The Client (2011-Korean Movie)

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Movie: The Client (International English title)
Revised romanization: Uiroein
Hangul: 의뢰인
Director: Sohn Young-Sung
Writer: Lee Choon-Hyung, Sohn Young-Sung
Producer: Kim Jo Kwang-Soo, Shin Chang-Kil
Cinematographer: Choi Sang-Ho
Release Date: September 29, 2011
Runtime: 123 min.
Distributor: Showbox/Mediaplex
Language: Korean
Country: South Korea

Plot

On his wedding anniversary, Han Chul-Min (Jang Hyuk) drives into his apartment complex parking lot and sees a large crowd gathered by the entryway into the apartment. Chul-Min enters his apartment holding a bouquet of flowers for his wife when he sees police officers scattered about collecting evidence. Chul-Min walks into his bedroom and sees a large pool of blood on the bed. The blood is fresh enough that it is still dripping onto the floor. A police officer handcuffs Chul-Min and takes him to the police station.

Jang Ho-Won (Sung Dong-Il), a broker for attorneys, brings the case of Han Chul-Min to attorney Kang Sung-Hee (Ha Jung-Woo). He informs the attorney that the alleged murder victim's body was never discovered, the police have yet to find any direct evidence connecting Chul-Min to the murder of his wife and his arrest is all based on circumstantial evidence. Kang Sun-Hee takes the case and applies in court for a jury trial.

Prosecutor Ahn Min-Ho (Park Hee-Soon) takes charge of the Han Chul-Min murder case. He has little doubt in the guilt of Chul-Min. Confirming his suspicions he discovers that Han Chul-Min was arrested as the prime suspect in a serial murder case, but later released on insufficient evidence.

Is Han Chul-Min a cold blooded killer or the victim of a coverup? Prosecutor Ahn Min-Ho and Attorney Jang Ho-Won step into court with the fate of Han Chul-Min hanging in the balance.

Notes

Filming began late November, 2010 and finished filming on April 1, 2011.

Cast



Ha Jung-Woo	Park Hee-Soon	Jang Hyuk
Kang Sung-Hee	Ahn Min-Ho	Han Chul-Min
attorney	prosecutor	murder suspect



Sung Dong-Il	Jung Won-Joong	Kim Sung-Ryeong	You Da-In
Jang Ho-Won			Seo Jung-Ah
broker	chief prosecutor	paralegal	murder victim

Additional Cast Members:

Park Hyeok-Kwon - Detective Seo
Joo Jin-Mo - judge
Ye Soo-Jung - mother-in-law
Hwang Byeng-Gug - detective in charge
Min Bok-Gi - Professor Choi
Yoo Soon-Woong - old man from the store
Bae Sung-Woo - Prosecutor Park
Yu Ha-Jun - forensic team member
Choi Hee-Jin - blood researcher
Choi Jong-Won - Professor Ahn

Trailers

Image Gallery

Comments

Comment #4
mia Says:
Apr 11 2012 7:07 am

The ending was a rip-off from a Boston Legal season 3 episode 17.
Comment #3
Ki Says:
Oct 07 2011 8:57 pm

Caught "The Client" here in Korea on it's opening day. I'm a huge fan of Ha Jung-Woo so I was really excited to watch the film. After watching the film I had mixed emotions over the film.

THE GOOD - as expected the cast was awesome! Highlight of the film for me, of course, was Ha Jung-Woo. This time around, his character held a surprising amount of comedic play, kind of like a milder version Kim Myung-Min's Detective K, but set in the modern day and played as an attorney rather than a detective. His adversary, played by Park Hee-Soon, was also highly striking, always carrying this sense of power which felt perfect for his character of a top notch prosecutor. The third actor Jang Hyuk played the movie's pivotal character. I didn't feel Jang Hyuk pulled off his role nearly as well as his two main counterparts, but he didn't embarrass himself or bring the movie down either. He just wasn't on the same level so to speak.

THE BAD - Movie relies on a handful of plot twists to keep the audience guessing on the innocence or guilt of the accused character. These twists, when revealed, just felt anti-climatic and out of place. I expect to see these types of twists in more run-of-the-mill Korean thrillers, but didn't expect it in "The Client". Rather than relying on the legal battle between top attorney vs. prosecutor that the movie establed so well early on, "The Client" opted to rely on cheaper plot twists to get to the finish line. That left a bad taste for me.

The court room dealings, investigative work by both legal teams and the strong performances by Ha Jung-Woo and Park Hee-Soon were the movie's strong points for me. What held the movie back was the screenplay's reliance on overused plot tricks from Korean & Hollywood thriller/mystery films to resolve the film. I did enjoy "The Client" & wouldn't hesistate to recommend it to others - just wished the battle stayed in the courtroom and continued to focus on the legal battle between attorney & prosecutor.
Comment #2
Josh Says:
Oct 07 2011 11:46 am

Hello! I am a HUGE fan of Korean cinema and this film has certainly struck interest in me. Can any locals or anyone who's had the pleasure of seeing this film give me a little review or opinion on it? Much would be appreciated!!!

-Josh-
Comment #1
TOK Says:
Jul 25 2011 4:55 am

'Ha Jung Woo' movies are all great...he is the best!