The City of Violence (2006) User Reviews

Nothing original, but plenty of fun

[odom03 · 7/10 · 23 January 2007]

I didn't expect much from this....just an action flick to keep me busy for 90 minutes. I did get that, but I got even more.

I won't oversell it. The story is about as original as buttered toast. The actors however, played it with as much heart as they could (while trying to look tough). I'm not saying that there are Oscar-worthy performances here, but they didn't sleep walk through it, either.

There's a group of high school guys. They were friends, once upon a time. They grew up, and they drifted apart. One of them moved to Seoul and became a police officer. One day he gets a call summoning him home; it seems one of his boyhood friends has been killed. He goes home for the funeral, then with another boyhood chum, decides to investigate...because something just doesn't feel right. Tragedy and betrayal...and of course *violence* ensues.

The action scenes were certainly effective, with plenty of stylized Tae Kwon Do all over the place. Only one gun in the movie (in a police station)! There are some people on the site saying the action is under-choreographed and infrequent. I felt like the movie had a good deal of action: Plenty of short action scenes to keep it interesting, and two long b*lls-to-the-wall scenes, the second of which is something like "Kill Bill" meets "Lethal Weapon." A buddy martial arts flick, there just aren't enough of those! Oh, and people talk about the homage to "Kill Bill"....check out the homage to "The Warriors." What can I say....I laughed.

The bottom line is, this film is nothing groundbreaking. The drama won't make you cry. The action won't make you cheer out loud. The story won't make you think too much. In spite of this, it is a heck of a lot of fun. In the end, that's what entertainment is supposed to be...."fun." It's mindless action with a bit of soul....and I would recommend it to everyone....just set it aside for a night where you want a fun fix, and you don't want to think too much. And hey, we all have those some time.

Great fun and lots of action and adrenaline...

[paul_haakonsen · 8/10 · 14 July 2012]

"The City of Violence" had gotten some fairly great reviews on Amazon, that is one of the main motives for why I bought it, that and also because I enjoy Asian cinema.

And now having seen "The City of Violence", I must say that I was thoroughly entertained and somewhat surprised by the movie. Initially, I found the story to be a little bit jumpy and not all that easy to grasp at first, as there is a lot of jumping to and fro and a heap of characters thrown into your face all at once. But once the dust settles and the movie trots on, it becomes really great. The story really isn't the main issue to carry the movie; the action and fighting is.

The action and fighting scenes and sequences were really nicely choreographed and executed. Lots of adrenaline and in-your-face fighting here. It is not the type of action as seen in many Chinese action movies, with wires and crazy jumping going on, no! This is done very realistic and believable. Though I do wonder how one manages to stay afoot after receiving such a beating as the two main characters did towards the end and final showdown (I guess they just had that Jean Claude Van Damme gene in them, eh?).

The people cast for the various roles were doing really great jobs with their roles, and I think it was nice to see so many unfamiliar faces on the cast list, which for me, means there are no associations to prior movies and roles hanging in the air. I enjoyed the performances by all people in "The City of Violence".

"The City of Violence" is a movie that you just have to watch if you are a fan of Asian action movies, it is an amazing Korean movie that is well worthy up along side some of the 'classic' Hong Kong action movies. And "The City of Violence" goes to prove that action doesn't have to come from Hollywood. And speaking of action, then the final showdown at the restaurant was one of the best fighting scenes I have ever witnessed in a movie, it just went on and on (but in a good way) and it was done so nicely.

Thumbs up for this movie, way up!

Kicks arse!

[grandmastersik · 8/10 · 6 March 2007]

As with most action films: forget about the plot - this one holds very little surprises and the villain is obvious from his very first scene, thus eliminating any suspense from the first 45 minutes.

But again: this is an action film, so who cares?

Actually, this is a very stylish action film, bringing some pretty neat photography and music along to boot.

It's also a rare tae kwon do mayhem-fest, so sit back and watch all those fighters leap into the air, pulling off unbelievable moves for your entertainment.

Overall: cool fights and a finale almost (repeat: ALMOST) on a par with the legendary finale of A Better Tomorrow 2.

Watch this film and - if you like martial arts action - you'll enjoy this immensely.

Two movies for the price of one...

[poe426 · 7/10 · 18 September 2007]

Two films for the price of one, THE CITY OF VIOLENCE: STAND BY ME by way of DUEL OF THE IRON FIST. The director's cinemanship (my term for "cinematic craftsmanship") is topnotch: he does the "gutwork" (laying the emotional groundwork that any movie worth its salt must evince) and delivers, in the end, a side-by-side/back-to-back toe-to-toe throwdown the likes of which we've rarely seen (and, like a John Woo "gun fu" classic at its best, THE CITY OF VIOLENCE does indeed deliver). The matter-of-fact murderer delivers the best line: "Your sense of right... was all wrong." If you like all-out action when it comes to on screen fight scenes, you'll love THE CITY OF VIOLENCE.

It's a matter of time when this movie comes in movie theaters in America

[andjel_ko · 7/10 · 14 October 2006]

We can say it is a Kill Bill kind of movie, but it is more an Asian 70-es kind of movie. Kill Bill is more City of violence kind of movie, although I'm sure everyone will be comparing it with Kill Bill when it reaches America - probably next year.

This is not a masterpiece, but still a very good and simple movie. And there are many reasons why i liked it and only a few why i didn't. It was short, but not too short. Fighting in the movie is incredible, realistic and unrealistic in the same time. I mean it is unrealistic that a man defeat so many deadly enemies and stands after receiving so many punches, but kicks alone are very realistic. The fighting is a real thing, without special effects or ropes, and all you gotta do is sit and enjoy the fight.

The best fighter in the movie is well known Korean actor Jeong Du-hong who plays a roll of a police officer Tae-su whose friend has been killed. He decides to find the killer and gets help from other friends from the past but he will soon realize that the killer is actually one of his friends - Pil-ho. That fact is obvious from the beginning of the movie but don't spoil the movie. In fact, it is interesting to watch the game of Pil-ho who is now a gangster and wait for his end as we have waited for Bill to die in Kill Bill (now I'm comparing them myself)

Five friends are main characters in this movie which tells a story about their showdown in present and friendship in past. Drama part of the movie is not done perfectly but everyone should get the point. The Director Ryoo Seung-wan also did Crying Fist, more dramatic and longer movie but there must be something the same about this two films because i love them both very much. And the next thing to do is to find other Ryoo Seung-wan movies like No Blood no tears, and Die bad and see if this is really another great Korean director as Chan-wook Park and Ki-duk Kim.

As for City of Violence, if you like fighting you shouldn't miss this one.

Action-focused gangster outing with a great ending

[Leofwine_draca · 7/10 · 19 November 2012]

THE CITY OF VIOLENCE is a solid action film with an engaging, gangster-focused storyline and plenty of interesting characters to keep the viewer's attention. Things kick off with a brutal murder in the street, which leads to the victim's childhood friends reuniting to reminisce about the old days. We learn that each character has gone his own way: one's now a small-time gangster, another a cop. The gradual pursuit and uncovery of the truth eventually leads to violent recriminations for one and all.

Interestingly enough, the mystery-style plotting and gangster window-dressing eventually wear off until by the end the film becomes a riotous, ass-kicking extravaganza that bears more than a passing resemble to the infamous 'Crazy 88' action scene in KILL BILL: VOLUME 1. It works: the director contributes plenty of stylish flourishes and the action is well-filmed through, from huge, sprawling street fights early on to the epic bad-assery of the climax. It truly is an excellent ending, lifting what's come before and proving itself a film more than capable of holding its own against bigger productions.

Tarantino is a slacker

[p-stepien · 7/10 · 11 July 2009]

A must see for any fans of Asian extreme cinema. This is all that Kill Bill was unable to be and shows that Tarantino is but a poor imitator of the best Asia has to offer.

20 years after 5 childhood best friends close a bottle of alcohol with a serpent inside one of the five, Wang-Jae (Kil-Kang Ahn) is murdered by a bunch of young hooligans. Before his death Wang-Jae was an ex-mafioso boss, that settled down and opened a bar, still remaining an influential figure in the neighbourhood. Tae-su is a Seul cop, the best on the force and a real terror for everyone that has to do with crime. Dong-hwan (Seok-yong Jeong), a geeky teacher and Seok-hwan (Seung-wan Ryoo), a small-time crook, are brothers jointly caring for their 60-year old mother. Pil-ho (Beom-su Lee) is the crime lord of the city after Wang-Jae's retirement.

After the funeral Tae-Su in search of the killers of Wang-Jae decides to stay for a bit longer in the city. It quickly turns out that the case will force brother to go against brother and for the best friends to fight each other...

The movie lost a couple of points for not being able to properly balance the comedic with the dramatic with certain fragments standing out as if from a totally different movie. Also some of the fight sequences were too long and tiresome. There are better Asian movies out there, but still a recommended, if flawed movie. And no Tarantino hack can capture the strengths of the Asian revenge flick.

Great Korean flick that should not be missed

[wolfclaws22 · 9/10 · 24 November 2006]

As of 12:02am I finally saw this movie and i must say...it was a fantastic movie. The Cinematography was well done to a point it reminded me of Running Scared yet kept its own originality. The overhead views were nicely done and there was no shortage of action. I loved the editing on the movie and wasn't bored at all reading the subs as it was a fantastic story of loyalty an broken friendships. The action in its own right was brutal an fun as i craved to see what technique our heroes would use to take down there opponents. The ending was well played as the payoff was great and the final showdown was intense in action and drama. I don't have any real complaints about this movie as everything gelled together real well right down to the soundtrack (intresting they played western themes at the end when in the beginning Columbo was mention) its a great movie that should not be missed, it really shows how well Korea is coming along with its movies

A great deal of fun for those who like action and witty lines

[dbborroughs · 7/10 · 24 August 2008]

Amusingly violent and funny action story done in a style best described as film noir (plot) meets spaghetti western (music) meet Asian action film. Its the story of an organized crime detective who goes home for the funeral of a boyhood friend. Sensing something was wrong about the case he and another friend begin to investigate and find that the city they grew up in has changed and that somethings are better left undiscovered.

This is a neat little film. Its not the be all and end all, but it fires along in its own bloody way for 90 entertaining minutes. The dialog is witty and is the sort of thing you wish you and your friends would come up with. The characters are also the sort of people you know and that familiarity helps make it easy for you to ride along as the plot unfolds, largely as you expect it will. The action is quite good but it is often bloody, so you may not want to watch those parts if you don't like the red stuff. This movie is a great deal of fun in the right frame of mind. Worth a look.

(The film reminds me of what Quentin Tarantino might produce were he not insistent on making references and paying homage to obscure little films. Its a thought that I had prior to the end fight which reminded me, in away, of the House of Blue Leaves segment from the first Kill Bill. For the record I like the sequence here better since it plays more real and doesn't go on and on and on)

This movie sucked so-o-o-o-o bad

[mistermike-2 · 1/10 · 5 September 2007]

This movie sucked so-o-o-o-o bad. Forget that is was subtitled, the dialogue was worthless. Forget the plot, it was pretty convoluted. Forget the acting, the characters relied on their looks more than their skills. Forget tai kwon do, that martial art will get you no where in a real fight.

Martial arts movies should be about quality, believable martial arts. The fight scenes were just horrible. The good guys could fight for extremely long periods of time against uncountable fresh rivals, do dramatic flips, complicated acrobatics, while bleeding from all extremities and never run out of energy to do more technical moves and leave their rivals in a heap--probably because they consumed their special stamina drink.

The only positives about the movie were the sets. Glimpses of cool camera angles and good use of backdrops against character costumes. I need more story or more action in this type of film.

A fun ride

[chrichtonsworld · 8/10 · 24 April 2007]

City of violence is an action movie. And when it comes to action movies the plot isn't that important. At least as long as it never forgets to be in function of the action and not the other way around. But I was surprised to see that, (although not very original) the plot was quite interesting. The actors also did a great job in carrying this plot. They were believable as childhood friends who reunite after the death of one them. Doo-hong Jung (Arahan) who has the lead as the friend who is a cop also is the martial arts director for this movie. And it shows. He choreographed some excellent fighting scenes. Especially at the ending you will be in for a treat. One of the highlights of the movie is one big action scene in he middle of the city where Doo-hong Jung has to fight several gangs of kids on his own. He does gets assistance of a friend, Seok-hwan played Seung-wan Ryoo who is the director of this film. Not to be confused with his brother (actor Seung-beom Ryu from Arahan) who looks very similar to him! When these two get together the fun really begins. I don't know if it was meant as a parody or tribute to The Warriors, but it was sure a spectacular sight to see the Korean hoodlums dressed as the gangs from that movie. They were just as dangerous and menacing. The good mix of comedy, drama and action makes this a movie that has to be seen. It's one big and fun ride!

You can feel the pain of the fight sequences.

[chickenjackson · 7/10 · 28 December 2017]

I just cant quite put my finger on the great work of this director and these actors...it just kicks @$$! The action packed fight sequences in this film have so much tooth and nail intensity that i can almost feel the pain...esp. the sequence of the hall of gangsters with knives.

It is nothing but fights

[jordondave-28085 · 3/10 · 27 October 2023]

(2006) The City of Violence (In South Korean with English subtitles) CRIME DRAMA

Detective Jung Tae SooJung finds out that one of his childhood friends Wangja was stabbed to death so he decides to return to the neighborhood he used to grow in meeting 3 others, after an investigation, he finds out that it was not just an ordinary random stabbing but that one of his childhood friends, Pil-ho (Lee Beom-soo) is somehow responsible for it. In terms of action is concerned , I have to say is not very good and the reason is that although I'm not accustomed to Korean laws and culture it lacks credibility action-wise! Consider this scene where one of the snitches is held up in jail for protection, a guy holding a water cooler comes up to the cell and starts dousing it on the person that was locked up. The policemen see this and tries to prevent this from happening by kicking the living crap out of him- he beats and kills everybody in the room, trained police officers with one trying to load up a gun and he ends up getting killed as well. How is this possible, even if this guy is an assassin. They're lots of scenes such as the one I mentioned where logic is not really applied but to showcase the assassin getting away burning his victim in a cell. They're some fighting and on the early stages are quite entertaining but as the film progresses you tend to ask yourself why are there anybody carrying any guns especially the cop whose supposed to be seeking for revenge on his murdered school chum. The fighting scenes began to annoy me 3/4 of the way starting to feel pointless since some of the bad guys or another would be knocked out unconscious and would still be alive and sometimes could barely make anything out when they're fighting. In the end, I just didn't care what happened and turned on a Jackie Chan Chinese film or a Donnie Yen film instead which this film was intending to do, but by comparison this film is quite weak in terms of action films goes.

The City of Violence is a great example of what Korean filmmakers have to offer.

[tarbosh22000 · 7/10 · 9 December 2014]

Tae-Su (Jung), Wang-Jae (Ahn), Pil-Ho (Lee), Dong-Hwan (Jeong) and Seok-Hwan (Director Ryoo) were close-knit high school buddies in the late 80's. They loved scrapping and fighting, but it was a much more innocent time. After the mysterious death of Wang-Jae, Tae-Su returns to his small South Korean hometown to attend the funeral. But suspicions arise, and Tae-Su, who is now a hard-nosed cop, stays in town to conduct his own personal investigation into the death of his friend. He teams up with Seok-Hwan and together they tear up the town and even revert back to their old pugilistic ways. When it turns out the aggressor in all this is their old pal Pil-Ho, who grew up to be a remorseless psychopath, and who has become a successful land developer because of his corrupt and ruthless ways, it sets the stage for an epic battle for the ages. Will the hometown of these old friends become the ultimate CITY OF VIOLENCE? Find out today! The City of Violence is a highly entertaining movie, overflowing with dynamism, energy, color and visual appeal. The cinematic flourishes on a the visual level are the icing on the cake to a story about loyalty, brotherhood, betrayal and nostalgia. Not to mention remembrance and tragedy. And of course fighting. It is extremely well-shot, well-lit, and well-directed, and director Ryoo employs all manner of tactics to delight the eye of the viewer and keep them invested. What with its fast pace, you don't really get a chance to become un-invested. Thanks to indicators like this movie, South Korea has become a hotbed of film talent in recent years. The City of Violence is a great example of what Korean filmmakers have to offer, and we definitely recommend it.

There are plenty of memorable moments, but from an action standpoint, the scene in the shopping district with its references to The Warriors (1979), as well as the Shaw Brothers-inspired climax, will more than satisfy action cravings. The scenes set in the 80's also stand out, with expertly-done hair and clothes, as well as music - note the song by Namee, "Eternal Friendship". Could there be some irony there? Whoever did the wardrobe for the movie should also be very proud, as characters wear very interesting clothing, which definitely matches the movie's overall colorful nature. Top the movie off with some nice humorous bits, and you have a winner.

Definitely try to get a hold of the Dragon Dynasty 2-DVD set of this movie. They always do good work and they've chosen another gem for their roster of releases. We think it's definitely worth adding to your collection.

Passable, but nothing special...

[JoeytheBrit · 6/10 · 10 December 2007]

This is an entertaining enough modern-day martial arts action thriller which is, it has to be said, entirely unoriginal in almost every respect. The plot concerns a city cop returning to his hometown for the funeral of a childhood friend, victim of a back-alley knifing while chasing thugs from his bar. Together with a second childhood friend, our hero suspects something amiss and begins his own investigation into the murder. This decision is the cue for a succession of unlikely encounters and a particularly bloody and fatal encounter with yet another childhood friend.

There are some people whose personalities are so under-developed that they have a tendency to adopt the characteristics of those they are close to (accent, mannerisms, etc), and this film reminded me a lot of people like that. Watching it, I got the impression that the writer/director was mimicking every film he wished he'd made. There are a number of obvious 'homages', and a flashback to a juvenile fight that is as (hopefully deliberately) cheesy as any 70s chop-socky sequence. One of the 'homages' is to Quentin Tarantino's (himself the king of the 'homage') over-rated Kill Bill so if, like me, you were bored by Tarantino's self-indulgence, you might consider thinking twice about watching a film whose writer obviously thinks so highly of it. Having said that, there is something ironic about an Asian film so clearly referencing a film which blatantly ripped off so many of the staple devices of its national genre.

The action is as frenetic and professional as you'd expect, and the storyline is reasonably engaging but, when all is said and done, this is really nothing more than a decent time-filler.

An enjoyable, but unexceptional Korean revenge/action flick.

[BA_Harrison · 7/10 · 9 August 2010]

Policeman Tae-su (Doo-hong Jung) returns to his hometown for the funeral of murdered childhood friend Wang-jae, where he is reunited with old pals Pil-ho (Beom-su Lee), Dong-hwan (Seok-yong Jeong) and Seok-hwan (Seung-wan Ryoo). Upon investigating Wang-jae's murder, Tae-su discovers that it was one of his own circle of friends who committed the crime.

The Koreans have given us some damn fine cinema in recent years, and having heard good things about The City of Violence, my expectations were running extremely high.

Which is probably where I went wrong.

Rather than being absolutely blown away by all aspects of the film, as I had hoped, I was merely entertained on a superficial level: the chaotic fight scenes are fun but uninspired (a few original, well choreographed 'killer moves' would have seriously improved matters); the drama is OK, but kinda clichéd, with the 'inseparable childhood friends divided as adults' theme having been done many times before; and the stylish visual touches employed by the director, whilst admittedly cool, do little to help one follow the plot and are used a tad too liberally for my liking.

The film also has a tendency to flip rather uncomfortably between comic book action and more realistic violence, with the film's heroes emerging relatively unscathed from a battle against 'Warriors'-style gangs of teenagers one minute, but taking on knife wielding gangsters with suitably bloody results the next.

I rate The City of Violence a reasonable 6.5 out of 10, generously rounded up to 7 for its particularly loathsome bad-guy, who finally gets his comeuppance after a prolonged battle inside a restaurant.

Mediocre film that piggybacks on the great success of another film

[SLUGFly · 6/10 · 6 January 2007]

The film was decent I guess. The action sequences were okay but at times it felt like I was watching a bunch of guys who had been trained to be ninjas from early infancy. The film has almost the same set-up, roles, themes and outcome as one of Korea's great hits "Friend" (2001). The movie Friend had serious undertones and was filled with nostalgia and great action. The movie City of Violence seemed to just take the coloring and ideas of Friend and then fill in the voids with over the top action.

A few minor good points: (spoilers following)

The boss (I think he was a boss, the guy with the dyed gray hair) who had travelled to Osung from Seoul was a very competent actor but he was seriously underplayed with little screen time. Also, one of the key characters from the Korean film Oldboy (another great) played as one of the friends. He didn't particularly shine, but he wasn't bad. And lastly, cinematography gets an A for effort.

A smart and stylish crime thriller that is also self-aware of its genre. Adds a gratifying spin on the typical revenge tale.

[tntokmenko · 8/10 · 21 March 2013]

One element to City of Violence in which I'm not hearing many other reviewers talk about is the self-aware sense of humor the movie has towards the typical Asian crime and revenge flicks. There is a comedic undertone present in which both pays tribute and pokes fun at these two staple genres in Asian action cinema. This tongue-in-cheek attitude is expressed appropriately and is shown exclusively in action sequences. If such scenes of comic relief were not shown during the action sequences than the stunts would come across as just being ridiculous. Thankfully the subtle comedy allows the viewer to play along with the two male leads who are highly charismatic and easily capture interest. The other portions of the movie outside the action are taken very seriously and the drama is used well to both set the tone and advance the plot. My point is I believe many viewers are missing the dynamic of the comedy working alongside the drama here, as it is balanced to create the unique style of the film.

The plot is solid as well. Many questions arise within the first act which all resolve by the conclusion. The story is simple but there further elements to be discovered along the plot. Best friends, broken bonds, betrayal, and all the usual elements of an Asian revenge movie however the cinematography and direction by Seung-wan Ryoo gives everything it's own special flavor. I find City of Violence massively entertaining and am satisfied by it's strong martial arts presentation and interesting dynamic of the story-line. Definitely give it a watch. -8/10

A City Worth Visiting Only Once

[eidolonse · 6/10 · 9 March 2008]

Although the title suggests an epic action film, the story is more or less about corrupt internal politics of local thugs – which is not necessarily a bad thing because of the interesting story, good soundtrack, and visual appearance of the movie.

From start to finish, the cinematography projects a very classy appearance backed by the equally suitable music score; with both elements channeling retro aesthetics without appearing outdated. The film is also visually and auditory reminiscent to classics like Kill Bill and Lupin, while a nostalgic arch in the story makes you think about Stand By Me.

The story, as often is the case, focuses on an explosive derelict in search of his friend's killer, which somewhat sluggishly develops into a more complicated story about gang politics. Fortunately, the film benefits from a malevolent napoleon-complex driven villain who you truly love to hate because of his fear tactics and interrogation techniques.

There are times where the film tries to be comedic, but because of poor execution, it doesn't work very well. The action scenes were also pretty sparse and usually revolved around one or two guys managing to fend off a gang of 100 while over-using flying kicks the way you never see them used in real-life fights. The worst aspect of the battles was not their scarcity but their lack of distinct breath-taking choreography – no remarkable fights or memorable strikes. Although the fight scenes were non-intuitive, the visuals remained top notch through the whole film. The disappointing knife scene, which resembled interpretive dancing drivel with lots of flying kicks and people taking an unbelievable amount of punishment, none the less, still looked visually appealing.

The strong points: good music, great visuals/cinematography, well developed characters and a decent story. The weak points: somewhat sluggish plot development and forgettable fight scenes.

5 or 6/10

The City of Violence Review: Stunning action overshadows an underdeveloped story.

[Achyut_Prashast_Singh · 8/10 · 10 November 2017]

Movie: The City of Violence (A)

Rating: 4/5

This is a film action buffs (like me) should definitely watch, because it offers a lot of well choreographed and excellently shot action sequences. The last action block is extremely mind-blowing and the moves are classic & epic in themselves. There's hardly an action scene that fails to leave an impact. Indeed, every action scene had me dropping my jaw. If I see this film again, the action would be a reason enough.

But that's where it all stops.

THE CITY OF VIOLENCE or JJAKPAE does have stylish and mesmerizing action scenes to leave enough of an impression on the viewer. But it suffers in the writing department. The film has some really uninteresting moments, which made me difficult to finish the film in once. But when I recalled the excellent action clip I had seen from the film on YouTube, I decided to give it a full watch today finally. And I did enjoy it, though not totally.

The last 30 minutes, however save the film as in this runtime itself the film ends up entertaining to the core.

Another thing that's praiseworthy is that Ryoo Seung-wan, who also stars in the lead role along with veteran action director Jung Doo- hong, has avoided unnecessary violence. Whatever we see is just integral to the story and not a single violent shot seems pointless. But both the actors are just fine when it comes to their performances; The latter excels in the fights and the energy of the duo is enough to make you enjoy this badly written action entertainer. Rest of the cast is just average in performances.

The cinematography styles in certain portions are quite innovative and have a classic feel.

This film could disappoint you if you like story-driven stuff.

But if you're an action lover and can ignore the uneven writing and some unimpressive performances, this film is made for you. THE CITY OF VIOLENCE is not the best action film, but it does have some of the best action scenes ever.

City of Violence

[Scarecrow-88 · 7/10 · 3 January 2010]

A Seoul detective returns to his hometown to attend his childhood friend's funeral ceremony, remaining to seek out the one responsible for his death. The "City of Violence" is Onsung where Taewoo(Doo-hong Jung)returns to discover that childhood pal Pil-ho(Beom-su Lee), operating as President after taking over the reigns from slain Wang-jae(Kil-Kang Ahn) who allowed him to become the powerful leader due to his desire to get out of a life of crime, has become positively maniacal due to his position. Pil-ho was the kid of their gang often looked down on(..or so this is how he saw it as a child)by the rest and so being in charge has gone to his head. In fact, Pil-ho is borderline insane, and so drunk with his power that he has commissioned gangs throughout Onsung to do his bidding, and that includes giving Taewoo a hard time. Taewoo joins forces with fellow childhood chum, Sukhwon(Seung-wan Ryoo)to get revenge for their fallen comrade, watching as those that threaten Pil-ho's goals of securing a land contract for "Casinoland", a desired tourist attraction promising big monetary possibilities, die at his fanatical command. Taewoo and Sukhwon will go the extra mile, no matter the amount of men they'll have to obliterate, to get their hands on Pil-ho.

Director Seung-wan Ryoo's City of Violence offers plenty of style and action choreography, with flashy camera work and bloody violence. Two phenomenal action set-pieces include Taesoo defending himself against four street gangs coming from all angles and the grand finale where Taesoo and Sukhwon must work their way through armies of thugs(..most equipped with machetes or ginsu knives)in order to achieve the ultimate goal of getting a hold of Pin-ho. I felt the film is about the deterioration of a group of friends thanks to jealousy and greed. Pin-ho's obsession of attaining the top of the hierarchy no matter the cost fuels the erupting graphic violence ending in tragedy. The filmmakers pull out all the stops and we see how our heroes tire of the endless stream of enemies they must dispose of in order to finish their quest of vengeance for the friend they lost by nefarious means. We see the depths of cruelty Pin-ho is willing to go in order to become a success. While straining credibility, the climax as the two skilled fighters engage their adversaries is exhilarating.

Entertaining but somewhat unrefined

[mister_bateman · 6/10 · 5 July 2020]

Korean movies have made a huge step forward in terms of quality after about 2010 or so. Not to say all movies before that are bad, but there are a lot of more unrefined works such as this one. It fluctuates between almost comically over the top fight scenes and trying to tell a serious story. This is where it falls apart a little bit. No matter how weighty the dialogues are and how grim the story is, you just can't take the characters seriously anymore. The action scenes feature a lot of stupid martial arts kicks and have a clear Chinese/Hong Kong influence (the places where the worst movies on earth come from).

But having said all of that, it's entertaining and it's fun so for a popcorn evening you could do worse.

You'll like this, if you like this sort of thing.

[MBunge · 6/10 · 14 March 2011]

Perhaps more than any other genre in cinema, Asian martial arts movies are an acquired taste. It's not just that they have so many conventions and tropes you have to accept. It's that the better they are, the more their stories reflect the unique social and cultural aspects of their countries of origin, the less appealing they are to someone who just wants to watch people getting karate chopped. The City of Violence is a pretty good Asian martial arts movie. Whether you enjoy it depends on how much of a taste you've acquired for that sort of thing.

Set in Korea, Taetsoo (Doo-hong Jung) is a police officer in Seoul who gets word that one of his boyhood friends is dead and returns to his hometown to look into it. Wangjae (Kil-Kang Ahn) was the toughest and boldest of the boys and grew into a leader of the gangs that have always run Taetsoo's hometown. Then he left the gang life behind when he married and settled down as a private citizen. He turned the control of his gangs over to another of the childhood chums, Pilho (Beom-su Lee), who's used his illicit power to bring a casino development to town. After Wangjae ends up dead in an alley, Taetsoo and another old friend, the hot-headed Seokhwan (Seung-wan Ryoo), investigate what happened. T he true story leads to Seokhwan's worthless brother Donghwan (Seokt-yong Jeong) and two of those martial arts fight scenes where two guys have to battle dozens of enemies at the same time.

The fight scenes are always the most important element of this type of film and The City of Violence delivers. There's very little one-on-one action where it looks more like ballet than combat and there's none of that wire-fu stuff with superhuman leaps and feats of strength, but there's plenty of rough and bloody battle. It's very much in the style of Jackie Chan where there's lot of running and spinning and using whatever's handy for defense and attack. The guys playing Taetsoo and Seokhwan help the puncture the melodrama and keep things from getting too overwrought. As the challenges before them grow, they both evince a "you've got to be kidding me" weariness that gives some emotional realism to the physically fantastic action going on. The fight scenes also look really good, unlike many American action flicks where you literally can't tell what the heck is going on.

The story of 4 old friends brought together by death and vengeance is fairly compelling and the acting seems good, though it's always hard to tell. Asian performances can have such different emotional pacing and inflection that it can be a little hard to follow. Beom-su Lee as Pilho, however, pulls off a seamless mixture of weakness and strength as a street kid grown up and out of his depth.

Like most Asian martial arts films, there are plenty of things you have to go along with in The City of Violence…such as the kid gangs all having costume themes like something from the old Batman TV show and that this story apparently occurs in a reality where guns where never invented. But if you can accept all that, and you're not just looking for mindless violence, I think you'll like this movie.

Nothing, but kicks.....Spectacular

[Angelus2 · 9/10 · 15 February 2011]

A cop returns to his old town after the death of a friend and decides to investigate. He realises that this is not the town he left behind, new gangs have arrived and old friends have changed.

The storyline is old, about justice and revenge intertwined. However, this movie does promise one thing, a spectacular fight scenes. Doo Hung Jung is someone to watch out for.

The film is long and the end is quite predictable, but the fight scenes keep the movie going. Especially when Doo Hung Jung runs across town as gangs chase him. But it is the end fight scene that is the viewers greatest reward, we witness two friends with nothing to lose go to battle with swords as they make their way to the boss by going through his army of thugs. Simply fantastic.

Style, style, style

[YohjiArmstrong · 10 September 2011]

Plot: After a man is killed his four friends seek to find the perpetrators and punish them in their small town but find themselves dragged into a dodgy property deal run by out of town criminals that implicate one of their own.

Expecting plot or dialogue from a martial arts film is usually a losing game. There is a plot here and it's easy enough to follow provided you are good at telling Korean faces apart but it's nothing you haven't seen done before. What you're here for is the fights and City of Violence provides them. Yes it is completely unrealistic. Yes the fights are nothing special in themselves. But they are well edited, feature enough visual flourishes to win you over and are laid to a decent score. The result is a picture that never quite grabs your heartstrings like it should but is a lot of fun anyway. If you've ever wanted to watch a goon and a cop fight break dancing martial artists whilst the town lights explode above them or to see a fight set to cheesy 1980s K-Pop then this is your film.