Bittersweet Life

It's been some time since I've written anything here. My work schedule right now for the moment is just crazy. I have to start work at 7am these days, but thankfully it's just for another week. This is because I'm based in KL at the moment but will be going back to my company's HQ next week.

Now, back to this show. Now I've seen a fair share of Korean shows but this is one cool film. The film talks about the main character Sunwoo (Lee Byung Hun in the pics)who works in hotel as a manager. But the only difference is that he also doubles as an enforcer for the mob who runs the hotel. In the opening scene Sunwoo is seen have a piece of dark chocolate cake and someone tells him that there's trouble in the hotel. He goes on to finishing his cake and proceeds to go get the job done. He gets one of his men to join him and walks right into the room where three men sit and refused to leave even if it's after hours. Sunwoo walks in, asks the men politely to leave as the place is closing. He counts to three and still they refused. Sunwoo proceeds to tell his henchman to lock the door and in the following scenes he proceeds to kick the living daylights out of the three goons.

Basically the film talks about the life of Sunwoo, as an enforcer for the mob. He works for a powerful mobster named Kang who entrusts him to take care of his young girlfriend while he's away in Shanghai for 3 days. Kang also wants Sunwoo to find out if the young lady is cheating on him as he suspects that she has a young man hanging out with her all of the time. Kang gives Sunwoo the option of calling him directly when he finds out or taking care of them as he sees fit. Sunwoo ends up getting soft as he's fallen for the young girl and ends up letting them live when he finds out that she was really having an affair. He makes a deal with her telling her that she is to never see the guy again and for that he'll let them live.

Kang comes back and finds out about what has happened. Sunwoo is eventually dropped from Kang's favourite list and gets beaten up by an opposing mob gang. As he was about to be slaugthered at a meat house, Kang gives the call and tells the opposing gang to return him. Sunwoo is delivered to Kang who eventually asks him why he betrayed him. Sunwoo does not answer and Kang gives the order to bury him alive.

One cool part of the film was when Sunwoo was driving and while sticking to the speed limit, a bunch of young hoons in a Hyundai coupe tails him and high beams him. They accelerate and pull up alongside and they taunt him and honk at him. Sunwoo continued to ignore them and they continue shouting at him and showing him obscene signs while flicking cigarettes at his car window. They get tired of that and speed off. Sunwoo keeps his cool throughout the whole ordeal and when they sped off he chases after them. Now this time he pulls up beside them and eventually overtakes them and slams the brakes after he gets ahead of them forcing them to stop. They get out and before they had an opportunity to act he kicks on in the head, and the other in stomach. The third guy who was slow in getting out of a coupe had the worst fate as he was closest to the car. He smacks him silly and smashes the head on the car's window. He proceeds to pulling out the car keys and throws it into the ocean. All this without saying a single word and he drives off after that.

One cool show, and really worth watching. One of the better Korean films that I've watched and "Shibal" is really becoming my favourite word. Nice! Though to be brutally honest, I would have prefer a different ending. The film was pulled off very well but the ending really didn't suit it.