What is the difference between an actor and a gangster? Both are sorts of liars, playing parts in order to satisfy expectations. Hangers-on, who both work for them and worship them, surround them. They must hide their true selves, if they are even aware of their true selves after years of pretending. But what happens when the violence gets real? Such is the premise of the South Korean action film Rough Cut.
Soo-ta, a popular action film actor, has a reputation as a bad-boy both on and off screen. A chance encounter with Kang-pae, a local gangster, leads the actor to offer a role to the gangster in his new film, after all other actors refuse to work with him. Kang-pae agrees on one condition: that the violence not be staged. Disguised as a classic gangster film, Rough Cut examines the cutthroat world of the South Korean film industry, which can be just as corrupt and binding as the criminal world. Actors Kang Ji-hwan and So Ji-sub, as Soo-ta and Kang-pae respectively, play off each other brilliantly as Soo-ta learns the true price of violence and Kang-pae reclaims his honour. Sure to be a classic of the Korean action canon.
I’ll admit it: I’ve had a huge crush on Takeshi Kaneshiro since I first saw him in Chungking Express. And the crush has only increased since watching K-20: Legend of the Mask. Part Zorro, part V for Vendetta, and part Batman, director Shimako Sato creates a world where World War II never occurred. There is a great divide between the upper and lower classes, and a masked marauder is flying about stealing from the rich (but not giving to the poor).
Kaneshiro plays Heikichi, a circus performer wrongly jailed for marauder K-20’s crimes. He escapes and begins his own crusade to find K-20 and help the poor who have been deserted by society. This is a classic hero film, with a great plot, fantastic action and gorgeous set design. It’s no surprise that this is based on a manga. Its fantastical combination of noir, science-fiction and superhero genres sweeps across the screen as Heikichi learns to fly over walls in his crusade for justice. The revisionist history gives license for great characters, such as a gang of honourable thieves and a Duchess with a penchant for flying. This film rivals any blockbuster film coming out of Hollywood today.
