The Berlin File (2013) : movie review
February 13th, 2013 by Mr. C
Director: Ryoo Seung-wan
Stars: Ha Jung-woo, Han Suk-kyu, Ryoo Seung-bum, Gianna Jun
Genre: Action, Thriller, Drama
The Berlin File sets the tone with this epic espionage chase in Berlin, Germany involving various radical groups with their own agendas including the North Koreans, the South Korean Intelligence, the CIA, Russian Arms dealer, Israeli secret service, & Arab terrorists each with their own layer of deception introduced to us right from the onslaught of the film. The beginning of the movie sets us up in a hotel in Berlin where a weapons deal between the Russians and the North Koreans is taking place under negotiations by our main protagonist, agent Pyo Jong-seong (Ha Jung-woo) – a national hero of North Korea. The deal is secretly being watched by the South Koreans, North Koreans, and the CIA. When negotiations go awry, flurries of bullets start to fly! All the groups are introduced to us and only until after the dust settles do we start to peel away the layers of deceit. What basically is left is Pyo Jong-seong being left to fend for his own self as all fingers start to point to him in being a fall guy from the outlook of all parties involved. As part of the setup, Pyo Jong-seong’s wife, a translator for the North Korean embassy is also implicated in aiding with this twisted game of espionage. The root of all evil lies from the cover-up of unaccounted for loyalties being funneled within Kim Jong Il’s regime or might it be another group?
The action sequences including the firearms, the explosions, and the hand to hand combat are all moving images that will quickly demand your attention! The set pieces where all this takes place, mind you in a foreign land is amazing and adds extra tension to the story line. The soundtrack and the exceptional camera work helped set up the viewer perfectly for that frenetic pace and suspenseful mood. Even though the fight choreography and stunt work were well produced, I didn’t care for some of the sudden closeups of our combatants and the slight camera shakes during the hand to hand exchanges to provoke more frenzy in the scene. It gives me the feeling that the closeups and the shakes are visuals used to distract me from the fact that the scene is being filmed with a double which might or might not be the case. The main character played by Ha Jung-woo does a great job of being a cool and nonchalant customer all the while being super intense even with his constant uphill battle. The main villain in the film played by Ryoo Seung-bum does a tremendous job with being the cold blooded North Korean assassin! The performance by the leading lady, Gianna Jun was just o.k. for me. Her role didn’t provoke as much emotion as I would have expected and the few action sequences that she was in – was not quite convincing enough. My other gripes with the film was the incomprehensible english being spoken by the korean cast. I honestly had a hard time understanding some of the dialogue. Maybe they should have had english subtitles when they were speaking in english or maybe have the voices dubbed?
Despite a few shortcomings like the ones I mentioned above and an over complicated story that rushes to unravel to its conclusion, I most definitely found The Berlin File to be quite entertaining as an action film. I’m a big fan of director Ryoo Seung-wan’s past works including City of Violence, Crying Fist, & The Unjust. And with The Berlin File – the overall action is amped up a notch in terms of production value. I actually can’t wait to see this film in the theaters – the way that this type of explosive movie is made to be seen – on the big screen! See you guys and gals at the cinema!
Tags: action, korean movies, thriller
Posted in movies, mr. c | Comments (0)
