The Chaser

As many of you are aware by now, I got really into watching foreign movies the last year or so. Most of the reviews on here are of foreign films, in fact. Netflix has opened up the world of filmmaking beyond the pretty average borders of James Cameron and Martin Scorcese. Yes, I just called Scorcese average. Cry about it.

I have seen great films from France, Spain, Sweden, Germany, Japan and several others. But one country in particular has made movies that hit home with me seemingly without fail. I speak of South Korea.

The Host and The Revenge Trilogy (Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance, Oldboy, Lady Vengeance) were eye-opening experiences for me. They were, to put it mildly, a shocking reminder of just how angry I get when I see a commercial for a movie featuring Tracy Morgan. Why do American filmmakers make so many movies that are stupid to the point of self-mutilation?

I don’t know. Moving on…

The Chaser is a movie I saw on the rack at Blockbuster as I trolled the aisles during one of the excruciating days between when I sent a movie back to Netflix before I got my next one. Creepy cover, Asian dudes, quasi-action themed cover art — it had it all. That’s all I needed to see.

The story is about an ex-cop turned pimp. His girls start to disappear on him, so he assumes that they have run away. But the audience is told early on that this isn’t the case. The rest of the story revolves around the hunt for both the killer and the most recent victim (who may or may not be dead).

The character of the killer is a whole new breed of scumbag. At several points you will want to transport yourself into the screen and just beat the fuck out of him. The calmness in how he recounts the murders as if it were just a game is almost unbearable. You will hate him, but looking at it from a movie-lover’s perspective you appreciate how well he pulled it off.

It comes down to a race against time (cliche) to attain warrants before a deadline that threatens to set the killer free. It’s up to you to watch and find out what happens. Or go to IMDB, I don’t give a crap.

As with all other Korean movies I have seen over the last year, The Chaser is unapologetic about its brutality and nearly unrivaled in its delivery.

I had no idea how to quantify what “Winner of 7 Korean Film Awards” really meant on the cover, but I now now that it means the movie within is fucking awesome.

Score – 85

Sorry about the cheesy voice-over guy in the trailer. It’s the only one not in fucking Korean.

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