Sol Kyung-gu has been one of Korea’s most bankable stars
since Kang Woo-suk’s
Public Enemy trilogy hijacked the box office in 2002
and I have already taken some time to discuss his career up until this point
with my review of his other 2010 thriller
No Mercy. His bankability which now
seems to be borne out of his suffocating typecasting rather than his immense
acting ability succeeded in bringing this film great success at the local box
office. The only differences (from a narrative standpoint) between
Troubleshooter and the aforementioned
No
Mercy is that is that Sol sports a slightly longer, shaggier hairstyle and is a
much better fighter (invincible nearly). Besides that we are still left with a
character who operates on the fringe of the police, is a single father, has his
daughter kidnapped, and must do his aggressor’s bidding.
No Mercy begins with
the kidnapping whereas
Troubleshooter starts with Sol being framed for murder
but with those opening shots, which reveal the somewhat troubled nature of his
relationship with his young daughter, it is inevitable that she will get taken
at some point.
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| Kang (Sol Kyung-gu) gets framed |
It sounds as though I am attacking the film for a lack of
originality and a stubborn reliance on tried and tested formula. While this may
be true I am more forgiving towards this film than I was towards
No Mercy. The
reason being that this is a deliberately simple narrative that is rendered very
effectively. It also seems like a test of some sorts for rookie director Kwon
Hyeok-jae who has come out from under the wings of the formidable Ryoo
Seung-wan, director of
Crying Fist (2005),
The City of Violence (2006), and
The Unjust (2010), who serves as producer here.
Sol Kyung-gu plays Kang Tae-sik, a private detective, or
self-described Troubleshooter. Kang goes on a simple job and finds a dead body,
it quickly becomes clear that he is being framed for the murder and he receives
a call from the orchestrator of the scene who now blackmails him to do his
bidding if he is to receive the evidence that will prove his innocence.
Really simple stuff but it gets going very quickly and
requires limited exposition. Unlike other Korean films Troubleshooter hardly
falls back on melodrama, instead remaining firmly rooted in the present as it
thunders on at a breathless pace. That is not to say that there aren’t certain
moment that drag and a few scenes that could have been trimmed or cut out but
as a rookie effort it displays a keen understanding of pace and structure and a
mature appreciation of brevity. In addition, the dissemination of information
in this mystery/action film is thoughtfully calculated, sustaining our interest
over the entire running time.
 |
| Great fight scenes |
As you would expect from a film that features Ryoo’s name
somewhere in the credits, the action scenes, particularly the
tightly-choreographed fight sequences are typically impressive and
hard-hitting. Jeong Doo-hong, Ryoo’s longtime martial arts choreographer brings
his particular brand of quick and inventive fighting techniques and applies
them to Sol’s character. The scenes that result are very impressive and will
satisfy any action cravings, as long as you accept it. As great as the scenes
were, I felt it was a little contrived that this private eye would be such an
expert and quasi-unbeatable martial arts expert. Had the film taken place in an
alternate, more stylized universe, such as a comic book adaptation for example,
I might well have accepted it but as it stands, his skills seem a little
incongruous. A small complaint though, given how thrilling the fight sequences are.
The main problem with the film for me was when it deviated
from the immediate action involving Kang and his antagonist. The police scenes
had something quite off about them and this surprised and disappointed me, not
least because the lead detective on the case was played by my favorite
character actor in Korea. The inimitable Oh Dal-su has incarnated some of the
most memorable characters in Korean cinema (
Oldboy, 2003;
The Show Must Go On, 2007;
Thirst, 2009;
The Servant, 2010) and has served as the principal foil
to some of it’s greatest protagonists, but here what is supposed to have an air of sardonic wit seems tired and decidedly flat. I am reticent to
blame Oh’s portrayal of his character as I think this is likely an error in
judgment on the part of the director. I can see what he was trying to do as he
both pays homage to the slick investigatory style of Hollywood while also
sending it up with a playful cynicism. But the scenes end up being far too dry
and the comedy sometimes gets lost in the deliberate downplaying of the
mise-en-scene. Thankfully in as the narrative progresses and Oh and Sol get to share screen time, these problems evaporate and Oh manages to impress yet again in a small role.
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| Oh Dal-su in the dry police segments |
On the back of this strong and technically proficient genre
entry, I must say that I am very exited for the next project that Kwon
Hyeok-jae will undertake, I just hope that it will be a slightly more complex
work. Given it’s strong central performance, excellent production values, and effective
pacing,
Troubleshooter is a film that is well worth your time, just don’t
expect to see anything you haven’t before.
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