The Good, The Bad, The Weird (2008)

I really liked this movie. It had a western type feel to it. I think that may have had something to do either w/ the horses or the dirt. I'm not sure which. I really liked how the story progressed & how the 3 main characters were linked. There were really awesome fight/shoot out scenes. I am not sure how accurate the history is on this, but I did look up Manchuria region & how it connected the 3 countries. Well 4 if u count Russia. It was interesting the history of the region.



The male lead in Iris is "The Bad" in this movie & he does an excellent job of playing his character. "The Weird" is comes out to be more than u expect him to be in the end. "The Good" is the most accurate moving target shooter I have seen in any movie. I have never understood how they expect ppl to believe that u can hit a moving target when ur moving as much as the target. I can kinda understand if ur standing still, but moving like they do in this movie; I'm not so sure. But it is pretty cool to watch.



I enjoyed watching this movie, it made me laugh, it made me think, & it made me grossed out (cutting off body parts). I hope others enjoy it 2.

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I couldn't decide if I liked this movie or if it was ultimately ridiculous. For that reason I gave it high scores.

Since I can't give spoilers in the review, let me just state that the purpose of this movie is the part that is ridiculous. Everything that leads up to the end is great. The action is off the chain.

The acting is spectacular. Jung Woo Sung plays the good. I could listen to his voice forever. I enjoyed his acting in Padam Padam. His character is far different in this movie. It proves that he is a versatile actor. Lee Byung Hun plays the bad. I have never seen anything he has been in. If this is any indication of his acting ability, then I will be sure to watch more of him in the future. Song Kang Ho plays the weird. His character was my favorite. He did a great job and I will be sure to watch more of his movies in the future.

The music fits the movie.

I will probably rewatch this in the future. It was that good.

I would recommend this movie to everyone that likes a good action movie and enjoys the strange and unusual.

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the good, the bad and the weird was actually a very good movie because it has a good enough of a story line to grab you and keep you watching all the way till the end. i would have like some better musical scores however, because for the most part, this film hardly had music at all! the score for the closing credits was a nice touch though. what can i say about the acting? there was a very nice cast that included the two male leads from IRIS and ATHENA so that was very interesting to watch them interact with each other. the effects, scenery, and all the props were perfected thanks to the high budget for this movie, but i will say that the blood was very gross and unrealistic at times. if you're not really a fan of gory scenes and constant shooting, maybe this movie isn't for you. with that being said, you may be able to watch this film as this movie isn't TOO gory in that it doesn't show everything. most things are left to the imagination, so you might be able to handle it after all. on one final note, i would just like to say that this was the sexiest lee byung-hun has ever been...so if you're a fan of his, you NEED to see this!

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A train is heading somewhere in Manchuria. In it is an official with a very important map. The Bad, Lee Byung Hun is a hired killer and robber sent to retrieve this map. The Good, Jung Woo Sung is a bounty hunter hunting Lee Byung Hoon and the weird, Song Kang Ho is a small time thief who just happens to be robbing this particular train. He stumbles across the official and ends up taking the map, unaware of its value, hence the movie sets off.

This movie doesn't take itself seriously and neither should you. It is packaged silliness that is entertaining. However, it is merely that. The movie is a sequences of shoot outs and explosions in different settings, nothing more. The plot is a warped mess that merely serves to package these repetitive shoot outs. While it doesn't take itself seriously, it would still be a far better film if they packaged it better. Heck, the directing cannot keep up with these shoot outs. Also, bullets are solely reserved for everyone else that is not the lead and that's to be expected but sometimes, the leads just shoot in a general direction and the bullets magically fly to a destination and hit somebody.

Nonetheless, this is still entertaining with hints of cheesiness that pay homage to classic westerns. The characters really carry this and despite some repetitiveness, it's still fun to watch. Song Kang Ho for me is the stand out of this as his character helps shape this movie. There are some decent action sequences and despite the muddled plot, it's fun to watch the interactions the main characters have with each other.

Overall, hugely entertaining, a messy plot beyond the satirical nature of this but one to watch.

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I have to admit, I'm going to give this one a "Meh." It wasn't exactly bad, but it wasn't real great either. Bonus points for the hottness value of Lee Byung-hun and Jung Woo-Sung, and I admit I'd probably watch the film just to see Lee Byung-hun, because he's simply gorgeous. More bonus points because the cast did a fairly good job in their roles and the technical elements weren't too badly done. All in all, it was a fairly well made little adventure story, full of angst and comedy in a "holy heck! what just happened" kind of way.

I loved the cowboy feel to the show; the characters were dressed like wild, wild west characters, and the shootouts were classing western-style. It's kind of like Korea's take on an old comedy/angsty western. I also liked how the character were related, and it had some great comedic moments. The great chase was pretty funny, and the Good and Weird pulled off some touching moments.

Honestly, most of my problem was the plotline flaws. For one thing, the violence and gore was a little more pronounced than I tend to prefer. I'm not terribly fond of that much torture and gratuitous evilness. Let's just say the Bad is really, really, really BAD. It's actually a bit more gruesome than I've come to expect from Korean works, and I've watched A LOT of mysteries and crime shows.

Then there were all the plot holes. Korean dramas have a tendency to just drop storylines without explanation, and this movie had a bunch of them. What happened to Weird's friend? Why did he do what he did to the Bad guy? Did he change his personality? What was that story?!? Why does the Good hold such a grudge? Why don't they understand the treasure when they find it? Why is the Bad so Bad? Was he always that Bad? How did he meet his boss/father figure? What happened to the treasure? Who survived? What happened to the military? Did they help the Independence movement? It was all just a giant confusing mess, especially towards the end.

There also were a bunch of little annoyances to me, for example the inability of the bad guys to shoot anyone. I mean, most shows have bad guys with horrible aim, but considering the number of bad guys firing at the same person, this was just annoying.

I'll give them one thing, the ending as pretty much a complete shock. So not what I was expecting! Overall, I'd say the plotline was weak, the film was well made, and the actors are pretty good. Would I recommend it to you? - Meh. It's not going to be an epic, but it's good if you have some guys around who don't want sappy romance. Personally, the only thing it had going for me was the hotness factor and a few random bursts of comedy.

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This is an adventure, alright! I didn't think Manchuria of the 1920s could be shot as a western, but it absolutely works. To come into this strange land and time, you meet up with a motley crew of characters, and I'm not just referring to the leads. The insane mix of people and languages lend a kind of strangeness to the backdrop, and you feel like you're walking into a bazaar, a form of "Manchurian Nights" if you will.

I don't think this is a movie you watch for your expected, straight-up sensible plot. You watch it like you've inhaled a puff of opium in that den in the middle of nowhere. You are in for in the exotic appeal of non-stop, over-the-top, bang-bang fast guns and action.

It IS a western in the traditional sense, with your cool men with dangling cigarettes, and all the masculine flavors of cowboy boots, long leather tailcoats, the rifle spins, the tumbleweeds in the dust, and that memorable spaghetti music. Makes you want to strike a pose for a Marlboro ad.

Yet, pinch yourself - you are in a desert of Manchuria, not Idaho, and this is a time when Imperial Japan invaded and ruled over vast territories of Korea and China. Get on the railroad and you do not know who or what is sitting next to you. The gibberish sounds a little like formal Mandarin, but mutates into loose Korean, then intruded by the smuggish Japanese before turning into a chorus of whatever else (mongolian?) happens to be.

Then there is the violence. You cannot forget the knives and daggers cutting into those sensitive areas of the human body.

Brutish, check. Chaotic, check. Lawless, check. Once upon a time in the East. Nice.

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