Spanning four centuries in Korea, this epic action-adventure concerns a powerful pipe and a trio of wizards who will do anything to protect it.
Gang Dong-won
Jeon Woo-chi
Kim Yun-seok
Hwa-dam
Lim Soo-jung
Seo In-kyeong
Yoo Hai-jin
Chorangyi
Song Young-chang
Buddhist monk
Ju Jin-mo
Shaman
Kim Sang-ho
Priest
Sun Woo-sun
Female doctor / goblin
Kong Jeong-hwan
Helper / goblin
Baek Yoon-sik
Woo-chi's mentor
Yum Jung-ah
Actress
Kim Hyo-jin
Red Hair
Kwon Tae-won
King
Yeon-su Seo
Palace girl
Park Min-gyu
White jacket
Ji-hyeok Min
Jeon Woo-chi's 10
Yeong-jin Sin
Mastermind
Jong-gu Yun
Aristocrat
Hyeon-woo Son
Warrior
No Seung-beom
CCTV Suit
Baek Do-bin
Pro-Japanese
Jeong In-gi
Director (uncredited)
Lee Yong-nyeo
Old Woman
Park Sung-hoon
Kim Seo-hyeon
Man
Director, Writer
Choi Dong-hoon
February 9, 2017
3
(spoiler free) I've watched a lot of Korean movies over the years - from the silly (Sex is Zero) to the sublime (Oasis) and enjoyed most of them, even some of the more marginal titles like Spygirl and A.F.R.I.K.A. But for me, and the group of people watching it with me, Jeon Woochi was a big bust.
The biggest problem I had with this movie was the terrible pacing, especially in the first 30 minutes of the movie where the timeline was not linear and the director did practically nothing to inform the audience that he had made a jump in time until wrapping up the scene and rejoining the main timeline.
Other problems included a major lack of funny - there was so much opportunity for "fish out of water" jokes, but the writers barely even tried. And it wasn't like the comedy was too subtle either, much of the humor in the movie was just too ham-fisted to laugh at.
There were also way too many fast cuts during action sequences - it made it difficult to enjoy the biggest feature of the movie: the excellent CGI. The director barely gives the audience a chance to focus on the contents of a shot before cutting to a new camera angle. I recognize these fast cuts are a modern Hollywood style, but it is still a terrible one to emulate.
The story itself was, as expected, fairly simple. But even then, the telling of it was too convoluted - due mainly to the confusing timeline.
I haven't given any examples to illustrate my criticism because I wanted to avoid spoilers as much as possible but still provide a counter-point to the misleadingly high rating (7.0 as I write this) and the other 5 or so reviews which all gave the movie exceptional scores. It was on the basis of that rating and the other reviews that I purchased the korean blu-ray and would strongly recommend that no one else waste their time or money the way I did. I suggest watching the older Arahan which has a similar "wizardry in the modern city" plot. I had a lot more fun watching Arahan despite its flaws.
Also, watch out for the korean blu-ray. It is poorly mastered - the black levels are elevated making the picture look washed out and hazy unless you have a fancy display that can correct the problem.
Status:
Released
Original Language:
Korean
Budget:
$12,000,000.00
Revenue:
$0.00