South Korean cinema became incredibly successful starting in the 2000s, and its high-octane action thrillers are a main reason why. These movies feature formal proficiency combined with gruesome subject matter that delights viewers from the very first moment. South Korean cinema has found a cult audience in the United States among cinephiles seeking to escape the sanitized nature of mainstream Hollywood cinema.
Since the birth of New Korean Cinema, directors such as Park Chan-wook, Kim Jee-woon, and Na Hong-jin have created some of the best action thrillers of the 21st century. Oldboy, I Saw the Devil, and Train to Busan rank among the greatest South Korean action films ever and gained international fame in the process, but there are many others that also deserve the spotlight.
Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War Is an Engrossing War Film
Set predominantly during the Korean War, Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War follows two brothers, Lee Jin-tae and his younger brother Lee Jin-seok, as they are conscripted to fight as part of the South Korean forces in the Korean War. By making a deal with his superior, Jin-tae takes on dangerous missions, believing that if he wins the Taeguk Cordon of the Order of Military Merit, his brother can go home.
This film is full of action-packed scenes, courageous moments, and the horrifying reality of war as Korea and the US retreat. The two brothers end up separated, which challenges their bond. Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War is a harrowing tale about the horrors of war that no one should miss. This feature also won Best Movie and Best Director at the 50th Asian Pacific Film Festival.
Assassination Expertly Mixes Action and Thrills With Equal Skill
Before Netflix turned Lee Jung-jae into an international star thanks to Squid Game and The Acolyte, the actor starred on the beloved 2015 action-thriller Assassination. This film combines many genres masterfully. It fuses historical drama, thriller, and even draws inspiration from the Western, all melding under Dong-hoon Choi’s incredible direction, resulting in one incredible example of how Korean cinema is taking the world by storm.
Assassination takes place in 1933 in Korea, then occupied by the Japanese army. Under this invading force, a group of resistance fighters hatches a plan to assassinate the Japanese army’s commander during a visit to their country. When a traitor tips the Japanese off about the group’s schemes, they become targets themselves. What results is an explosive game of cat-and-mouse that thrills at every turn. Assassination’s outstanding action sequences are even more impressive, considering its small budget.
The Roundup Is a Worthy Successor to a Great Action Movie
Few sequels become better than the original film, but The Roundup is an excellent example. This movie follows Ma Seok-do, portrayed by Dong-seok, who has to deal with the extradition of a murder suspect from Vietnam. The story takes place four years after the first movie, which sees Seok-do survive a callous gang war.
However, The Roundup kicks into high gear once Ma reaches Vietnamese soil and quickly finds himself embroiled in a separate investigation involving a sadistic serial killer. With Don-seok’s excellent deadpan delivery, The Roundup is an ideal mix of action and comedy, delivering both with aplomb. The movie makes this genre-mixing seem effortless, even though it has submarined countless other similar projects.
The Yellow Sea Demonstrates South Korea’s Genre-Bending
Despite a small body of work, Na Hong-jin has gifted audiences with some of the most intense movies of the twenty-first century. The Yellow Sea centers on a Korean man who takes an assassination job to make money and find his missing wife. However, when the job does not go according to plan, he goes on the run from both the police and the gangsters who paid him.
It was one of the most acclaimed films of 2010 in South Korea, earning eleven Grand Bell Award nominations, winning for Best Supporting Actor and Best Costume Design. For his gripping performance, Ha Jung-woo won the Asian Film Award and Baek Sang Art Award for Best Actor, earning The Yellow Sea among the best Korean action movies. In the United States, critics lavished praised for its genre-bending prowess, mixing black comedy with bone-crunching action and romantic melancholy.
The Man from Nowhere Is a Top-Tier Revenge Thriller
Lee Jeong-beom directs The Man from Nowhere, an action revenge thriller that tells the story of the mysterious pawnshop keeper, Cha Tae-sik. This laconic man embarks on a journey to save his neighbor and her daughter after they fall victim to an organ trafficking ring. As it turns out, Cha is a killing machine. The movie slowly and steadily reveals his past in a trickling rhythm that will keep the viewers on the edge of their seats.
In the United States, a movie about the drug trade and organ trafficking, all involving children, would almost certainly never get the green light from a major Hollywood studio. In South Korea, where audiences flock to see the darker side of life, it became the highest-grossing domestic film of the year. A critical success as well, The Man from Nowhere won 19 awards out of 36 nominations. A particularly influential film, it was a major source of inspiration for the John Wick franchise.
The Swordsman Is a Father-Saves-Daughter Gem
Directed by Choi Jae-hoon,The Swordsmanisa highly detailed historical action drama. This movie tells the story of Tae-yul (Jang Hyuk), a former royal bodyguard and the best swordsman in Joseon, as he returns to action when his teenage daughter, Tae-ok, is kidnapped. Although he’s going blind, Tae-yul embarks on a journey to his daughter from the Qing slave trade ring.
The Swordsmanwas particularly praised for the swordplay sequences, which makes perfect sense. But additionally, this movie’s writing isn’t afraid of leaning into the emotional side when needed, so it doesn’t get too stale as it goes. The action/drama combo is incredible. This movie has everything to become a classic, but it needs more attention from viewers.
Joint Security Area Was the Highest-Grossing Korean Movie
An action mystery thriller, Park Chan-wook’s Joint Security Area focuses on the investigation of a violent incident that left two North Korean soldiers dead at the DMZ. Through a series of flashbacks, audiences gradually discover the tragic events that occurred between opposing Korean factions. Joint Security Area features a fantastic cast that includes Lee Yeong-ae, Lee Byung-hun, and Song Kang-ho.
A cornerstone work of New Korean Cinema, Joint Security Area was a historic commercial success, becoming the highest-grossing South Korean movie ever. It earned 13 award nominations from the Grand Bell Awards, winning Best Film, Best Actor, Best Art Direction, Best Sound Effects, and the Popularity Award. In 2009, director Quentin Tarantino named Joint Security Area one of his 20 favorite films since 1992.
The Villainess Has Some of the Most Kinetic Action Scenes Ever Filmed
Directed with military precision by Jung Byung-gil, The Villainess has some of the coolest action sequences of any movie, not just those from Korea. The Villainess centers on Sook-hee, a female assassin raised by ruthless gangsters to be a killing machine from a young age. Eventually, a government agency recruits Sook-hee to kill for them instead, promising her release after ten years of service. But when two men from her past resurface, Sook-hee must fight for her life at every turn.
The Villainess is unique not just because it stars a woman in a male-dominated genre but also because of its breathtaking cinematography and fight choreography. The movie’s action set pieces aren’t just outstanding. They rival those of the most renowned franchises of the genre, like John Wick and The Raid. Even if The Villainess’s emotional beats can’t match its action, any genre fan will find plenty to love.
Mother Remains a Chilling Crime Thriller Today
Released in 2009, Mother challenges audience perceptions. Set in a small town, the story focuses on a widow without a name and her son, Yoon Do-joon, who has an intellectual disability. Yoon is a known troublemaker in the town who hangs out with a local hoodlum called Jin Tae. When a young girl turns up dead on a rooftop, Yoon is blamed for the crime by the police, who appear mostly incompetent.
Desperate to prove her son’s innocence, the mother sets about trying to solve the crime herself. Mother balances elements of horror, drama, and comedy in its crime-noir setting. While the action in this film is relatively minimized, it is no less of a taut film as audiences watch the titular character come to grips with what she will do to protect her son.
Deliver Us From Evil Is a High-Stakes Journey
In-nam is a hitman ready to retire when he’s hired to complete a final task. To his chagrin, he ends up enmeshed in a kidnapping case in Thailand that brings him new enemies. In order to gain his peaceful retirement, he will have to survive this and the vendetta of Ray of Sunshine, the brother of In-nam’s last hit.
Directed by Hong Won-Chan, Deliver Us From Evil is a successful 2020 action film that no Korean cinema fans should miss if they like the idea of a thrilling journey. This film was an absolute hit in Korea, outselling all of its peers in 2020 despite the pandemic. It helps a lot that its cast does an incredible job. Lee Jung-jae, from the successful Netflix hit Squid Game, did such a great job portraying Ray that he will star in a prequel spin-off focused on the brutal gangster.
