1724 Hero" or whatever it's called | Diary

"1724 Hero" or whatever it's called

Details: Category: Diary

... because really, I'm not so sure. I first read about the film in a KOFIC booklet, if memory serves. The film was referred to as The Accidental Gangster and the Mistaken Courtesan at the time, a pretty catchy title, if you ask me. Also, I've found Disturbance in her Barroom somewhere... It's all very confusing anyway, but I suppose somebody will have to make a decision at some point, if/when the film gets distributed to the English-speaking market.

The original title, 1724 기방난동사건, literally means "Riot in a kibang in 1724". Marketed as a "comic action film", 1724 Hero or The Accidental Gangster and the Mistaken Courtesan was released last December in South Korea. A depiction of the gangster world of Chosŏn-era Korea, the story's based on an actual fight that occurred at a kisaeng house in 1724 (hence...). A good premise, I thought. Visually, the film has some obvious charms (other than Kim Ok-bin's, who looks quite stunning in a hanbok designed by André "The Alien" Kim, in charge of costumes for the film): directed by Yeo Kyun-dong, it combines the typical period-piece stuff with flashy anime-like visuals, i.e., fast editing and flashes of CGI, etc. The whole package is graced by a distinctly contemporary/anachronic soundtrack that punctuates the action with bouncy bits of electro, pop and hip hop.

Formally, the whole film's a rather frantic and neat affair. But then... in the end (more like, in the beginning and middle, to be frank), for a variety of reasons, it simply doesn't work, so that you're left with the impression of a huge waste of energy... for not much. A bit like watching a rugby team trying to perform a choreography by Mark Morris, I would say. Lee Jung-jae—in his first film role for three years—tries hard, it seems, but no no no... it just does not cut it. And as pretty as Kim Ok-bin may be, I was not seduced.