A Bittersweet Life ( 달콤한인생- “Dalkomhan insaeng”) is a revenge flick brought to life by director Ji-woon Kim, best known for his work on A Tale of Two Sisters. He brings to the table a flare for over the top action that translates as direct and brutal, at once glorifying and vilifying the violent, high energy spectacle.

The film follows well respected mob man Sun-woo through his fall from grace, as he is expelled from the life he knew and is forced to confront those he considered family. From the very first tussle early on, it is clear that this man is a force to be reckoned with, but for all his apparent invincibility, he is never shown to be anything more than a flawed man, struggling to be who he thinks he should be. The film is edgy and honest, with no twist ending, no double-triple cross story arc, no extra layer to the plot. There is only a man and his choice to do what he thinks is right.

Those are some ominous umbrella's.

I am always ready for a good revenge flick, and A Bittersweet Life did not disappoint. It doesn’t have the incredible depth that OldBoy does, perhaps, but it is a fun ride through one man’s final tragedy. His desperation is palpable, and his anger and sense of duty make for an interesting character study.

Perhaps the most appealing thing about the movie is how it depicts what is important to the characters, without really worrying about if it is important to the viewers. Of course there is the love interest, slapped in the center of everything regardless of whether she has any right to be there, but she’s not presented as someone *you* have to like. Instead of giving her some zany quirks and memorable lines, we get close up shots of a shoulder, a moment quietly eating, an offhand comment about a lamp. All we need to know is that he notices, but the movie doesn’t try to force her into our hearts as well. Rather, she is an element of his story, muted and vague enough to ensure that the focus stays where it is intended.

This is what is colloquially known as a wall noogie.

This philosophy, dealing only with what is important for story and letting all else sit blurry in the peripheral vision, extends to the entire rest of the film. All the characters have a clear sense of history, but they almost never talk about the past. The political power struggle that exists between the mob bosses is mentioned, but never explored. Not everything needs to be talked about. Something that a lot of new films struggle with is the issue of identity - not in terms of plot or concept, but in terms of product. So many films seem to not know what they want to be, what they are trying to achieve. It’s a breath of fresh air, then, when a movie like this can walk in with its ducks all in a row and say: these things are important, these things are not important, and here is the story that brings it all together.

The film isn’t going to change the way you look at cinema, and it won’t challenge anything you think you may know about yourself or the world around you. It is a solid revenge flick in the same vein as Park Chan-wook’s masterpiece, and it’s a fun ride while it lasts.

I like it when a guy keeps a baseball bat in his trunk for when he gets cornered in a parking lot.

But really, it isn’t fair to compare this film with OldBoy, but I guess that’s my issue with it: it never really ascends to that level of excellence. It touches on the shocking violence, and the detached philosophy, treating its themes as the icing on the proverbial cake, sitting on top, pretty and delicate, but little more than a facade, when it really deserves to be laced throughout, making every savory bite so much more rich and memorable, like drinking from that Hockey Cup trophy, or smoking your wedding papers.

Some things you just don’t forget.

I mean, what?

Has no US rating, but should be considered rated “R” for “feel guilty about letting your children watch it and pretend it’s no worse than what you grew up with.”