[Seulssine] Another Busan Gangster? 'Hot Blood' Audience Says Goodbye Coldly

[Lee Isul's Wise Cine Review]

'Hot Blood' still/photo by Studio DHL (hereinafter)

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Isul] It is a 'Hot Blood' that fiercely goes against the times.

We hope many good movies will be screened in the frozen theaters. So that audiences will trust theaters again and return. If a movie lacks even basic entertainment, it will only push audiences further away.

On the 16th, the film Hot Blood (director Cheon Myeong-gwan) was unveiled at a press screening held at CGV Yongsan in Ichon-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul.

Hot Blood is a film with fundamental flaws that stand out. About 10 minutes in, setting aside the fun of the story, I found myself puzzled by its completeness. The biggest issue was the sound. The unnaturally escalating music seemed to forcefully ask, "How is it? Dramatic, right?" The clumsy editing and overly stylized camera movements also provoked laughter.

It means that even the cinematic grammar was not observed. There is a basic grammar to follow in the process of conveying a story to the audience. Delivering the story well comes first, and technique and color come next. This is a basic part even observed in university workshops, so it is curious why the veterans of Chungmuro were not faithful to it.

Subtitles are also desperately needed. Some of the dialect-heavy lines were hard to understand. It’s not that the dialect itself is difficult. Whether it’s a sound issue or a directorial problem, unintelligible lines rush by chaotically. It was disappointing that one had to guess what was said from subsequent lines or nuances.

Hot Blood depicts gangsters unfolding in Guam, a small fishing port on the outskirts of Busan in 1993. The story is predictable: a power struggle between the local Guam residents and the Yeongdo gangsters. Within it are desires, loyalty, betrayal, blood, and fights.

Though wrapped as a noir, the storyline inevitably invites criticism of glorifying organized crime. No matter how it tries to persuade, one cannot empathize with a protagonist who commits murder, and anti-humanitarian acts cannot be justified. Similar films flooded the market in the 1990s and early 2000s. They were quite popular at the time, but audiences have long since turned away from the 'gangster films' that poured out like a flood with only the titles changed.

Even setting aside ethical issues, it lacks genre entertainment value. The film seems to want to say a lot. Scenes reminiscent of something seen before repeat, but neither the action nor the drama is particularly new. The story remains predictable until the end.

There are no women in this film. Only male narratives exist, and women are merely consumed. They are depicted either as tools to awaken men or as easy targets of violence. Lines that disparage women, such as "running a woman’s business" and "those who just grope girls’ breasts," also cause frowns.

Most women appear as sex workers or wear heavy makeup and revealing outfits. They are consumed as sexual objects. This too remains at the level of past 'gangster films.' It is questionable how 2022 audiences will receive Hot Blood.

The strengths include Choi Mu-sung’s intense acting and the performances of actors such as Jung Woo, Kim Gap-su, Ji Seung-hyun, and Lee Hong-nae.

Recently, high-quality content has been pouring out on home screens. The competition among online streaming services (OTT) to capture viewers is fierce. If it’s not fun, viewers immediately reach for the 'exit' button. Watching a movie requires going to a theater and buying a ticket with money. Considering opportunity costs, movies need to be more entertaining.

The barriers to theaters are rising day by day. Although much of this is due to environmental changes caused by the sudden emergence of COVID-19 two years ago, there is consensus that if good movies are screened in theaters, audiences will return.

It remains to be seen what kind of evaluation Hot Blood will receive. Running time 120 minutes. Rated 15 and older. Opens March 23.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.