Smugglers

This movie was terrible and i absolutely love Korean movies. This just had no substance or real plot to it. It was supposed to be a crime action gangster movie but it was so slow from the off and very little of any of the three genres, though i felt like laughing and wondered if it should have added comedy to that list because it was that poorly made. I felt like a five year old had directed and produced this movie but that would be a total insult to a minor. Some people will enjoy it but i would put them of simple mind and easily pleased if they did actually enjoy it whe they watched it. Give it a miss, don't waste your time.

This right here is what you call a perfect script. WOW! These Koreans have some reaaaally dope stories to tell. Am not a comedy person, so when this started it had that comedy vibe and I almost trashed it but I thought too myself, give it 15 min, see how it turns out and boy was I glad I did. It quickly went from comedy to serious stuff. When I say Action Comedy, this right here is exactly that. The comedy was well placed, but when it was time for serious business, they didn't play. Kinda reminded me of the very successful Korean movie, Parasite.

I can't think of what I didn't like about this movie, for real. The acting was great from all of the cast, even the extras. The cinematography was beautiful. And the story was perfect, I couldn't see any flaws anywhere. Maybe am just a sucker for women empowerment, who cares. There's just something cool about women outsmarting corrupt men. 😊😊

It's quite a decent film. I had a lot of reservations, not being interested in asian cinema, but the film was captivationg and well-made. The picture is very nice, great camera work, locations, the story in dynamic and interesting, the actors play well. I'd say the only negative element of it is their voices/intonations, I guess it is a part of the language, but oh my dog please stop whining... 2 hours is a good length, not too long, but the story had the chance to develop. It is quite complex as well, it doesn't drag on one spot. People in the cinema were laughing and gasping a few times, so the drama and depiction of the realities of life is there.

I have really liked Korean cinema has been quite interesting within the past years with some great flicks like "Train to Busan, Parasite, Burning, Oldboy, and many other great Korean movies. Unfortunately, despite good performances and a good concept, "Smugglers" just wasn't for me.

Director Ryoo Seung-wan has made movies in the past like "Veteran, The Crying Fist, and Escape from Mogadishu" which I haven't really liked and here, his direction feels all over the place with themes and structure going all over the place. The narrative about 6 women becoming badasses and being smugglers is quite an interesting concept but unfortunately, the narrative is really basic and predictable that makes things uninteresting and lacking. The action had some moments that were pretty good but there were also some really bad action and editing moments. Including some poor uses of green screen during some underwater moments and special effects.

The performances from the cast members were pretty good especially Kim Hye-Soo and Yum Jung-ah as they brought the best energy with their roles. Even good performances, they aren't able to save the movie due to the characters not really being interesting and most of the time, pretty annoying. The dialogue from the characters are pretty bad, the soundtrack is annoying, and with the movie taking place in the 70s, the movie didn't really do a good job capturing the retro feel and there were moments I had completely forgotten that the movie took place in the 70s.

This movie feels like it's trying to be Hollywood but in the worse way. Overall, this one isn't for me.

This film isn't really about how smuggling worked in the past in South Korea, but rather how ordinary people found ways to share the profits. In this process, there were lives lost due to the risks stemming from legal sanctions, prison sentences, and power struggles among different factions. Essentially, it's about changing the routes. When direct imports became illegal, similar to the current U. S.-China trade war, some underground gangs engaged in third-party intermediaries to earn profits in between. In 'Smugglers,' the movie depicts the use of female divers and fishery vessels for transportation. It also realistically portrays various aspects like repackaging and customs corruption. It reminds me that even if you have a unique skill, you often remain a cog in the profit supply chain, and it takes determination and vision to become a leader or boss.