Korean Movie Night: Along with the Gods: The Last 49 Days 신과함께-인과 연 (2018) Korean

Ha Jung Woo, Ju Ji Hoon, Kim Hyang Gi, Ma Dong Seok, Kim Dong Wook

Movie rating: 8/10     Neck score: A

Once upon a time, back in August, I actually got to see my friends in person and we had a Korean Movie Night, complete with Korean take-out, and finally watched the 2nd installment in the Along with the Gods series. Along with the Gods: The Last 49 Days picks up right where the first left off, focusing on the little brother. It also focuses on the backstories of who our three reapers were back when they were alive and why they were put on a team together. We also have the addition of Ma Dong Seok to the cast, which is always a win. He's the best.

Because it's an immediate continuation, they didn't spend as much time building the world and showing the judgements, they focused a lot more on the in between moments. This time with Gang Rim guiding the little brother while the other two tried to get the House God (Ma Dong Seok) to allow them to ascend the old grandpa. He also happens to know who they were since he was their reaper, so they are also focused on learning about their past, since Gang Rim still has their memories. Once again, Ju Ji Hoon was hilarious, especially when we saw him learning about who he was in life. I loved how the past reveal fleshed out their characters, but also built their relationships more.

I really loved Kim Dong Wook as the brother. He was such an interesting character because he was so chill and calm, but then also had the potential to become a vengeful spirit, since he had already gone that far in the first movie. But he was logical and trusting that he turned into more of a councilor to Gang Rim, especially as he was observant enough to see that this wasn't so much about him, but about what had brought the three reapers to this point. Another good bonus was more of Lee Jung Jae as Yeomra, he pulls off that look so well.

So the third installment is scheduled for 2021, so perhaps a review for that will be out sometime after then. I hope so, I'm down for it.

Korean Movie Night: Along With the Gods: The Two Worlds 신과함께-죄와 벌 (2017) Korean

Ha Jung Woo, Cha Tae Hyun, Ju Ji Hoon, Kim Hyang Gi, Kim Dong Wook, Lee Jung Jae

Movie rating: 8/10     Neck score: A

Along with the Gods: The Two Worlds is the first installment in a series of movies that all have to do with a team of reapers helping souls through their judgement in the different hells in their first 49 days of being dead. The reapers have a further stake in this because if they help enough paragons they will earn a chance to also pass judgement and be reincarnated as well. The Two Worlds follows the path of Kim Ja Hong (Cha Tae Hyun) who was a fire fighter and predicted to be a paragon. I really liked how it brought up how complicated a human's life is, even when they seem to be a paragon of virtue, constantly saving lives and acting selflessly. I also really loved how they portrayed the different trials and hells, especially since each god of hell was a fabulous cameo with an equally fabulous costume. It was fun to recognize each god and get excited to see who was next. They were all awesome. Also, the prosecutors were hilarious. The dynamic between the three reapers was super fun too. The mysterious and cool reaper, Gang Rim (Ha Jung Woo), who actually remembers his past (I'm sure we're going to learn even more in the next movie) is like the dad (or hyung/oppa) of the group. Hae Won Maek (Ju Ji Hoon) is the punk uncle/younger brother, who likes to argue and complain, but they all will protect the donsaeng Duk Choon (Kim Hyang Gi) at all costs. It was a funny action packed trip, as they tried to unravel the knots of what was happening and what had happened, so they could defend their paragon to his reincarnation. It had great effects, action, and of course made us cry with all the feels. All the FEELS! Why are they also making me laugh while I'm crying, dang it! It was good.

I am really excited for when we watch the next installment, The Last 49 Days. I also expect I won't want to wait for the expected 3rd installment, which is supposed to happen next year. Let's hope it still does.

Korean Movie Night: On Your Wedding Day 너의 결혼식 (2018) Korean

Park Bo Young, Kim Young Kwang, Kang Ki Young, Ko Kyu Pil, Jang Sung Bum

Movie rating: 9/10     Neck score: A

So Lizabreff, Curdy and I decided to have another virtual Korean Movie Night, because the last one worked out so well. It was fun, but we opted out for a romantic comedy this time, so we went with On Your Wedding Day. It was hilarious. Just all around solid writing and acting. It's told from the perspective of present day (or wedding day) Woo Yeon (Kim Young Kwang) who is a P.E. teacher telling his students about his first love story with Seung Hee (Park Bo Young) which starts back in high school and then progresses through college, etc., to the present. It's very slice of life with just that chill and ridiculous comedy that comes from the relatable, especially when it's being told from the perspective of one of those people who is an embellisher.

It was very well written and acted. Basically this part was written for Kim Young Kwang and you can't help but fall for his grin and puppy-like energy and devotion. And of course Park Bo Young is just perfect. I love her nuanced acting, especially since the movie is told from his point of view, but we could see tell what was going on with her (even when his character couldn't), and she ugly cries like a real person, props! They had good chemistry and were just one of the cutest couples ever, even as we were laughing about their height difference. The ensemble was good too, because how can you get better than Kang Ki Young as a best friend? You cannot. The group of college boys in the boarding house were just hilarious and perfectly awkward. Best of all was the natural progression. It had excellent pacing and narration, so everything that happened made sense and I felt at peace with all the choices. I really don't think I would change a thing or complain about anything, no matter what complicated feelings I feel. It was hilarious, cute, sweet, and lovely. I recommend it.

P.S. Whoever styled Kim Young Kwang deserves a trophy. He looked so good.

Korean Movie Night: Time to Hunt 사냥의 시간 (2020) Korean

Lee Je Hoon, Ahn Jae Hong, Choi Woo Shik, Park Jung Min, Park Hae Soo

Movie rating: 7/10     Neck score: A

I didn't really read up on what the movie was about before I started it, which might have actually been a good thing for me, because I was all the more surprised when it started the twists. It's a bit dystopian, or apocalyptic, meaning it's after a big financial crash, and small time thief Jun Seok (Lee Je Hoon) gets out of prison in a completely different Korea. So what does he do? Plans a heist with his besties. Yay. Good idea boys. Well, it's more of an armed robbery. This isn't a time for fancy heist gadgets, this is bust in and shoot up times. A dystopian heist. But instead of robbing a bank or whatever, they get the gangsters who own the local gambling den mad at them. Gangsters who then hire a super deadly and crazy assassin to kill them. An assassin with a passion for hunting his prey.

Korean Movie Night: Life Risking Romance 목숨 건 연애 (2016) Korean

Ha Ji Won, Chun Jung Myung, Chen Bolin

Movie rating: 5/10      Neck score: A

CAMPY!!! We were looking for a comedy, but we might have picked the campiest one of our selection. Not that the others might not have been any good either. But in my experience, Korean movies in the romantic comedy genre tend to be on the campy side. Anyway, it was also really fun and a bit of a troll. It was about a mystery writer in a slump (Ha Ji Won) whose imagination keeps her creating situations where she's making false calls to 911, etc. She's constantly bailed out by her best friend who is a cop (Chun Jung Myung). But that same imagination also connects her to the mysterious and handsome man who just moved in upstairs (Chen Bolin).

Maybe another reason we thought the show was extra campy was because it was probably 75% in English, because Chen Bolin was playing a Chinese American FBI analyst. Not that he and Ha Ji Won weren't doing a very good job acting in English, but it was still not natural sounding, since it they were speaking slowly and annunciating everything to make sure they pronounced everything correctly and clearly, etc. Also, the English dialog was weird sounding because it wasn't written by a native speaker either, just to add to the campiness.

But since this is a rom-com mystery thriller, it definitely had its share of twists, but rather than being unpredictable, they trolled us all the time, so that we weren't sure who the murderer was, because they kept trolling us by making it "possible" to be anyone, even if it wasn't logically possible. There was also the trolling of us not knowing what was her imagination vs reality, because she was constantly daydreaming and letting her imagination run wild.

But for all that, it was still really funny, especially with a bulk of the comedic relief being handled by Oh Jung Sae and Kim Won Hae, who are pretty genius in that department. In fact, I absolutely loved Oh Jung Sae's character so much, he might have saved the show completely for me. I loved him and his little ponytails. So, no regrets, but yes, it was bad. The last impressions as it ended were: what the heck 😂. But really, I think that's what they were going for, so.... good job?

Korean Movie Night: Little Forest 리틀 포레스트 (2018) Korean

Kim Tae Ri, Ryu Jun Yeol, Moon So Ri, Jin Ki Joo

Movie rating: 8/10      Neck score: A

An art house film filled with food. I was expecting it to be artsy, but I wasn't expecting it to be 75% her cooking food from scratch as a coping mechanism. Food prep as therapy taken to a whole new level, and I loved it. It made me want to move out to the middle of nowhere and just live off the land like that too. It is a way to go back to her roots and find comfort in the "little forest" that her mother had left for her in her hometown. But it did make me very hungry. I wanted to eat all the food.

Everyone did a really good job. Especially in the art house movies, where there is very little dialog and little to no background music, and it is essentially showing and not telling to the extreme, this is very important. I could tell they were friends from childhood, and they had their own struggles, and it was beautiful.

As confirmed members of team Ryu Jun Yeol, we were bound to love it no matter what, but it was also just really good. It was slow moving and quiet, but we were never bored. It was so visually appealing, it kept us interested the whole time. We were curious about each food she made, and learned more about her and what she was dealing with with each recipe. It was wholesome and comforting. It wasn't dramatic or even full of conflict. It was just healing- and lots of it. It was beautiful. Now I'm hungry again. I'm going to look up those recipes.

In-Flight Film Time: Default 국가부도의 날 (2018) Korean

Kim Hye Soo, Yoo Ah In, Heo Jun Ho, Jo Woo Jin

Movie rating: 7/10     Neck score: A+

I'll admit that I chose to watch this one because from the tiny poster on the tiny plane screen, Kim Hye Soo looked like Soo Ae (who I love). Also, it had Yoo Ah In, so that was another plus. Basically the cast alone kept me watching. It's about the IMF Crisis in 1997 when Korea almost went bankrupt. We have the four major players: Kim Hye Soo who plays an analyst at the Bank of Korea who has predicted the crisis and been ignored for years and is finally getting heard. Yoo Ah In who is a bank teller for the Bank of Korea who has also predicted the crisis, but quits his job to instead make money off of the situation. Then we have Jo Woo Jin who plays the Vice-Minister of Finance who also wants to take advantage of the situation to reform the economy and take power. Then we have Heo Jun Ho, who is a factory owner who gets screwed over by the crisis and starts losing everything.

In-flight Film Time: Intimate Strangers 완벽한 타인 (2018) Korean

Yu Hae Jin, Yum Jung Ah, Cho Jin Woong, Kim Ji Soo, Lee Seo  Jin, Song Ha Yoon, Yoon Kyung Ho

Movie rating: 8/10     Neck score: B

I had been meaning to watch this for a while. Not just because Epik High quoted it's poster for their recent concert series, or because it has Lee Seo Jin, one of my ahjussi loves, but because it has an all around stellar cast, and the premise was super intriguing and it promised to be completely messed up. So when I saw it as an option in my in-flight entertainment, I jumped right in.

It is about a group of best friends for 40 years and their spouses who decide to play a game at a dinner party where they have to reveal their hidden life on their phones. Essentially answering every call on speakerphone and reading every message and notification out loud. Naturally it was going to get messy and tear everyone's lives apart. Not only would cheating and lying be revealed, but true opinions about each other, and their deepest secrets they weren't ready to tell even their best of friends.

Korean Movie Night: The Princess and the Matchmaker 궁합 (2018) Korean

Shim Eun Kyung, Lee Seung Gi, Kim Sang Kyung, Yeon Woo Jin, Kang Min Hyuk, Choi Woo Shik, Jo Bok Rae

Movie rating: 8/10     Neck score: A+

Lizabreff loves Seung Gi. Well, so do I. I also love Shim Eun Kyung and Choi Woo Shik. Really, the entire cast. So we were waiting for this one to become available so we could watch it. Then we waited to long to get it for free and had to rent it anyway, but whatever. It was worth it. Thanks, Google Play.

Anyway, this was a lot different then the previews led us to believe, and that is not a bad thing. It was just different. Maybe it is because we're so used to mischievous butt headed Seung Gi that we all love (think Son Oh Gong from Hwayugi, or his roles in Gumiho or King 2 Hearts). We were all assuming that he would be a mischievous matchmaker con-artist who was using the princess's marriage to make money or advance. We weren't expecting a straight-arrowed good boy Seung Gi who had a blind little Poo Butt to protect at home. It was interesting and nice.

Korean Movie Night: The Bros 부라더 (2017) Korean

Ma Dong Seok, Lee Dong Hwi, Lee Ha Nui

Movie rating: 7/10     Neck score: B

When this movie was being released, and I saw that some of my favorites were in it, I had to watch it. So I was really excited when I saw it was available on Netflix. What could be better than Ma Dong Seok and Lee Dong Hwi being brothers? Both comedians, but like polar opposite in physical build. But both really good at the physical comedy. I knew it was about them going to their father's funeral, and not getting a long, but in the way that brothers do, but I actually hadn't paid much attention to the plot and watched it solely for the cast. So I guess I was surprised about what it was actually about. But that was a good thing. So should I just not spoil it?

It's definitely about the two brothers not liking each other, or their family. They come back under protest almost, for their father's funeral and then do everything they can to not be the first grandson, because this family and village is very traditional. To the point that we get to see Ma Dong Seok looking like a fluffy teddy bear in the unbleached linen robes, looking like he came out of a sageuk, only he's not, so it's extra fluffy and hilarious. Then you add in Lee Ha Nui as the mysterious manic amnesia Seoul girl they met on the way, and it is just so much going on, but it's also so much fun.

Even the side characters and actors are the best. The cousin who is a cop (and Curdy's favorite Turtle) and his wife who wants nothing more than for him to NOT be the first grandson (and subsequently have to cook food for all those memorials), the old relative who speaks like a Confucian classic, Ma Dong Seok's two teacher friends at the or the monk who shows up and acts suspicious AF. It's all just a lot of fun. Confusing at first, all over the place, but then as the pieces start to slowly fit together, it just keeps getting better. It was a lot of fun, and like all good Korean movies, it also puts you through all the feels. It's good.

Korean Movie Night: My Sister, the Pig Lady 돼지 같은 여자 (2015) Korean

Hwang Jung Eum, Lee Jong Hyuk, Choi Yeo Jin, Park Jin Ju

Movie rating: 6/10     Neck score: A

Maybe because I loved Go, Pig Lady so much, I was really interested in this one. Also, I love the entire cast, so I had high expectations. It is slated as a romantic comedy, and while it did have some comedic elements, I would not say that it is a comedy. Really most of the comedy was trying too hard, so it fell a bit flat, or it was the painful, black sort of comedy that you laugh, but also want to cry. Like the scene where the two drunk girls crash their scooter into the pig pen. Funny, but not. It's a tragedy, really. What it should be called is how an awesome girl's life was ruined by falling for the wrong man, or how three girls fighting over one douche-bag is always a bad idea. Sisters over misters, girls. Come on!

I guess you could say this show is painfully funny at times, because it really does capture what life in a small town is like. And this town is way too small. It's either on an island or a tiny coastal town (I don't remember), but it is even further shrinking because the main industry, silverfish fishing, is in decline because all the fish have disappeared. Along with them, all the young people. Especially the young men. This leaves the town with only one eligible bachelor and three girls to fight over him. That is just a recipe for disaster. On top of that, Jae Hwa (Hwang Jung Eum) has become the breadwinner of her falling apart family and she is putting her dreams on her pigs to save them.

Korean Movie Night: Midnight Runners 청년경찰 (2017) Korean

Park Seo Joon, Kang Ha Neul, Park Ha Sun, Sung Dong Il

Movie rating: 8/10     Neck score: A

So amidst all the stress of moving and changing jobs, we found time to finally watch a movie we had wanted to see since it was first announced. Especially Lizabreff. These two might be some of her top boys. In fact, we were so close to seeing it in the theater when we went out for K-Con last year, but it wasn't out yet. It was the coming soon title. We even have pictures of us wishing it were out as well as the other two we went to see. So we had to have one last (easy) Korean Movie Night and watch this one. It was a good way to relieve my stress.

It was actually a lot different and better than we thought it would be. You know how they always grab all of the clever scenes to be in the trailer. Lizabreff especially was thinking it was going to be goofier and much more crass. I think they literally grabbed every swear and every middle finger for the trailer, because it wasn't nearly as crude or ridiculous as it was made to seem. It was actually more serious and had more heart. But I feel like that is the way most trailers vs movies go.

Korean Movie Night: Collective Invention 돌연변이 (2015) Korean

Lee Kwang Soo, Park Bo Young, Lee Chun Hee, Jang Gwang, Lee Byung Joon, Kim Hee Won

Movie rating: 8/10     Neck score: ?? (A?)

I was both happy and sad to watch this because while Kwang Soo is an amazing actor who can emote even with a fish head on, it meant that I didn't get to see his face the entire time, and that always makes me sad. Plus, it is a show about a man who gets turned into a half fish man, so how happy could it be? It was definitely designed to get you in the feels. It brings up the dilemma of what is right, between the advancement of science and cultural economy and human rights. The whole time everyone is fighting over Park Goo (Lee Kwang Soo) and what should happen to him, Goo is just so humble and patient about it. It makes the heart bleed for him.

Korean Movie Night: One Line 원라인 (2017) Korean

Im Siwan, Jin Goo, Park Byung Eun, Lee Dong Hwi, Kim Sun Young

Movie rating: 7/10     Neck score: A

We had another Korean Movie Night this last weekend to, it was part of our end of the Olympics party. Since we had some new viewers who maybe had never seen much before, we tried to pick one for a more general audience, so we ended up with One Line, a classic conman heist type movie. It's very Italian Job in spots, but all heist movies are fundamentally the same. This one actually had a lot of differences plot-wise. At least at the start.

We have Jin Goo who is a conman who helps people get loans- loan fraud. However he has principles, and he stays away from "dirty loans." He runs into Siwan, a college student and raw conman talent. He gets scouted and quickly climbs up the ladder. However, there is no trust and loyalty among conmen, and things get a bit crazy in the back stabbing department.

Korean Movie Night: Friend 2 친구 2 (2013) Korean

Yu Oh Seong, Kim Woo Bin, Joo Jin Mo, Jung Ho Bin

Movie rating: 6/10     Neck score: A

The last movie during our marathon weekend was Chingu 2. Compared to Chingu, it was a lot easier to follow in the sense of it being more modern and closer to what we were used to, but Chingu was a much better movie. While Chingu 1 was about friendship, this one was just a gangster movie. It only had a few actor from the original, the gangster Joon Suk (Yu Oh Seong) and his gang member Eun Ki, who has progressed in the gang since getting out of prison, and everyone else was just added to this plot. This leaves it feeling a lot more shallow, since there is less depth of character and a lot less emotion to it. Also, we miss the rich character development. The story also jumps around a lot as it is telling not only the story of the present, but also a year or so ago, the original movie timeline, and the past of Joon Suk's father, who started the gang back in the 1960s. All that jumping around makes it a bit confusing at times.

Korean Movie Night: Friend 친구 (2001) Korean

Yu Oh Seong, Jang Dong Gun, Seo Tae Hwa, Jung Woon Taek

Movie rating: 7/10     Neck score: A

I don't really remember what sparked my desire to watch Chingu, but it was probably my obsession for Jang Dong Gun after watching A Gentleman's Dignity. But it became a thing where my brother and I would say that we were going to watch Chingu, and then put it off because we knew it had a sad ending where Jang Dong Gun dies. Spoilers! Well if you had heard anything at all about Chingu 2 you would just already know it. So we determined that this president's day weekend, we would have a Chingu Marathon. So we did. We went all out and ordered Korean food at this new place in our town that actually delivers and has the most delicious fried garlic chicken. It was so good! Then we watched and ate and it was fun.

Korean Movie Night: Socialphobia 소셜포비아 (2015) Korean

Byun Yo Han, Lee Joo Seung, Ha Yoon Kyung, Ryu Jun Yeol

Movie Rating: 8/10     Neck Score: A

We finally had another Korean Movie Night, and we were trying to decide what to watch.  We were thinking of watching Chingu, but weren't in the mood for sad, but somehow that message didn't get all the way through to Lizabreff who suggested Socialphobia.  I was thinking more on the lines of thriller so we all agreed, and then didn't consider that this was still going to mess with our heads.  It was a thriller, but more of a psychological one.  It was freaking messed up, and left us feeling weird.  That's not to say it wasn't good.  It was amazing, but that was because it was so real.  This is the world we live in.  A world where people troll people on the internet because it doesn't seem real, and they don't realize the consequences of what will happen.  People's lives are ruined.  People die.  It was an amazing show of the consequences of social media and cyber bullying.  It was sick.  It was also an interesting paced movie.  Since all the action was literally online, it had the effect of being both boring and stressful.  Curdy couldn't handle the stress part, but I was also having problems staying away.  It was a lot of reading, a lot of silence, and very tense all at once.  A very interesting movie, but not for the faint at heart, or the short attention span.  It probably messed me up more than Chingu would have, but I still loved it.  It's gritty and real, from the fact that no one is a good person, but no one is a bad person.  From the fact that this is how messy life is, and how all our actions have consequences.  It was brilliant and not a fun watch, but a good watch.

Korean Movie Night: The Unjust 부당거래 (2010) Korean

Hwang Jung Min, Ryoo Seung Bum, Yu Hae Jin, Ma Dong Seok, Cheon Ho Jin

Movie rating: 7/10      Neck score: A

I'll admit, I 100% watched this because of Hwang Jung Min and Ryoo Seung Bum.  Also a little bit for the premise.  I like twisted, gritty crime movies.  I'm not sure that by little brother liked it as much as me, but he didn't hate it either.  It's hard to like it 100% though, because it's about a bunch of bad guys.  Literally.  We have a cop who is coerced into being corrupt, part blackmail and part promise of promotion, who joins forces with a gangster, and a prosecutor who is all about bribes and saving face.  Their paths get twisted as the prosecutor accepts bribes from the business man the cop was trying to catch.  The cop, who is always passed up for promotions because he is not a police academy graduate, is offered a promotion deal if he frames someone for an unsolved serial murder case to make the police look good.  He does so with the help of a gangster, who is a direct rival of the bribing business man.  The prosecutor is on the case of the framed man, but with the meddling gangster getting after the briber, it turns into a messy power play.  The cop gets into more dirty water than he can handle, and we end up not knowing who to root for, if anyone.  The cop was being blackmailed to do it, but he ended up doing some pretty bad stuff, while the prosecutor only accepted bribes and let people go (which is bad enough), but was wholly unrepentant and selfish about it.  It it literally about a bunch of really unjust law people.  It has some harsh language and some violence, but really it wasn't too bad.  I guess the language might push it to a harsher rating, but I'm glad I'm not in charge of deciding that.  It was a good movie, but not one that leaves you feeling happy or even satisfied.  Maybe a little pissed or disgusted though.

Korean Movie Night: Flu 감기 (2013) Korean

Jang Hyuk, Soo Ae, Park Min Ha, Yu Hae Jin, Ma Dong Seok, Lee Hee Joon

Movie rating: 8/10     Neck score: A

This one came highly recommended by my little brother, who had previously watched it.  He said he got so into it that he was jumping up and down and shouting at the screen, which is common practice for me while watching movies and dramas, but he doesn't typically do.  He totally has mad respect for Jang Hyuk now.  He loved the chemistry between the leads.  He really had been looking forward to showing us this movie, so we decide to have a movie night and watch it.  The problem is, if it made him shout and scream, who does it, what would it do to us, who always shout and scream.  Haha.  He was worried we didn't like it, but we did.  I loved it, but that didn't mean that I hated what was going on during some parts.

It's very shocking on the visuals, and it tries to shock you.  There are some moments that are just gross and make you feel a bit sick, physically and morally/emotionally.  We have a flu virus that is passed on airborne and there is a really gross coughing montage that was designed to make you paranoid and wear a mask always.  Then there was "The Claw" scene that was pure shock factor that was meant to horrify.  It did that well.  There were many times when we were screaming so loud and dramatically that he was worried that we hated the show.  But it was so intense!  Especially where cute little girls are concerned!  Plus medical thrillers about viruses are crazy, with the panic and selfishness.  There were so many evil, selfish idiots who were basically villians, plus mass panic.  It's just a show where the stakes are high and you get so into it that you are yelling at the bad guys and ferociously cheering the heros.  It's VERY engaging and both fun and exhaustin to watch. I do recommend it, especially of you love Jang Hyuk and/or Soo Ae.  They are both great in it.

Korean Movie Night: The Host 괴물 (2006) Korean

Song Kang Ho, Byun Hee Bong, Park Hae Il, Bae Doona, Go Ah Sung

Movie rating: 7/10     Neck score: A

We watched this one because besides being famous, it was the week of Halloween and we wanted to watch a scary movie... this movie is not scary.  I would not count it as horror, more of just a monster movie- a baby on the scale of Gojira (Godzilla), but the same kind.  In fact, when I found out that it was based on a real life event, when a Korean mortician working for the U.S. military dumped a bunch of formaldehyde down the drain and substantially into the Han River.  This turns it, like Gojira , into an anti-American film, as it focuses more on the effects of American involvement and attitude.  It is a political statement, not a horror movie.  I would even say that the real monsters in the movie are not the actual monster, but the U.S. Military and how they handled the situation.  The fact that they spread a mass virus hysteria because one of their soldiers died fighting the monster, while off duty, and that they would willfully turn Korean citizens into lab rats to cover their tracks just reinforces the theory.  Then there is the obvious stab with the thinly veiled reference to Agent Orange, renamed Agent Yellow, as the bio weapon used to combat the creature.

The monster itself is just not scary because this movie is old and I was super underwhelmed at the CGI.  It was meant to look like a giant mutated salamander or some other kind of amphibian, and it actually made me giggle when it first came out and went on a rampage.  But this was 2006, so try not to judge it too harshly.  I feel like the CGI budget was used up on the scenes where the monster would swing on the bridges in the sewers to travel, and climb up the the walls down to the pit where it would spit out it's victims.  It had moments of coolness, but was still an early example of CGI monsters at best... or maybe worst.