"Kkeutkkaji ganda" ("A Hard Day" in English) is the first Kim Seong-hun movie that I've seen. What a shocker. I've heard some about rampant corruption in South Korea, but if this movie is any indication, things can get REALLY ugly. The main character is Ko, a crooked detective who accidentally kills someone while driving drunk. But after he covers up the killing, he finds out that there was more to this man than he realized, and that someone might have seen him.The setting is not identified, as if to say that this could be the sort of thing that happens everywhere in the country. Ko is already the venal type, but once he covers up the manslaughter, he finds himself surrounded by some of the sleaziest elements in society. Almost every scene contains a surprise, especially towards the end. My favorite scenes were in the funeral home, and by the lake. But every scene has something in store.The movie got screened at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival at the Director's Fortnight sidebar. I think that it should've won something. It's one of the cleverest movies that I've seen. Definitely see it.PS: The Korean title translates to "Take It to the End".

A great Entertaining South Korean film that is full of drama & thrills. Especially the portion of the film in which the hero tries to hide victim's dead body inside his mother's coffin.The background score and the cinematography adds to the plot. There were some thrilling and tense moments that will put you at the edge of your seat.With all the twists and surprises it is engaging throughout to watch. Excellent direction by 'Seong-hoon Kim'. The actor Sun-kyun Lee played the role of troubled cop superbly and with emotion.The story is easy to follow but the mood is not serious or heavy because every now and then there is always something funny that make you chuckle/surprise or awe. Overall worth-seeing film. Thumbs Up!!!

I usually do not like Korean movies – it is either too violent or too sensational with scripts that generally lacks originality - but this one is quite good: very interesting plot with lots of twists and suspense and humor. The movie centers around a divorced cop, Go Geon-soo (Lee Sun Gyun), on the day of his mom's funeral when he accidentally kills a pedestrian. Since he is in a hurry, he decides to put the corpse into her coffin and deal with it later. Strange calls starts to come into the police station and Go is threatened by a man who claims to be a witness of the accident. Meanwhile, Go is assigned to investigate this accident where pedestrian seems to be an important person in the police's wanted list.Just the packed elements within the case are interesting to follow. Then with all the twists and surprises it is engaging throughout to watch. Excellent directing with a brisk tempo which leads you deep the puzzle. The story is easy to follow but the mood is not serious or heavy because every now and then there is always something funny that make you chuckle/surprise or awe. I like the camera-work too which always leads the audience to see from a different angle. The framing is artistically pleasant, including a lengthened aerial shot of a chase scene up a flight of stairs and across traffic. I literally held my breath to watch that one.Corrupted police are everywhere but how the script presents the story is very interesting and it is kind of fun to put all the coincidences together to make a coherent story with some clever types of black humor. The actors are quite good too. The only complaint I have is perhaps too much violence in certain scene – though it is probably mild compared to other violent Korean movies I have seen. If you like witty laugh and suspense you would not be disappointed.

Director Kim Seong-hoon's sophomore film A Hard Day arrives 8 years after his directorial debut, How The Lack Of Love Affects Two Men was released back in 2006.Now, this film is a nerve racking roller-coaster ride, so the less you know going in the better. I shall attempt to introduce this film in one sentence: A comedy-action-thriller about the chaos that ensues after a detective is involved in a hit and run.The film smoothly and skillfully balances the dark comedy, action and thriller elements, giving us ingenious set pieces (a particularly memorable one involving a toy soldier...) and also well-paced and effective suspense. The film does not waste a shot, let alone a scene to make audiences laugh, squirm and be intrigued through it's twists and turns. It's tightly-wound from beginning to end and will surely be one of the best times you'll have in the cinema (or in your home) this year.Lee Seon-gyun (who you may recognize from Hong Sang-soo's films such as Nobody's Daughter Haewon) plays the lead role of detective Ko, a divorced father of a little girl who may not be the most ethical of cops. Lee carries the film, delivering a charismatic and humorous performance that makes us root for his character when he is faced with tough situations and pitted against Cho Jin-Woong's formidable protagonist. Kudos to Cho for interestingly pulling off a role that could have easily been bland. This film was also filmed beautifully. It's gorgeous to look at, thanks to cinematographer Kim Tae-Sung, who gives us dynamic and impressive shots (one that immediately comes to mind is an overhead shot during a chase).It's refreshing to see a South Korean film that's playful and never stops being fun, after the recent slew of superb but disturbing, dark thrillers such as I Saw The Devil, New World and The Man From Nowhere. Don't be fooled, this film has its dark moments. Most importantly, it holds one of the quintessential elements of movies: taking audiences on a ride that endlessly intrigues and keep them wanting more, having no clue where the next moment will take them.