TIME TO HUNT : Monday 6th July 2020

In these very trying and testing times for us all that has seen many cinema's, Odeon's, and movie theatres around the world close their doors for the foreseeable future because of the escalating threat of the COVID-19 Coronavirus taking an ever increasing hold on the world at large, many film and television productions halted in their tracks indefinitely, and new film releases pushed back to some future date when some sense of movie going normalcy is expected to resume, I have, needless to say, had to adapt to this new world order. And so with my usual Reviews of the latest cinematic releases being curtailed, instead I will post my Review of the latest release movies showing on Netflix until such time as the regular outing to my local multiplex or independent theatre can be reinstated.

In the last few weeks then, a number of new feature films have landed at Netflix - of which I review as below 'Time to Hunt' which went live on the streaming service on 23rd April and which I saw from the comfort of my own sofa on Monday 6th July.

'TIME TO HUNT' is a South Korean dystopian action thriller Directed, Written and Edited by Yoon Sung-hyun in only his second feature film following 2011's 'Bleak Night'. The film, which is overdubbed into English, saw its Premier screening at the 70th Berlin International Film Festival in late February this year, making it the first South Korean film to be screened in the Berlinale Special section. Originally slated for a cinematic release at the end of February, it was postponed indefinitely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In late March, it was announced that Netflix would release the film worldwide on April 23rd. The film has generated mostly positive Reviews so far.

In a near future dystopian South Korea, Jun-seok (Lee Je-hoon) is released from prison after serving three years jail time for a botched robbery on a jewellery store that he and his friends Jang-ho (Ahn Jae-hong) and Ki-hoon (Choi Woo-shik) pulled, although his two mates escaped jail sentences. The local currency, the Korean won has tanked massively, making the haul from the jewellery store heist practically worthless; businesses no longer accept it as currency instead favouring the US dollar; gun related crime is rife on the streets; and poverty, protests, and crumbling decay and neglect pepper the graffiti strewn cityscape. Waiting outside the prison for Jun-seok on the day of his release are his two good friends.

On the night of his release Jun-seok, Jang-ho and Ki-hoon go out partying to various nightclubs making up for lost time and getting reacquainted. Jun-seok announces that while in prison he befriended an inmate who spoke of his business interests in Taiwan and how he was prepared to sell one such business to him for just US$200K with a guaranteed return of US$2K a month, emerald beaches, blue skies and sunny days. All three wish to escape their current miserable no hope situation, but while Jun-seok is very keen the other two are less so. Jun-seok goes on to tell them of a plan he has to rob a small time illegal casino, which he has spent many months working out whilst in jail, and how the cash room contains a safe in which is stashed a small fortune in US bank notes. Now the pair are even more unsure of Jun-seok given that he just got out of jail and now wants to run the risk of going straight back in there!

The next day the pair relent and agree to hook up with Jun-seok on the illegal gambling den heist, with their rationale that they owe it to Jun-seok for serving three years prison time, and that both Jang-ho and Jun-seok have no family so what have they got to lose anyway. The gang of three recruit Sang-soo (Park Jung-min) who works in the casino, and has a debt owing to Jun-seok, which he agrees, under duress, to work off, by becoming involved in the heist as the man on the inside.

Now the four plan their heist by scouting the building, plotting the lay of the land and carefully planning how the robbery will play out during a five minute window when the alarm is first raised and when the contract security detail arrive at the scene, having disabled the internal security guards first.

After securing a number of assault rifles, shotguns and hand guns from Bong-sik (Jo Sung-ha), a friend Jun-seok knew in prison, the gang of four proceed with the robbery, stealing the cash contents of the safe and the computer hard drives containing video images and accounts of various underworld activities including high profile names, dates, places etc. The heist ends somewhat messily as the four extend their run time beyond their allotted five minute window, but is nonetheless successful, having narrowly escaped being shot at on foot and in their getaway car by the armed security force.

Following the heist, and having split the cash proceeds four ways Sang-soo chooses to stay in the city a little longer to continue working at the casino for another month or so, to avoid suspicion. The other three leave to visit Ki-hoon's parents' home by the coast.

The loss of the hard drives makes the casino owners very unhappy and are less worried about the relatively small sum of money stolen. They recruit contract killer Han (Park Hae-soo) to track down the four and return the hard drives. Han visits Bong-sik, knowing that he sells the type of firearms used in the robbery and forces him to call Jun-seok to reveal their current location, and then kills him. Meanwhile Sang-soo has rocked up for work the next day looking very nervous. When he is followed into work by two security guards he loses his nerve and makes a run for it. Han tracks down Sang-soo, and dispenses with him too, taking his phone. Later that night Jun-seok wakes up with a start from a nightmare and unable to sleep goes to a bar. He receives a call from Sang-soo's phone, but quickly comes to realise that someone inside the bar has his phone and is playing phone-tag with him.  He exits in a panic and hurriedly wakes Jang-ho and Ki-hoon to immediately get the Hell outta there, now aware that someone is hunting them. Han quickly catches up with the three of them in the hostel where they are holed up. In the dead of night they stealthily try to make their escape down into the car park to retrieve their vehicle, while Han takes random potshots at them.

In the basement car park, Ki-hoon's car won't start, so they decide to hot wire a nearby Jeep. Standing guard while Jang-ho hot wires the vehicle, they make their getaway through the darkened car park struggling to find an exit. Han appears and fires off several shots through the windscreen shooting Jang-ho in the shoulder causing him to lose control of the car and crash it into another, coming to rest. Jun-seok is shaken and dazed as Han siddles up, smashes the passenger side window and orders him out. Jun-seok is convinced he's going to meet his maker and is literally quaking in his boots. Han, lowers his weapon, comments 'interesting' and gives the three a five minute head start before continuing with the hunt. They drive to a nearby hospital to have Jang-ho's bullet injured shoulder seen to.

At the hospital, following emergency surgery on Jang-ho's shoulder to remove the bullet and as they are resting up, Jun-seok sees Han drive up to the hospital. Once again, the trio need to make a sharp exit and dodging random gunfire from Han they manage to make it to the ground floor where Han's car is parked with the motor still running. They all climb inside and come to realise that it is a Police cruiser vehicle with onboard access to the surveillance cameras dotted around the entire city. From this they believe that Han is a cop.  Han watches from a window high up in the hospital building as the three drive off in his car. Jun-seok calls Han on Sang-soo's phone and tries to reason with him but he is not interested. Following all the commotion inside the hospital, Han is arrested by the Police as he walks out the front entrance, but while on the road to the Police Station the convoy of Police cars comes to a halt and under orders from the Chief of Police, Han is released on the spot.

The three arrive at the docks, where they have to stay until dawn awaiting a ship to take them all to Taiwan. They stay the night in a decaying run down abandoned apartment block, in a secure room used by Jun-seok's contact to operate his import/export business from. Ki-hoon puts a call through to his parents, but from the manner in which his mother speaks he suspects that something is not quite right. Sensing that his parents are in trouble, Ki-hoon decides to turn his back on Taiwan and return to his parents' home, saying farewell to Jun-seok, who is outside as night begins to fall. As Jun-seok returns he sees another Police cruiser vehicle near the entrance, and deduces that Han is back on the scene.

Jun-seok and Jang-ho escape from Han and run to a nearby abandoned car, but Han shoots at them before Jang-ho can hot-wire it. They both get out of the car and go off in separate directions creating two targets. In the ensuing shootout, Han shoots Jang-ho multiple times, who eventually dies from his injuries with Jun-seok at his side. Jun-seok, whose adrenalin has now kicked in, goes after Han and lands a bullet in his upper arm. However, Han is made of sterner stuff and returns fire while Jun-seok is exposed out in the open, striking him three times in his bullet proof vest. Downed and about to be finished off by Han, a group of masked men, led by Bong-sik's twin brother Bong-soo (Jo Sung-ha), arrives to kill Han out of revenge for the death of his brother. The masked men give chase on foot and shoot Han numerous times. He stumbles towards the edge of the dockside and falls into the harbour, presumed to be dead! The hooded men all unload their weapons into the black nighttime water hoping to well and truly finish Han off.

As day breaks the next morning, Jun-seok takes the boat to Taiwan, where he stays living in an apartment down by the waters edge overlooking an emerald sea just as he had talked about with his friends. He remains there for some time having opened a bicycle repair shop just like the one run by his mother back home before the economy turned to shite. Feeling a strong sense of guilt for the loss of his friends, he seeks out information regarding everyone involved with the casino operation and learns that Han has survived. While working in his shop one day he has a vision of Ki-hoon who seemingly did not survive after returning to his parents home. Jun-seok now practices his gun skills and becomes increasingly adept at target practice and handling firearms of all types. He knows that he will never escape from Han and returns on the boat to South Korea to confront him and finish the job. Cue a sequel!

I have to say that 'Time to Hunt' is a respectable coming of age action thriller that sets the scene from the get go with dark blue and grey images of a dystopian city in decay, the deep rooted friendship that exists between the three and then four main protagonists who all grow up very quickly out of necessity, and the antagonist who is a mash up of The Terminator and Anton Chigurh - both emotionless and completely relentless in the pursuit of their quarry. The action sequences are well staged often shrouded in sun drenched orange and yellow hues or with the backdrop of a trashed cityscape that the government has turned its back on - all adding to the atmosphere of dread and tension that these young men on the run must endure. The character development, the production values, the storyline and the suspenseful atmospherics all make for a package that elevates this film above many of its US counterparts, but at a running time of two hours fourteen minutes perhaps a little more restraint in the editing suite would have made for a sharper, crisper film overall. 

'Time to Hunt' merits three claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a potential five claps.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-