The Childe

This year's dark horse in the field of Korean blockbusters from one of the most acclaimed directors, Hoon-jung Park, is finally out and it's quite a hit. I've seen seven out of eight films from him and he hasn't always pleased me completely. His most famous projects are probably New World, The Witch: Part 1. The Subversion and Night in Paradise, he also wrote the screenplay for the biggest cult hit I Saw the Devil, so he's definitely a big director, with every new film eagerly awaited, and I have to say that his new film Childe may very well be one of my favourite, although I have some reservations about the full number here. The protagonist is a likeable amateur boxer trying to raise money for his ailing mother. He decides to follow his unknown and wealthy father to South Korea, only to meet some dangerous people along the way who will go for his throat – one of them is one of the best characters I've seen in years. TV star Seon-ho Kim makes his film debut here and did it so well that he's not only garnering accolades around the world, but now has the door wide open for other future projects. Here he plays a wisecracking, smiling and twisted Hitman with an incredible skill and he steals all the scenes for himself. (This movie is instantly asking for a prequel and spin-off thanks to this character!). The other characters, the female hitman and the half brother who is a typical gangster and bastard, are also interesting. The film has top notch visuals – this is top-of-the-range Korean technical quality – it nicely explains the problem of the so called Kopinos, the mixed race between Filipinos and Koreans, who Koreans don't like much. The film definitely impresses with an interesting story, which pulls an insanely shocking twist in the middle (the twist is shocking for the main character and the viewer, so it packs a double punch!) and to top it off, the ending is nicely over the top. The director has made a confident action thriller with a clever story and great characters, the kind you don't get that often. There could have been more action and I didn’t like much that the main character, being a boxer, is more likely to run away or simply not fight most of the time, so he didn't get much sympathy from me for that. Fortunately, Noble Man takes care of the action scenes, and the final in particular is a great and proper carnage (blood spurting, corpses piling up). The action is shot in comic book style, and it's so spectacular, brutal and stylish that I had to watch the ending again immediately. Surprisingly there's more shooting than cutting and punching, but it's still a decent thrill ride with a clever and engaging story and some cool twists. 85%. (31.07.2023)

The Childe doesn’t offer the best fight scenes like we’re accustomed to from Asian filmmakers or the best car chases. What it does offer, however, is a more surprising and funnier plot that is more and more entertaining from one scene to the next. Until the middle of the film, we don't know why the protagonist is traveling to Korea or what role all of the supporting characters equipped with guns and fast cars will play in his journey. Not to mention that one of them eventually becomes more important to the story than the protagonist, surpassing him in terms of acting, charisma and humor. A pleasant, darkly funny diversion. [Sitges Film Festival] (06.10.2023)