The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil review by Bobby Blakey
While Well Go USA is known for bringing the best in martial arts Asian cinema to the masses, they have also brought a ton of other genres as well including horror and drama. The latest crime thriller, The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil stars Don Lee, Kim Moo Yul and Sung-kyu Kim, but does it offer up something worthy of the title or will it be a killer not worth tracking down?
The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil follows fierce gang boss Jang Dong-su who is violently attacked after a fender bender on a rainy night. After fighting back, he barely escapes, however his reputation as a feared leader is damaged beyond repair. The only way to restore his image is to find his attacker and exact revenge. Jang teams up with Detective Jung Tae-seok to find the assailant, but soon discovers the attacker is actually a serial killer. With no support from the police department, Detective Jung is forced to use gang boss Jang’s resources in order to track down the killer. The two men must work together to find a man simply known as “K”.
The idea here is cool and I hoped it would deliver and it did so in spades. The story isn’t overly complicated, but the way it is laid out, bouncing between multiple worlds of crime and murder. As good as everyone is here its Don Lee who steals the show. His brutish crime boss is great to watch in every manner from simple conversations to him laying down a brutal beating on someone. The unlikely partnership between him and Yul to catch the elusive killer makes for numerous great scenes. Kim doesn’t get much dialogue, but it isn’t necessary as he does all his talking with a blade for the most part and it worls great.
I wasn’t sure what to expect here, but was unexpectedly surprised by how good it was. Filled with great suspense, action, and tension this is one of the better crime thrillers I have seen in some time. The ending to the film offers up a twist that isn’t overly surprising but works great nonetheless. I loved this movie and think it’s one that everyone that loves this genre need to check out.