Time
2 hr 0 min
Genre
Drama
Director
Won Sin Yeon
Cast
Gong Yoo, Park Hee Soon
Release Date
January 10, 2014

[GeneChing]

I must have some errand in SF next week...some reason to make that trek beyond just this film...

The Suspect

Synopsis

Dong-chul (Gong Yoo) is the best field agent in North Korea – until he is abandoned during a mission, his wife and daughter murdered.

Hunted and on the run, torn between grief and vengeance, he takes a job as a night driver for the CEO of a powerful corporation. The chairman is brutally assassinated – but gives Dong-chul a pair of glasses before he dies. Now, he’s on the run again.

Accused of murder, wanted for treason, and desperate to uncover the volatile national secrets hidden inside the glasses.

Dong-Chul wants the truth. And he’ll start a war to get it.

Director: WON Sin-yeon
Cast: GONG Yoo, PARK Hee-soon, JO Seong-ha, YOO Da-in, KIM Seong-gyoon, JO Jae-yoon
Producer: YOU Jeong-hun, LEE Hyun-myung
Genre: Action & Adventure, Foreign
Run Time: 137 mins.
Theatrical Date: Jan 10, 2014
Original Language: Korean
Dubbed Language: N/A
Subtitle: English

USA Jan 10, 2014
NEW YORK CITY

AMC Empire 25
234 West 42nd St.
New York, NY 10036

Edgewater Multiplex Cinema 16
336 River Road
Edgewater, NJ 07020

LOS ANGELES / SAN DIEGO
CGV Cinemas
621 S Western Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90005

AMC Mission Valley 20
1640 Camino Del Rio N
San Diego, CA 92108

Regal Cinemas La Habra Stadium 16
1351 W Imperial Hwy
La Habra, CA 90631

SAN FRANCISCO / BAY AREA
AMC Metreon 16
135 4th Street Suite #3000
San Francisco, CA 94103

DALLAS
AMC Grapevine Mills 30
3150 Grapevine Mills Pkwy
Grapevine, TX 76051

ATLANTA
AMC Colonial 18
825 Lawrenceville Suwanee Rd
Lawrenceville, GA 30043

CHICAGO
AMC Showplace 12 Niles
301 Golf Mill Ctr
Niles, IL 60714

PHILADELPHIA
AMC Plymouth Meeting Mall 12
494 W Germantown Pike
Plymouth Meeting, PA 19462

HOUSTON
AMC Studio 30
2949 Dunvale Rd
Houston, TX 77063

WASHINGTON, D.C.
Cinemark Egyptian 24
7000 Arundel Mills Cir
Hanover, MD 21076

SEATTLE
Century Federal Way
2001 S Commons
Federal Way, WA 98003

AMC Loews Alderwood Mall 16
18733 33rd Ave W
Lynwood, WA 98037

HAWAII
Pearlridge West 16
98 - 1005 Moanalua Road
Aiea, HI 96701

Regal Dole Cannery Stadium 18
735 Iwilei Rd
Honolulu, HI 96817

Canada Jan 10, 2014
TORONTO
Cineplex Cinemas Yonge and Dundas
10 Dundas St E
10 Dundas St E Toronto, ON, ON M5B 2G9

VANCOUVER
Silvercity Coquitlam 20
170 Schoolhouse St
Coquitlam, BC V3K 6V6

[GeneChing]

The AMC site is a little clunky for searching out local showings. It seems to confirm what Well Go posted above.

BTW, this film was mentioned in my recent interview with Well Go President Doris Pfardrescher.

[Jimbo]

Saw it, and thought it was a good film, though as mentioned in the article, it's clearly derivative of the Bourne series. It may have run a bit long, and I didn't care for the purposely shaky camerawork during the chase scenes/fights, but it moved along at a good clip.

Comparing it to my favorite Korean action movie, The Man From Nowhere, I think TMFN is the better film, but then, they're two very different films.

[GeneChing]

I'm coining a new phrase - crackhead camerawork. This film would have been great if the **** cameramen had a steady-cam and eased off on the uppers. My lawd. Jiggliest wiggliest camerawork ever, like a quadruple espresso after four rails of blow. So much so that I got sleepy in the first half hour as my eyes adjusted (I have a similar reaction to bad 3D). The action was good, or at least I think it was, what little of it I could see through the crackhead camerawork. The plot got a little convoluted, but I liked the North vs. South Korea politrix. No sword fights. Good hypodermic fights. Great car chases. Lots of snipers who can't hit the side of an airplane hanger at ten paces (but everything was so wiggly-jiggly that I can't say I blame them). I liked the lead Gong Yoo a lot, as well as the sympathetic cop chasing him, played by Park Hee-Soon. And the villain, Jo Sung-Ha, had this annoying laugh that made you want to punch him in the face, which was perfect really. At 2+ hours, this could have used some trimming.

I really liked the nod to Mr. Vengeance.

On the way home, barreling down the highway at night, I hit a skunk. Cracked my **** splash shield, which I then dragged a good 15 miles until I turned the music down and wondered wtf that sound was. Cost me $120 this morning, plus the morning's work chores. I just got some extra pin money for my royalties and was going to treat myself a nice bottle of whiskey, but no, it went to the **** splash shield. BTW, the shield was $60, but the **** clips were $5 each and it takes like 8 clips. All the while I was thinking about the car chases in The Suspect. I guess Hyundai is a car maker to be reckoned with nowadays.

I agree with you on TMFN, Jimbo. That's a tighter K-flick, almost claustrophobic in its cinematography, but it's a very different film. The Suspect is much bigger, trying to be international like Bond or Bourne.