After the true masterpiece that was “The Chaser“, the sole question regarding Na Hong-jin was if he could continue as well with his next film. “The Yellow Sea” provided an answer.
Gu-nam is a truly weather-beaten ethnic Korean who lives in China and works as a taxi driver. His obsession with gambling has led him to owe a large sum to the local mafia, who takes a big proportion of his already mediocre income. His wife, who has gone to work in South Korea with the ulterior motive of sending him money, has not contacted him in a long time and he thinks she has abandoned him. Not being able to provide for their daughter, he has left her with his mother, a foul-mouthed woman who constantly curses at him. Eventually, he is fired and the mafia takes the largest part of his compensation. Being utterly desperate, he agrees to the proposal of local mob leader, Myung-Ga, to kill a man in South Korea, in order to erase his debt. However, the case becomes complicated when a South Korean gang headed by Tae-won gets involved with his mission, while Gu-nam is also set on finding his disappeared wife.
Na Hong-jin maintained most of the elements that made an impression in his debut, by incorporating great characters, desperation and agony, and impressive fighting scenes. The latter benefit the most from the impressive cinematography of Lee Sung-je, which also presents artfully the surroundings in both China and Korea, and the fast editing by Kim Sun-min, which allows the film the retain a very fitting pace, that slows down or speeds up according to the lack or presence of action sequences.
Gu-nam’s transformation from a fate-beaten, poor individual to a bloodthirsty murderer is the most impressive element of the film, an accomplishment that benefits the most from Ha Jung-woo‘s performance. Ha Jung-woo, who also starred in “The Chaser” gives another great performance, both as the poor guy and as the bloodthirsty vigilante. Kim Yoon-seok proves once more that he is one of the best Korean actors for portraying evil characters, giving another impressive performance. Regarding the characters, the sole flaw lies with Tae-won, who must be the most scared crime boss ever to appear on screen, thus resulting in a highly unauthentic persona, although Jo Sung-ha makes the most of his role.
Apart from this minor objection, the other “flaw” here is that it was very difficult for Na Hong-jin to reach the standards of “The Chaser,” and despite shooting a very good film, he inevitably failed. However, “The Yellow Sea” is a very entertaining movie, whose 157 minutes provide a rather intriguing spectacle.
