Movie Digest
The oil pipelines in South Korea are considered the artery of the nation. One wealthy tycoon decides he wants to siphon oil from the pipeline that runs between Hunnam and Seoul Busan highway. Since he wants the job done quickly and efficiently, he hires a drilling prodigy for this task. This movie is all about the siphoning of oils from a major pipeline by a group of misfits under the tyrannical tycoon. It visualizes the underground world of heists involving oil pipelines.
The Feel-Good Part
The part that stuck the most in the movie was how they portrayed Human greed. The group that was put together to siphon off the oil, were all struggling financially and came from the underbelly of the city. Despite knowing that everyone in the group is more or less in the same pit of struggle, Woo-Sung repeatedly tries to betray his members. On the other hand, we have Gun-woo, The tycoon who we thought only wanted to siphon oil but instead, he has some other big plans which will lead to civilians losing their lives. The director Yoo Ha previously worked on films like ‘Once upon a time in high school’, Gangnam Blues, etc. All of his previous works were in the comedic crime genre. This movie too has his signature style in it and lives up to the fame of his previous works. Also, throughout the film, we start to sympathize with the characters, which is appreciable sentiment while watching a movie.
The Disappointing Factor
There are some inconsistencies in parts of the film. Some characters despite getting shot, burnt, and other injuries we deem severe were still going on and about their job. There were some scenes where the jokes were not hitting at all. When there are inconsistencies present in the visuals, it’s an immediate turn-off. A few scenes even transcended logic, for example, the cops immediately understood the cement was from the hotel? How does one come to that conclusion? Apart from these, the ending was a bit underwhelming. It leaves you wondering what was the point of this at all? As the film goes on despite the twists in the plot, some of it is still pretty predictable and borders on confusing the viewers.
In-Depth Analysis
The premise of this movie is very new to a viewer. We have seen films involving heists that surround money, Banks, but oil siphoning paired with the underground experiences were new to witness. For that, the director did extremely well in the visualization. A lot of small screen actors were seen in this film. All of the cast gave very good performances and were refreshing to see on the screen. Despite having to steal oil as its premise, pretty much everything else is all too familiar. We see the director deliver this story in the same style he always does. The second part of the film does have poor computer graphics. The ending however unanimously agreed was bland. At least for a film whose premise was significantly different than the other heist films, it feels like wasted potential. The characters too had some very intensive backgrounds, but the focus of the script only expanded to one or two main characters and disregarded the development of the other. This makes the movie seem very dull at times.
Star Power
Seol In Guk plays the role of Pin Dul in this movie. He is an extremely talented actor whose works we can see in the ‘reply 1997’, ‘Reply 1994’. We also have Lee Soo Hyuk and Ba Da Bin in this movie. Ba da Bin has worked in ‘Love Alarm’, And ‘Brahms’. She is an established actor in the Korean industry. All actors cast in this movie did justice to their roles.
Overall Opinion
This movie could be categorized as a black comedy. It uses the very dire parts of life in the underground and a heist along with a peppering of funny moments here and there. The camaraderie is wholesome to watch in this movie. If you are a fan of comedy and crime mixed, you can sit for this movie. Although there is not much we can say about character development and neither the chemistry of the group. As previously mentioned, there is no logic to some of the scenes. The biggest fallacy is however making the driller wear designer clothes while he is drilling, one can’t imagine that in real life. All that poses a bit of a disconnect for the viewer with the movie. The movie overall fares well despite the challenges in the plot and the character visualization. If you are someone who can get beyond that please take a look at this movie, it’s very similar in style to the director’s previous works as well.
