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Attack The Gas Station 2 (2010) Review

The film centers on a group of ethical thugs who are hired by a Gas Station owner to protect his store from a gang of bikers who have made a habit out of ransacking the place. The tables turn on the jerkish owner, when the people he hired to protect his store decide to rob the place themselves after they are denied the money that they worked to earn. Upon realizing that there is not much money in the store, the hired guns turned robbers decide to sell gas at half-price and keep the money. Things are complicated further when a group of escaped convicts, a gang of pimps, and a motorcycle gang get involved.

trades in the subtle sociopolitical commentary, the campy yet charming humor, and the low budget charm of its predecessor for bigger action sequences, a more overt sociopolitical message , and over-the-top humor.  Whether or not this is a good thing or a bad thing is something that needs to be further explored.

Director does not stray far from the formula of the first film.  In fact this movie could almost pass as a remake of Attack the Gas Station as opposed to a sequel.

[clickToTweet tweet=”This movie could almost pass as a remake of Attack the Gas Station as opposed to a sequel. ” quote=”In fact this movie could almost pass as a remake of Attack the Gas Station as opposed to a sequel. “]

The film centers on a group of ethical thugs who are hired by a Gas Station owner to protect his store from a gang of bikers who have made a habit out of ransacking the place.  The tables turn on the jerkish owner, when the people he hired to protect his store decide to rob the place themselves after they are denied the money that they worked to earn.

Upon realizing that there is not much money in the store, the hired guns turned robbers decide to sell gas at half-price and keep the money.  Things are complicated further when a group of escaped convicts, a gang of pimps, and a motorcycle gang get involved.

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I  definitely did not invest as much in these new characters as compared to the characters from the first movie in this series.  Screenwriter attempted to give each main character character a compelling backstory like in the first movie, but this time around the characters just lack the depth that their predecessors had.  The acting is also over-the-top but this has become director Kim-sang Jin's trademark and is intentional as it properly compliments the offbeat and over-the-top  humor.

 

Kim-sang Jin is a phenomenal director and this movie has a nice flow and all the action scenes are very clean and crisp.  I do have to question Kim-sang Jin's choice to go with a more stylized style of directing for this sequel which caused this film to lose the charming tone that its predecessor possessed.  Along with the stylized action, my other main gripe with this movie is how much it lifts from the original film without ever really doing anything original.

[clickToTweet tweet=” Attack the Gas Station 2 just seems to revisit scenes from Attack the Gas Station ” quote=” Attack the Gas Station 2 just seems to revisit scenes from Attack the Gas Station and twist them slightly “]

Attack the Gas Station 2 just seems to revisit scenes from Attack the Gas Station and twist them slightly so they do not get accused of making the same movie.

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Those who may have disliked the first film in this series due to its lack of action will not be disappointed this time around though.  There is plenty of kung-fu and motorcycle-fu in this sequel to keep those with ADD entertained. but as I previously stated I believe that the stylized action actually drag this film down.  Do not get me wrong, the action and fight scenes in this movie are great but it just seems out of place in a sequel to Attack the Gas Station.

This movie also tends to beat you over the head with its sociopolitical message.

While social commentary was present in the first film it was very subtle, this movie pulls no punches with the social/political message it is trying to convey.  With the rebelling workers demanding payment even if it means breaking the law and the escaped cons constantly talking about how they are going to save the economy, I can see how the sociopolitical message of this movie may get overbearing to some viewers.

 

It is important to note that this is not a bad movie.

Kim-sang Jin is one of the most promising Korean filmmakers and this movie is a well directed and entertaining piece of cinema.  Sadly, it falls way short of it predecessor and just does not feel like a proper sequel to Attack The Gas Station.  I would recommend this movie if you are one of the many cult followers of the original and you are really bored with nothing else to watch, otherwise you can probably skip this average film.

 

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