Yaksha: Ruthless Operations

I'm glad Netflix is buying South Korean films and letting people know more about them, especially not having to wait half a year for English subtitles, so thumbs up, but this film in particular seems only slightly above average by that country’s standards. It pretends to be a cross between James Bond and Mission Impossible in Korean guise, but unfortunately falls short of the dreamlike quality the makers probably intended. The acting is very polished, with lots of familiar names (I've seen every actor at least five times elsewhere). The best character is Yaksa (Sol Kyung-gu), he leads the agents and does black ops missions, and comes to investigate the prosecutor who has just arrived in town (I didn’t like this character too much), a nerd who can't do much, I don't like this kind of heroes in action movies. The city is full of spies and intrigue, a theme I enjoy, so the two hours pass by just fine. Visually, it's the Korean standard, so high quality, and the action, well, there's not much of it for my taste and I didn't enjoy it much. By Korean standards there's practically no proper fighting (knives, hands whatever), it's more like shooting, but in PG 13-rating – I don't know who can enjoy bloodless shootouts nowadays. I miss the dirty, brutal and uncompromising Korea I like best, this is too slick, fancy and above all mainstream, so I'm not flabbergasted time, but for a flick for genre fans it sure doesn't hurt. Story 3.5/5. Action 3/5, Humor 1/5, Violence 0/5, Fun 3/5 Music 3/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 3/5, Suspense 3/5, Emotion 2/5, Actors 4/5. 6/10. (11.04.2022)

I was in the mood for an action-packed movie, and that’s exactly what I got, complete with all the usual tropes. The writer-director didn’t bring anything groundbreaking to the table — the story was predictable, filled with clichés that made the plot twists feel more laughable than surprising. That said, I have to give credit to the impressive choreography of the action scenes, which is something Asian cinema often excels at. It’s a shame the characters weren’t more fleshed out, leaving them feeling rather one-dimensional. But, I got what I came for: a straightforward action flick that delivered the entertainment I was looking for. So, while I can’t rave about it, I can’t complain too much either. It’s a solid three-star experience. / Lesson learned: If you want to see South Koreans handle nations with whom they've had rocky relations, this one's for you. (18.08.2024)