Starring
Kim Ok-bin, Shin Ha-kyun, Sung Joon, Kim Seo-hyung, Jo Eun-ji, Park
Chul-min. Directed by Jung Byung-gil. (2017, 124 min).
The
Villainess begins with a truly remarkable action sequence. With
guns, knives and her considerable fighting skills, our vengeful main
character, Sook-hee (Kim Ok-bin), slaughters her way through a
warehouse of at-least 50 thugs. It's a long, bloody, nearly
unedited set-piece that's crazy, thrilling and masterfully choreographed.
After being apprehended by police immediately afterwards, Sook-hee finds herself
in the hands of a mysterious organization (we're to assume it's the
government) that trains assassins to do their dirty work. One would
think someone already capable of single-handedly killing several
dozen men wouldn't require any additional training, but never mind. The viewer might be too overcome by deja vu to fuss over
such a minor plot detail.
 |
| Why we have distracted driving laws. |
Storywise, this South Korean film borrows pretty liberally from the likes of
La Femme Nikita and Kill Bill, though handled with such
panache and audacity that we easily forgive its derivativeness. While
the aforementioned opening scene is easily the creative highpoint, there's
still plenty of ferocious and exhilarating action throughout
the whole film, including a delirious & deadly fight on a speeding city bus. As
Sook-hee, Ok-bin carries much of the film on her shoulders and gives us a character that, despite her inherent
viciousness (a product of her upbringing), we empathize with and root
for.
 |
| "I am NOT missing this bus!" |
Though
a bit longish, The Villainess is an exciting, brutal good
time. It's nothing new from a narrative standpoint, but loaded with
brash, kinetic action sequences presented in a way you likely haven't
seen before. That more-than-compensates for any lack of originality. Fans of all sorts of movie mayhem are sure to get a big kick out of it.
EXTRA
KIBBLES
MAKING-OF
FEATURETTE
TRAILERS
ENGLISH
LANGUAGE OPTION
DVD
COPY
KITTY CONSENSUS:
PURR-R-R...LIKE A GOOD SCRATCH BEHIND THE EARS
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