The Show Must Go On

I have seen many movies having Song Kang-ho. In fact, I am a very big fan of Song Kang-ho. This movie once again impress me with the brilliant acting of his.

First of all, I would like to say the plot is not very serious. If you are looking for a crime movie with a lot of genius fighting, then this one is not for you. It is just about the ordinary life of a gangster, who is trying hard to be good at his job and take good care of his family at the same time.

Song Kang-ho is definitely a great actor. (In fact, to me, he is the greatest) His acting is so believable that sometimes I feel like watching my own dad on the screen. He portraits exactly the image of a husband who is always being nagged by his wife, a father who cares a lot about his teenage daughter but unable to understand her teenage mind, and a gangster who leads many boys, always ready to fight anyone getting in their business. In my opinion, seeing him is enough to keep your eyes on the screen all the time, however bad the plot is.

But that doesn't mean this is a bad plot. Actually, it's quite a good one. It is hilarious, at many moments. It is also emotional and touching. And it even has some violence and bloody scenes in addition to it. I especially like the ending. It will surely bring you the sympathy with In-goo and you will feel greatly pity and sorry for him.

I believe the movie would be more interesting if the working life of In-goo was more serious and violence. After all, he is a gangster, right? Not a memorable movie but quite an entertaining one. I wouldn't recommend it to you until you have seen other movies having Song Kang-ho in like JSA, The Host, Memories of Murder,...

"Uahan segye" (Korea, 2007) tells the story of Kang In-Gu (award-winning Korean actor Kang-ho Song, who also played the lazy dad turned monster-fighter in "The Host"), a senior member of a gang called "Dogs". He is already planning to retire from his violent profession to lead a peaceful life with his family, mainly because his daughter (So-eun Kim, popular as Ga-Eul in "Boys Over Flowers) is already growing apart from him. In-Gu's success in his last "job" draws him closer to the boss. This in turn makes the boss' brother very jealous. This jealousy causes a series of professional double-cross and personal misfortune for In-Gu which derails all his noble retirement plans.

This is a different kind of gangster movie in that it packs a smorgasbord of varying movie genres within its 109 minute running time. It is basically a black comedy. The action starts off light and downright funny, but later it becomes seriously bloody and violent. There are also some scenes which were tear-jerkingly dramatic about a father's plight about losing the family he loves.

Direction-wise, it felt as if the reins could have been tightened a bit as some scenes felt repetitious, prolonged and confusing. A more rapid pace would have improved overall appreciation of this film. But overall, it was still a good and worthwhile movie to spend time on.

I saw Wooahan Segye, or The Show must Go On, at the Montreal Fantasia Film Festival and I was impressed by this out of the ordinary gangster movie. The film is about a father's struggle to provide his family with a decent lifestyle and a good education. It doesn't overly idealize gangster's life and grimly reminds you that death could be at every corner. Yet, it also empathizes with this gangster's plight and portrays him as an ordinary father trying to make his family happy.

Wooahan Segye totally succeeded in drawing me emotionally. It also packs its fair share of violence and action scenes that should please adrenaline tuned moviegoers. There are also a few good jokes thrown in and overall the movie manages to find a good balance between more lighthearted action and a serious message about a father's hardships. The audience's spontaneous round of applause as the credits rolled comforted me in my appreciation of this movie.

This is a very ordinary film and too shallow for my taste of the gangster's life. I'm a fan of HK gangster movies with the familiar themes of honour, loyalty, chauvinism, perseverance and betrayal.

While Kang-ho Song (In-goo) does a pretty job in portraying the troubled gangster with family struggles, he didn't pull me in enough to the conflict between his job, morality and family obligations. I mean, when his character was introduced on the screen, he was on the tail end of a gangster career. How interesting can a movie be if the protagonist is retiring? I couldn't help comparing him to Tony Soprano. While Tony's and In-goo both have troubles in the domestic life, In-goo's working life pails in comparison to Tony's work. Overall, the acting is fine and the ending is somewhat OK. In comparison to other Korean gangster films this one lacks the dynamic conflict, brutality and pain seen in better gangster movies such as "A Bittersweet Life" and "A Dirty Carnival". This film is rather ordinary and ordinary does not make for a memorable film.