This is easily the best film of 2001 it's just a shame that a lot of people outside of Korea won't have seen this film. Choi Min-shik is simply brilliant as the loser Gangster Kang-jae and Cecilia Cheung is also wonderful as the tragic Failan. The plot (very basically) involves a gangster Kang-jae (choi Min-shik) who for the price of a boat agrees to take the blame for a murder his boss committed because his boss would get about 20 years and he would only get about 10. Then Kang-jae gets news that Failan his wife is dead so Kang-jae has to go to where Failan was living and act like a normal husband which is something he wasn't, he married her illegally for money and had never even met her. During the trip he discovers that Failan was in love with him because of what she thought was a kind act in marrying her. Anyway during the trip things happen that makes Kang-jae change his mind about taking the blame for his boss, and he decides to quit the gangster life and go back to his home town. The film ends with a scene, which I think is one of the best endings I've ever seen. The characters in the film are so well detailed and the directing and pacing are superb, I've got it on DVD but would love to see it on the big screen so I just hope that it gets some sort of release in England and hopefully loads of other countries. Korean movies are so strong at the moment with 'Christmas in August', 'Whispering Corridors', 'Tell Me Something', 'Nowhere to Hide', 'Art Museum by the Zoo', 'Libera Me' and others it's a shame more people don't watch them.
