Some people are born to be detectives; others are pushed into it. Han Jung Hoon is in the latter category. Upon entering his classroom to find classmate Kim Tae Gyu brutally murdered, Jung Hoon realizes he is the prime suspect. Another fellow classmate, Lee Da Jung, is convinced Jung Hoon did not kill Tae Gyu, but she knows others will not so easily believe their story. To prove Jung Hoon's innocence and preserve the school's image, the pair must solve the murder and catch the culprit before fourth period ends - a mere forty minutes from when they discovered the body. The clock is ticking on Jung Hoon's freedom, his reputation, and his life.
Let me just begin this review by saying this is one awesome movie. I can't even describe it beyond that. You'll understand more as I get further into it, but first things first: the cast.
- Yoo Seung Ho as Han Jung Hoon
- Kang So Ra as Lee Da Jung
- Kim Dong Bum as Do Il
- Jeon Jun Hong as MBC
- Park Chul Min as Michinge (Crazy/Mad Dog)
Next is a character I can really relate to, surprisingly. Lee Da Jung, played by Kang So Ra, is a mystery buff who is a social outcast because of her "creepiness". She is known in the movie as "curtain girl" because of the way she wears her hair (it's like a curtain that covers up her face). I say I can relate to her more because I was not the most popular person in high school - though it wasn't because I was "creepy" - and I love a good mystery (though I can't go so far as to say I would want to actually solve a real murder in my school - that's just taking it a few steps too far). As for the acting, Kang So Ra is a pretty good actress. There were times when her acting felt a little underdone in my opinion, but for the most part, she didn't feel overly simplified or stereotypical, as would be the temptation with a character like this. Overall, good performance.
Even with these great actors on screen, however, a story like this would not work very well without some sort of comic relief (to break the tension - I think it's more so that no one in the audience has a heart attack during the movie from build up of suspense...and adrenaline). This next character brings just that to the table. Do Il, played by Kim Dong Bum, is our comic relief. He does play a part in the conflict resolution, eventually, but he's mostly there just for kicks and giggles. That being said, however, Kim Dong Bum does a pretty decent job. He's goofy, but he reacts appropriately to the...erhm...circumstances...and he never backs out on his friends. All in all, a pretty decent performance for a pretty decent character.
Okay, now to go toward the antagonists of the film (of which there are several). The first of these I will discuss is a teacher with the nickname MBC (no, he doesn't actually have a name in the movie - he just goes by that nickname; it stands for "margarine, butter, cheese" by the way - he's supposed to be a slimy character, and therefore "greasy"). This wonderful role is filled by Jeon Jun Hong and he is excellent. This teacher is the first character in the movie that the audience is led to assume is a bad guy, and boy does he act the part. I can't say much because [spoilers], but just know that this guy is a picture of a nervous wreck. Jeon Jun Hong gave a really good performance on that front.
And now for the other antagonist I will be discussing, another teacher who goes by the nickname "Michinge" (which means "crazy" or "mad dog" - I like the second one better), and he is portrayed by Park Chul Min. This guy freaks me out. This is one teacher I would be legitimately terrified of if he were to come teach at my school. All the students in the movie are scared of him too, obviously (come on, he goes by "mad dog" - I think the kids are truly scared of him). As far as the actual acting from this guy goes, I'd say there were a couple of parts that were just a bit too over the top, as in he started to feel like a character you'd only see in the movies, but there were some parts where he was really scary and quite real. So basically, it's a mixed bag for him.
Now, on to the writing. I have a few comments to make on that front, both good and bad. Let's start with the good. It's always better that way.
First off, we've got the pacing. This movie has a ton of background to lay down before you can actually get to the murder (the kid doesn't actually die until about thirty-five minutes in), but the upside is none of it feels wasted or unnecessary. All of it was important information that just added to the atmosphere once the murder did actually occur. One of the major problems I usually have with murder-mystery movies that aren't building on a franchise is that they never have enough time or good enough planning to get the audience used to the characters. This movie totally did away with that problem.
My other comment regarding what's right with this movie is the atmosphere. Oh, boy, the atmosphere. I was on the edge of my seat for most of this movie. There was so much tension and so much suspense, I got completely caught up in what was going on, regardless of anything else that I may comment on in a minute. One of the things that I think added a lot to this movie's atmosphere as well was how it incorporated the passage of time. If you recall in the synopsis, Jung Hoon and Da Jung only have forty minutes to solve the murder. This means that the passage of time (both how quickly it passes and how much of it has passed at any given time) is a very important part of the plot. But instead of just doing a countdown or just showing a clock ticking, the movie goes all crazy with it and goes inside the clock, zooming all around it, and when the clock ticks it echoes and reverberates - it's awesome.
Okay, sadly now we must transition to the negative side of my comments on this movie, the first and biggest of which is this: the "science". I mean, I can suspend my disbelief as much as the next person, but there are just some things you shouldn't do in a movie like this. Without going into spoilers, let me give you an example: there's a scene wherein Da Jung and Jung Hoon have to break into a locked room. To do that, Da Jung takes off her necklace, runs the chain inside the door above the lock, grabs it on the other side of the lock, and pulls. It has the same effect that a credit card would have on a lock of that type (a standard knob lock). After I saw that, I literally had to pause the movie and think for a minute, and you know what? I'm sorry, but in my mind that would not work, or at least not as easily as it did for her. The chain would be too thick, it wouldn't slide through well (or at all), etc, etc.
Also along those lines, but not really to do with science, is the fact that a lot of the circumstances in this movie feel REALLY convenient (I wouldn't go so far as to say they feel contrived, because I don't think that's the right word for it - there are a fair amount of "coincidences" in this movie though). I can't really go deeper into that because [spoilers], but just trust me, if you watch the movie you'll see what I mean.
Now we come to a problem I have that I think could be solved by watching the movie again (several times, but still, that might fix the problem): the ending. Don't worry, I won't say anything too spoilerific, but I have to address this. This ending...oh, boy. Basically suffice it to say that when you come to the beginning of the ending (that's how it must be addressed...odd, I know) the movie kinda says, "Oh, this guy did it! Oh, no, wait, THIS guy did it! Oh, no, wait, THIS guy really did it!" There are no less than three (count 'em, three!) red herrings for who the culprit is and at the end of the day, it was all I could do to keep up with who hated whom and who wanted revenge for what... It's rather strenuous to watch this ending.
Now, I won't say the ending is terrible - it's not. It's interesting, wraps things up well (if rather confusingly), and does its part to make sure you're satisfied with what happens. So although it's not a great ending, it is definitely not a bad one. All in all, it works decently well for what it's worth.
My final comment is more of an observation than a real negative component to this movie. This movie, if you haven't noticed by now (really? read the synopsis), takes place in high school. Now, I've never been to an actual Asian high school, nor have I ever even seen an actual Asian high school, but I still think this comment has value. The high school in this movie is rather odd - it manages to be believable and totally unbelievable at the same time. Let me explain. It is believable in that the kids do act like teenagers and the setting is very realistic. I like that. But it is also totally unbelievable. An example: the kids don't even try to hide their cell phones most of the time when they are texting during class. I don't know about you, but my teachers had cell phone radar. They could tell when somebody was texting even if the kid wasn't even looking at the phone. Another example: the teachers totally don't notice when kids very obviously fall asleep in class. Here I'm not talking about you fall asleep with your head on your desk and it looks like you're just waiting for something or listening. I'm talking about kids being sprawled out at the desk very obviously sound asleep and the teachers DON'T NOTICE. Really?
But enough of my griping. As for a warning section, here I do have a legitimate warning: this movie does contain some rather graphic violence (it's a murder mystery - what are you gonna do?). If you don't like the sight of blood splattering all over everywhere and watching a kid get killed in cold blood, don't watch this movie (or if you do watch it, just cover your eyes - that always works for me). Aside from that, not really anything else of note.
As far as a message goes, I don't know that there really is a message to be had in this movie. It really focuses on the action and solving the mystery of who killed Tae Gyu. I mean, I suppose there's a little bit about friendship in there somewhere, but that's more of a component of telling the story than an actual message to be gained from watching.
So, all in all, I really liked this movie. It's got a lot of good suspense and heart-pumping action in it, as well as a lot of tension, which for a movie like this is a requirement. I'd recommend this to just about anybody that likes murder mysteries and maybe some people who like stories set in a school setting, because there is a romantic subplot in this movie (it's rather well done too). The confusing ending can tend to dampen the excitement of watching this movie and make it a little less enjoyable than it would've been, but the story leading up to the ending is one heck of a wild ride. If you really do have problems understanding the ending (welcome to the club) I'd really recommend that you watch the movie again, as this can help with seeing where the different plot threads come together and all that. Overall, this is a good movie and well worth a watch. But don't take my word for it. Find out for yourself.
