Fridae

This stylish neo-noir gangster is further evidence of the confidence
and vitality of Korean cinema. Though it's not quite as hard-hitting
and viscerally exciting as Park Chan Wook's superb gangster flick
Old Boy, lovers of violent Korean cinema should still be
able to get plenty of kicks in A Bittersweet Life.

It stars the usually clean-cut hunk Lee Byung Hun (Joint Security
Area) as a laconic, ultra-cool hitman hired by a mafia boss
(Kim Yeong Chul) to check out whether his mistress is having an
affair with another man. If she is, Byung Hun is ordered to kill
her on the spot. However, when he discovers the truth about her,
he decides upon an entirely different course of action.

It is undeniable that director Kim Ji Woon is a talented director.
From his horror film A Tale of Two Sisters to his morbid
comedy about a family of murderers called A Quiet Family,
he displays a fine gift for conveying mood and suspense. A Bittersweet
Life lacks originality in terms of its tried-and-tested plot,
but his control of the medium as well as Byung Hun's charismatic
performance more than make up for it.