The Villainess is a 2017 South Korean film that stars Kim Ok Bin(Thirst), Shin Ha Kyun(Thirst, Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance), and, Sung Joon(White Christmas). The film was directed and Written by Jung Byung Gil. I was a little surprised this film didn't do as well as I thought it would at the South Korean box-office. It did however get raving reviews from the Cannes Film Festival and other film festivals outside of Korea.
A women lived with the stem of hatred in her heart all her life. She is taken in by an agency that raises females up to be assassins. The agency promised her that she will be freed after ten years but the demons of her past come back to haunt her. Making this women take a path of revenge once again.
The Villainess had a trailer created for it that is based mainly on action. So most people that decide to watch this film do so because of the visuals. I wanted the film to have a good storyline that matched side by side with the action sequences that would be shown. What the biggest problem was that stopped everything about this film from being a masterpiece was too much of an over progressive storyline. I can't really believe that I'm saying this but sometimes you can have too much of a good thing. We as the audience are pushed into an already created world. Then left to wonder what's going on. Pieces of the answers are given to the viewer slowly. Leaving you still a bit confused for a clear destination of where the plot is going. By the time you find all that you need to know, You don't really care anymore. Problems with the plot's pacing and presentation of certain events makes the viewer more starved for the action than the actually essence of the story. Jung might have been doing the most when writing the script instead of making a simple revenge story. I could have been alright with a simple "girl kills her father's killer "story minus all the extra layers that the script contained. Only good that came out of the extra unneeded parts of the story was more character to see killed off. I feel like the script didn't utilize all the different layers in an effective way to create a solid story. Toward the middle up till the end of the film was where the plot should have been the whole entire film. All aspects of the story are laid out on the table here for an all out rampage for revenge. My attention was grabbed during the action scenes and the later half of the film the most.
Where the story lacks in being a masterpiece, the action scenes are truly masterpiece material. The way they are shot just takes all the energy out of your body. Every last breath slowly leaves your body as you watch this female take on hordes and hordes of men. One scene has the camera take the form of her eyes, making the audience see everything through her eyes. Think, the video game 0007 set on the big screen.. Another scene feels like the action could fall out of the screen right into your lap. The camera of choice must have been a light camcorder because of all the high flying stuns that the shot caught close up precisely.
The performances by the cast were good. Not award winning though. Ok Bin continues to shine as that actress that can do roles that many other South Korean actresses would never attempt. They're too afraid that their plastic surgery might get messed up doing all those stuns….. I'm joking. Or am I? Actually, There are too many actresses in South Korea that rather look pretty than act. Ok Bin does break that mold since she's naturally pretty and can act well though. No shade. All Tea. Same could be said about some actresses any where in the world really.
I want to watch The Villainess again. I feel like I would have more reasons to like this film if I watch it again. Defiantly check this out if your an action buff. A little romance is in there for the ladies too. Just be ready for the graphic violence. If the American film, Atomic Blond had an Korean version, The Villainess would be it.
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