Director: Kim Ji Woon, South Korea, 18, 120min
Stars: Lee Byung Hun, Jin Ku
On general release
A Bittersweet Life is eye-poppingly gory, but this is mitigated by its stylised design and cinematography. Certainly a torture sequence involving some carving knives is tough to watch, but the comic-book aesthetic removes us just far enough to make the recipe of shredded flesh palatable. Another plus is the humour, which diffuses the tension. But the film’s real strength is the mercurial Byung Hun. One minute a little boy out of his depth with his boss’s girlfriend, the next a cold-eyed assassin, he keeps us in the palm of his hand.
WENDY IDE