From writer/director Hong Won-Chan, writer of South Korean classics, The Chaser and The Yellow Sea, comes action movie Deliver Us From Evil
When a Korean hitman called In-nam is ordered to go to Japan to take down an evil Yakuza boss notorious for killing women, he underestimates the violent backlash that faces him. What In-nam does not know, is that the brother of the Yakuza is a sadistic pain-inflicting psychopath that now will stop at nothing until he’s dead. When a chain of events quickly unfold In-nam finds himself in Thailand looking for a young kid of a recently deceased friend.
Deliver Us From Evil is yet another fine example of why South Korean action movies are just a cut above the rest.
The cast includes some actors from South Korean classics that we all adore. Starring Hwang Jung-Min (A Bittersweet Life, Asura, The Wailing, The Unjust, New World) and Jung-Jae Lee (The Housemaid, New World, Svaha: The Sixth Finger, The Thieves, Assassination…he’s also in the new series Squid Game) & Park Jung-min (Svaha: The Sixth Finger, The King, Flu, Time to Hunt). These three give such powerful, yet very different performances that really draw you in and take you on a crazy journey through a crime-ridden Thailand.
We have hitmen, a crazy Japanese Yakuza with a fetish for gutting people like pigs; a whole army of organ harvesters and a transexual looking for a sex-change operation. Those are our main characters. They couldn’t be more different but all three really make Deliver Us From Evil as special as it is.
When the action in this movie starts, it really doesn’t let up until the credits roll. Yet, it still offers up the dramatic and engaging story brought to life by these fantastic actors.
One thing I noticed, and man, you’d be crazy not to, is the cinematography. It was beautiful and really looked like natural daylight was the resource for most of the scenes. I kept thinking to myself when watching this, this man is the Asian Roger Deakins. It was no surprise to find out it was the amazing Hong Pyo-Kyung who served as cinematographer for Parasite, Burning, The Wailing, Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War, Sea Fog…and so many more greats.
The actions scenes were flawless. A few of them were over-the-top, but they were just beautiful to look at. And, hey, it’s an action movie at the end of the day, this is more than forgivable. The film is rated 15 so I was not expecting the brutality of some of the scenes. Yeah, it is not brutal like some South Korean flicks but there was no need for it to be. The fighting was all choreographed beautifully. if you’re a fan of brains getting splattered all over walls…then this is the film for you.
I would recommend this to anyone who loves John Wick or Taken. Yeah, it is subtitled, but if you’re reading our review then I know that subtitles ain’t a problem for you. I was a little late to the game in reviewing this film but it was so worth the wait. Go do your eyes and ears a favour and check out Deliver Us From Evil.
As always, thanks for reading.
Review by GG
Founder/Owner/BigCheese @ Moviehooker
