Mokponeun hangguda

Had I seen this when it was a new release, I'd have thought it was a small patch on a very tired genre: the Korean jopok/gangster comedy. The plot's nothing new--undercover cop (Jo Jae-hyeon) starts to sympathize with the dapper gangster/drug dealer (Cha In-pyo) he's trying to nab--but the homoerotic elements, an arguable subtext in even the most serious films in this genre, are writ so large and loud here that they threaten to squirt you in the eye (ahem). The filmmakers probably though it would be funny to make explicit what other films only suggest, but the joke wears thin right around the moment that one of the leads feeds the other a live-squid-on-a-stick (a uniquely Korean treat) held at crotch level, and minions outside see the seemingly fellatial event in silhouette against the window blinds. Hmmm. There IS an explosive diarrhea gag that made me laugh, but then I felt really guilty afterwards. Good looking film, but not a keeper.