A Better Tomorrow (2010) – A South Korean Gangster Masterpiece

It happens. The remake is better than the original. Once in a million – times. But happens. Such is the case with ‘A Better Tomorrow‘ (2010), the South Korean masterpiece of 2010. If you’re a fan of South Korean movies – then already you know what I’m talking about – superb story, classy action, ruthless revenge, and yes, the poetry in death is so sublime – you can watch it over a thousand times – again and again. My personal favorite – when it comes to watching a real Yakuza (mafia) movie is Takeshi Kitano’s Sonatine (1993). Then definitely – ‘A Bittersweet Life (2005)‘ and others. But this one is not far behind.

A Korean remake of the 1986 John Woo Classic. One brother is a criminal. One brother is a cop. Both will fight to the death.

Classy. Stylish. Chic. The movie has it all.

4 main protagonists caught up in their lives – problems, and trying their best to find solutions. As their paths criss- cross, life comes crashing down; and dreams get blown away like dust in the wind. Amazing storyline, superb acting, and yeah, as you can expect from a South Korean movie – action choreographed to perfection.

The movie has some amazing action scenes – which would put the finest action directors even in Hollywood to shame; such is the quality of action – choreographed to perfection. One of the highlight scenes is when –

Hyuk (arms dealer and best friend of Lee) goes to Thailand to complete an arms deal, accompanied by Jung Tae-min, a new member of the smuggling operation. However they were double-crossed by Jung and the Thai gang. Jung escapes, while Hyuk is captured and sentenced to prison for three years. After reading about Hyuk’s capture in the newspaper, Lee (played by Song Seung-hun) travels to Thailand alone, finds the Thai gangster in a massage parlor and kills him and his henchmen.

Check the action out… and compared with the original one in 1986. Such amazing scenes exist throughout the movie.