Top 10 Korean Revenge Films

5. A Bittersweet Life (2005)

I know I said I wouldn't include any gangster films but revenge in A Bittersweet Life goes far beyond the standard gangster tropes. Essentially, its first half is a gangster film while it very consciously switches into a revenge narrative for its back half. More an exercise in style than many of the films on this list, one would still be amiss to write off Kim Jee-woon's film purely based on its kinetic thrills. Yet one can't deny that these are still the main reason to watch it.

With A Bittersweet Life, Kim plays on catharsis very well, particularly in the way he coolly stages his violence and of course his casting of Lee Byung-hun.

Intro - 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 - Best of the Rest

Top 10 Lists

Year   2013 - 2012 - 2011 - 2010 - All Time (Top 25)

Genre   Gangster - Revenge

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