Bereullin

After an arms smuggling deal goes bad, North Korean agent Pyo Jong Sung finds himself and his wife, translator Ryeon Jung-hee under a cloud of suspicion and tries to uncover the real culprit. North and South Korean, Russian, U.S., Israeli, and Arab agents are everywhere, to the point where it seems it's only slightly more likely to see a German citizen on the streets of Berlin than if the action took place in Seoul.

Once all of these players are introduced, the movie does a good job of sorting them all out, as Jong Sung investigates who is responsible. There are a number of very effective action sequences throughout the film to keep things moving.

The relationship between Jong Sung and Jung-hee is central to to plot. For an action movie, the characters are very well presented. But fans expecting a repeat of Jun Ji Hyun's delightfully over-the-top performance in The Thieves will be disappointed. Her role as Jung- hee in The Berlin File rarely goes beyond that of a typical damsel in distress.

The movie is exceptionally well filmed to reflect a tense, somber mood. There were some shots that looked almost as if they were filmed in black and white to harmonize with the prevailing tone.

The end of the movie strongly foreshadows that a sequel is in the works. Of course that typically depends on how well the movie performs at the box office. By all reports The Berlin File easily did well enough to justify a sequel. I'll be looking forward it.