Jopok Week: 90's Korean Gangster Flicks

This entry was originally posted over at Modern Korean Cinema as part of the 2011 JOPOK blogathon week. I've replicated it here in case you missed it. Thanks again to Pierce Conran.

See other Jopok week reviews from various contributors:
Beat (1997)
The General's Son (1990)
The General's Son 2 (1991)
The General's Son 3 (1992)
No. 3 (1997)

Jopok Week: Born to Kill (1996)

I must admit, I probably approached Born to Kill (1996) in the wrong manner, one in which I thought it would be a good companion piece to Beat (1997) given their similarities.  After all, both films star Jung Woo-sung as an unstoppable fighting machine; are about gangsters; feature a leading love interest; are from the late 80’s and possess the style, music, and colour associated with the 80’s; and have titles beginning with the letter B.  At the end of the day, that is all they share in common.  Maybe it wasn’t fair to come in expecting something similar in quality to Beat.  Ultimately, Born to Kill is not as good a film and on a week celebrating Jopok, I recommend you stick to something else.

2010 Year in Review: At the Cinema

While it may just look like numbers, for a Mathematician such as myself, it means so much more than just figures. All of the references to 'films watched' below refer to 'films watched in the theatre only'. Nothing I saw on DVD, TV, Pay per view, Online etc were included. While anything seen in the theatre, outdoor cinema, at a film festival or special screening are included. 

I hope you find it interesting. 2010 was a crazily busy year for me so I only managed to see half as many films as I did in 2009, but probably saw many more outside of the theatre that are too numerous to even count!

My 2010 Cinema Going Analysis

"Fantastic Mr. Fox", the 1st film I saw in 2010