REVIEW: DVD Release: The Good The Bad The Weird

Film: The Good The Bad The Weird
Release date: 15th June 2009
Certificate: 15
Running time: 126 mins
Director: Kim Ji-woon
Starring: Lee Byung-hun, Song Kang-ho, Jung Woo-sung, Jo Kyeong-hun, Kim Kwang-il
Genre: Action/Adventure/Comedy/Western
Studio: Icon
Format: DVD
Country: South Korea

After achieving critical acclaim with his 2005 film A Bittersweet Life, South Korean director Kim Ji-woon went completely off-kilter with his follow-up.

Set in the 1930s of the lawless Far East, a mysterious map is being transported on a train across the desert to be taken to the Imperialist Japanese commanders. As it makes its way across the terrain, three bounty hunters make their way to stake their claim on the prize. Amidst the confusion, The Weird escapes with the map, forcing The Good and The Bad to put aside their conflict and leave the scene in search of the means to find the untold riches that map has knowledge of.

As the chase continues, with an ever-increasing array of antagonists adding themselves to the conflict, the disgruntlement becomes a skirmish, and the skirmish becomes an all out war. Building towards a gigantic battle royale in the heat of the desolate landscape, The Good, The Bad and The Weird each manipulate and make use of the various additions to the chase, as they dodge bullets, cannons, horses, machines and corpses en route to the final stand off around the prize they fought so hard to get to...


To critique The Good The Bad The Weird without making mention of the Sergio Leone masterpiece would be ignoring the obvious. It is evident that Kim Ji-woon has been highly influenced by the Man With No Name trilogy, in particular the revered climax to the story. The director has not attempted to copy, parody or pastiche the original creation, as there is an undeniable warmth and charm that is present throughout the chaotic discord. Kim Ji-woon has merely transferred elements of The Good, The Bad And The Ugly to an Eastern setting, but given it a slightly zany twist and ramped up the action to differentiate from the source. However, it is Kim Ji-woon’s instincts as an action director that let the project down when it needed guidance the most.

It’s no surprise when looking at the glossy shine and luscious cinematic panoramas that The Good The Bad The Weird is South Korea’s most expensively made film, but there is little plot. After the satisfactory and warming opening skirmish, there is little else to keep the viewer interested as the action gleefully, and unashamedly, hops from one set piece to the next. The mania comes thick and fast, but mainly in the thick, as segments are dragged out to ridiculous proportions, taking five, ten and sometimes even fifteen minutes longer than necessary just to fit in a ludicrous gunfight with absolutely no progression of the story. The climactic free-for-all that is the film’s penultimate sequence is turgid and overly long, but what is immensely infuriating is the complete lack of perspective or objective. The setting is a vast plain for miles on end, which spawns an orgy of mayhem from which anyone escaping could be easily seen, yet one of heroes manages, somehow, to ride out of the madness only for there to be a cut and all three of the bounty-hunters to be present at the locale.

What is unforgivable is the lack of attention and detail that goes into the three most important pieces of this cinematic puzzle, and that being the three main characters, which the film is named after. In East Asian cinema, there is always a greater deal of ambiguity present than in their European counterparts, but the way in which the traits of The Good, The Bad, and The Weird interchange at varying junctures is somewhat defeatist. Jung Woo-sung, who plays The Good, has evidently spent a great deal of time watching the spaghetti western trilogy - he mimics Eastwood’s stance, tone and style in an almost frighteningly accurate portrayal. However, while Woon’s creation doesn’t set out to be an imitation, at this point in The Man With No Name trilogy, Eastwood’s character had already adopted a softer stance, becoming much less of an anti-hero and more a traditional protagonist with attitude. Jung Woo-sung, unfortunately, finds himself lacking the necessary aura to provide legitimacy to his version of The Good, and suffers from the ever interchanging roles of the three gunmen.

Apart from some delightful camera work, and a score that echoes Morriconne’s iconic creation, The Good The Bad The Weird is an ultimately hollow experience that lurches back into the comfort of an action genre all too readily. It leaves the viewer wishing that Kim Ji-woon had perhaps shown some of the characteristics in A Bittersweet Life - cutting out some of the action and focusing more on character progression, allowing the individuals to flourish and come to life, so as not to be viewed as cardboard cut-outs.


While an enjoyable and unintelligible watch, bigger does not always mean better, and it leaves the viewer wondering whether another of South Korea’s plethora of talented directors could have created a more meaningful cinematic experience for a few dollars less. BL