Hindsight (Korean Movie)
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User Rating
Current user rating: 89/100 (66 votes)
Profile
- Movie: Hindsight (International English title) / Blue Salt (literal title)
- Revised romanization: Pureun Sogeum
- Hangul: 푸른소금 / 푸른 소금
- Director: Lee Hyun-Seung
- Writer: Lee Hyun-Seung
- Producer: Lee Hyun-Seung, Ahn Soo-Hyun, Kim Sung-Min
- Cinematographer: Kim Byeong-Seo
- Release Date: August 31, 2011
- Runtime: 125 min.
- Distributor: CJ E&M
- Language: Korean
- Country: South Korea
Plot
Doo-Hun (Song Kang-Ho) is a retired gangster boss who confronts a mysterious woman named Se-Bin (Shin Se-Kyeong). Se-Bin is a 20 year old assassin sent to kill Doo-Hun. Things become more complicated when the retired mob boss and sexy assassin start to develop feelings for each other ...
Doo-Hun was a legendary mobster, but is now retired. Doo-Hun decides to head back to his hometown of Busan and eventually open up a restaurant. He then takes a culinary class. At the culinary class he meets a young woman named Se-Bin who is stationed next to him.
Se-Bin was a promising sharp shooter, but a car accident ended her sporting career. Now, she lives with her friend Eun-Jung (Esom) in a shipping container turned into a home. The girls fall into trouble when Eun-Jung borrows 10 million Won from a loan shark. The loan shark then makes Se-Bin watch over Doo-Hun instead of paying back the loan. Se-Bin begins to feel uncomfortable, because she starts getting attached to Doo-Hun's quirky humor.
Doo-Hun then learns his mob boss was killed in a car accident, but he doesn't attend his boss' funeral. Doo-Hun wants to stay from the mob world. He isn't aware that someone is watching over him.
Eun-Jung then steals a suitcase from the loan shark. Eun-Jung thought the suitcase contained money, but it turns out the suitcase contains large quantities of cocaine. The loan shark gang then comes to their home and orders Se-Bin to kill Doo-Hun to save their lives.
When the moment comes for Se-Bin to kill Doo-Hun she is unable to do so, but her friend Eun-Jung arrives and runs over Doo-Hun. Doo-Hun is seriously injured, but not dead. He isn't aware that the hit-and-run was mob related.
Meanwhile, Eun-Jung's car is found submerged in the water and her body is missing. Se-Bin hears rumors that Eun-Jung was killed by Doo-Hun. Se-Bin then joins a professional hitman business run by Madame Kang (Yoon Yeo-Jung). Se-Bin is then ordered by Madame Kang to kill Doo-Hun ....
Notes
- Filming took place summer 2010.
Cast
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| Song Kang-Ho | Shin Se-Kyung | Chun Jung-Myung | ||
| Doo-Hun | Se-Bin | Ae-Gu |
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| Lee Jong-Hyuk | Kim Min-Jun | Yoon Yeo-Jung | Kim Roe-Ha | Oh Dal-Su |
| Kyung-Min | K | Madame Kang | Ki-Chul | Teacher Yook |
Additional Cast Members:
- Esom - Eun-Jung
- Lee Kyeong-Yeong - Boss Baek
Trailers
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Image Gallery
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Film Festivals
- 2011 (16th) Busan International Film Festival - October 6-14, 2011 - Korean Cinema Today: Panorama
- 2012 (62nd) Berlin International Film Festival - February 9-19, 2012 - Culinary Cinema *European Premiere
- 2012 (10th) New York Korean Film Festival - February 24-26, 2012
- 2012 (7th) Osaka Asian Film Festival - March 9-18, 2012 - Special Screenings
- 2012 (30th) Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival - April 5-17, 2012 - Thriller Competition
aparoo Says:
Jan 09 2012 3:22 am
I agree with some of Ki's comments (Comment #8).
Overall I found it to be an entertaining gangster melodrama.
My review here http://aparoo.wordpress.com/2012/01/09/blue-salt-k-movie-2011/
moo Says:
Oct 02 2011 2:04 am
A very detailed review Ki, thanks. It sucks to have a hunch proven right. A director making a comeback since nearly the 90s, is bound to be a little out of touch. From your review it seems he assembled popular ingredients of other recent "hip" movies, and didn't know how to cook them together. Delays in production usually spell trouble!
Ki Says:
Sep 17 2011 6:19 pm
Not sure how Korean production companies come up with these utterly bland English titles like "Hindsight" - when they already have perfectly apt literal Korean titles like "Blue Salt." To me "Blue Salt" sounds more poetic, memorable, and within the context of the movie makes a whole lot more sense, but, then again, making sense isn't a forte for this movie.
As you might guess by now I thought "Hindsight" was a total dud. Song Kang-Ho's performance is about the only good thing with the movie, but in terms of his work compared with his back catalogue I don't think "Hindsight" will even be mentioned. What really killed the movie for me was the incredibly poor performances by the supporting cast. Leave main actress Shin Se-Kyung out for a minute, because she was OK. I'm talking about the minor characters who mostly come off as really bad parodies of comic book villains. Kim Roe-Ha is absolutely wretched having only a few minutes of screen time, but stinking it up completely with his completely laughable persistant sneer. Kim Min-Jun tries to carry off the image of "Mr. Cool" but comes off as a complete dolt with his geometric hair cut that completely covers one eye (he's a sniper too). More surprisingly, Yoon Yeo-Jung, who received rave reviews for her supporting performance in "The Housemaid," seemed completely miscast in playing a fashionable, cold-hearted madame of the underworld. The stick-your-finger-in-the-electric-socket hairstyle she sported didn't help either. I don't normally care about about the appearances of actors/actresses in movies, but "Hindsight" just pushed these comical effects to obnoxious levels.
Meanwhile, Shin Se-Kyung was probably out of her element in the movie, but she was OK, especially compared to her supporting cast. Shin Se-Kyung basically masked whatever shortcomings she had with a monotone expression which was passable (mostly). A few scenes required her to do more work and in these scenes you did yearn for someone able to deliver more believable dynamics.
The storyline itself is pretty bland ... a paint by the numbers HK influenced assassin film. In a nutshell - assassin falls in love with their target storyline. Other stupid cliches come up like the gangster (Kang Sang-Ho) who leaves the mob world, but goes back for one last job. Also surprising was the fact that there wasn't even a kiss shared between the two main leads.
I think the root problem with "Hindsight" is that it wants to do one thing - make a hip contemporary film with music video'ish looks ala "The Man From Nowhere", but rooted in the wrong generation. The movie is scripted and directed by old school movie director Lee Hyun-Seung, more familiar with sentimental love stories like "Il Mare," and casts a big name old school actor like Kang Sang-Ho. But wanting to appeal to the younger K-pop crowd, the director makes the questionable decision to cast Shin Se-Kyung as the romantic interest. There's also the atrocious supporting cast stinking it up with so many over-the-top performances, which, when taken as whole, had to have come at the encouragement of movie director Lee Hyun-Seung.
In hindsight, the movie "Hindsight" comes off as a film made by a stodgy father to impress the friends of his teenage kids and it just doesn't work.
edgaras Says:
Sep 13 2011 2:42 am
Trailer song:
X-Ray Dog- Runaway
xx.choco Says:
Aug 29 2011 9:36 pm
what song is playing in the background of the trailer?
jhonah rhivero Says:
Aug 28 2011 8:25 pm
i like Shin Se-Kyung....she's cUte.....even though i didn't watch it yet ...but i think its good.....the way she acts....:) :D :P
moo Says:
Aug 17 2011 5:13 pm
The issue isn't he's too old. It's actresses his age aren't accepted as "cute" or able to play leads anymore. (Aging affects both sexes of course, but women much more - I know that's stating the obvious, and it bears repeating when it's too accepted as normal.)
TOK Says:
Jul 27 2011 3:05 pm
Who cares about the age gap in film industry.....Main actress who is super cute, is actually very lucky to have a film with the legendary actor Song Kang Ho! he is Great, Haven't you watch 'Thirst'?..19yrs gap...Great movie! Great actor!
Maudl Says:
Jul 22 2011 5:32 am
Korean melodramas can get away with a lot, but this sounds just preposterous.
Riisa Says:
Jul 13 2011 8:59 pm
eeeeew. he's gonna be like...25 yrs older than her....O.O