At some point you realize the guy you're working for is a complete and unrepentant asshole. That point comes for Chi-juk, not to mention the audience, about thirty minutes into the film. There may not be any labor laws covering this, but when your boss beats up a bunch of school kids, you probably want to find other employment.
Interestingly enough, though, just as Jae-moon (the boss) is at his most reprehensible, he seems to have a moment of clarity and his character begins a reversal that's straight out of a Dickens novel. Except, of course, with soju and sashimi knives.
As for the story itself, well, it's pretty straightforward. Jae-moon wants revenge after his buddy has been killed in retribution for a botched hit; he grabs talented mob newbie Chi-juk and does what any dedicated yakuza would do: stake out the noodle shop run by the victim's mom.
None of that matters, though, as the film is entirely character-driven, with the relation of the two yakuza to the mob, to the locals, and to each other changing as they get involved in the day-to-day life of a small, sorry village.
* * * R A T I N G * * *
Yeolhyeol-nama (IMDB)
Wince : [*____]
Flinch : [***__]
Retch : [*____]
Gape : [**___]
Beerequisite : [*____]
Pornability : [*____]
Obscurity : [***__]
Explicability : [****_]
Scene I'd watch on endless loop: The night, in the noodle shop, of the hit. Masterful.
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