Kim Jee-Woon Movies

A border-town sheriff pulls out the heavy artillery to prevent an escaped drug kingpin from blasting his way into Mexico in this sun-scorched action opus starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and directed by Kim Jee-Woon (I Saw the Devil, The Good, the Bad, and the Weird). A former LAPD hot shot who opted for an easier life after becoming the sole survivor of a bloody drug raid, Ray Owens (Schwarzenegger) retreated from the city to become sheriff of Sommerton Junction -- a small town on the U.S./Mexico border. He's just adjusting to life at a more leisurely pace when infamous drug-kingpin Gabriel Cortez (Eduardo Noriega) stages a daring escape from an FBI convoy, and sets his sights on Mexico. With a hostage to guarantee his safe-crossing and a violent mercenary named Burrell (Peter Stormare) clearing him a path to the border, Cortez races south in a custom Corvette ZR1 that can outrun anything on the road. Meanwhile, Agent John Bannister (Forest Whitaker) realizes that should Cortez manage to slip through Sommerton Junction, he may well be lost forever. At first it seems that Sheriff Owens' skeleton crew will be no match for Cortez's speeding juggernaut. But when Owens decides to stand his ground with the help of Sommerton Junction's finest, Cortez comes up against an immovable force with enough firepower to stop him dead in his tracks. Johnny Knoxville, Luis Guzman, and Rodrigo Santoro co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Censored upon its original release in Korea due to scenes of extreme violence, director Kim Jee-Woon's uncompromising meditation on the morality of revenge tells the story of a special agent who sets out to give the serial killer who murdered his wife a taste of his own medicine. Lee Byung-hun (The Good, the Bad, and the Weird) and Choi Min-sik (Oldboy) star. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

As the Korean peninsula falls into the hands of Japanese imperialists and countless Koreans seek refuge in the vast wilderness of Manchuria, a determined thief, a cold-blooded hitman, and a mysterious bounty hunter all vie for an elusive map that could lead them to a buried treasure from the Qing Dynasty. Tae-gu is "The Weird," a thief who comes into possession of the sought-after map while boldly robbing a train of Japanese military officers. But at the very same time Tae-gu attacks the train, relentless assassin Chang-yi and his violent gang of bandits beset the locomotive as well. Chang-yi is "The Bad," and he'll kill anyone who tries to come between him and the untold treasures of the Qing Dynasty. Just as the cloud of gunpowder begins to clear, a shadowy stranger suddenly appears and rescues Tae-gu from certain death. That stranger is Do-won, "The Good." Do-won has been chasing Tae-gu in hopes that he can capture him and collect the reward money. Now, as these three resolute strangers converge in a sprawling landscape that none of them can truly call home, they quickly discover that Korean resistance fighters, resilient mountain bandits, and the Japanese army also covet the prized map. The fight on the train is only the beginning, too, because when the stakes are this high the action is bound to get bloody. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

This supernatural horror film from Kim Jee-woon is inspired by the ancient Korean folktale "Jangha and Hongryun." Set in an isolated lakeside house, it begins with two young girls, Su-mi (Im Su-jung) and Su-yeon (Mun Geun-yeong), returning home after a period of hospitalization following the death of their mother. In the meantime, their father Mu-Hyun (Kim Gab-su) has married Eun-joo (Yeom Jeong-ah), whom the girls obviously despise. Strange, violent visions begin to disturb Su-mi and she becomes convinced that Eun-joo is keeping a dark secret from the family. The American remake rights to A Tale of Two Sisters were sold to Dreamworks SKG in 2003. ~ Tom Vick, Rovi

Three contains a trio of short suspense/horror film made by Asian directors. Memories, made by Kim Ji-Woon, is about a woman (Kim Hye-Soo) who disappears from the home she shares with her husband (Jung Bo-Seog) and children, and ends up in a futuristic city filled with many disturbing hinderences to her finding her way back home. Nonzee Nimibutr's The Wheel contains a puppeteer who is unsuccessful in warning a dance troupe about using cursed puppets. Peter Ho-Sun Chan's Coming Home stars Eric Tsang as a policeman who becomes involved with his neighbors, a married couple who are involved in with some mysterious herbal medications. Three was screened at the Vancouver Film Festival. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

Room 407 in a Seoul "love hotel" is rented by the night or by the hour. Four sequences take place inside Room 407: a young man awaits his girlfriend so they can celebrate her birthday; a college student plans to complete a video necessary for his filmmaking class, but his female lead is delayed by a TV news crew; and the young woman from the first sequence drunkenly returns to make love with a different man. In the concluding segment, a man phones a former girlfriend and invites her to room 407 -- an encounter that leads to some unpleasant memories. Shown at 1997 film festivals (Vancouver, Sundance). ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi