Directed by Seung-wan Ryoo, The Berlin File opens with an illegal arms deal that goes horribly wrong when a North Korean “ghost” agent, Pyo Jong-seong (Ha Jung-woo), arrives to help finalize the deal. What we soon find out is that not only are the North Koreans involved, but the CIA and South Korean intelligence chief Jin-soo (Han Suk-Kyu), are spying on the scene as well. After the deal goes haywire and Jong-seong fights his way out, the North Korean commander sends Myung-soo to Berlin to find out if any of their officials or agents have committed treason with Jong-seong’s wife, Jung-hee (Gianna Jun), a translator at the North Korean embassy, as the main suspect. Torn between his duty for his country and his love for his wife, Jong-seong must try find out if his wife is a dissenter and if there is any way to keep both her and himself out of harm’s way and prevent agent Jin-soo and Myung-soo from capturing them.
Korean superstar Ha Jung-woo (The Yellow Sea, The Chaser) leads this relatively fast paced and suspenseful thriller in perfect fashion, proving to us why he is one of Korea’s top actors in the genre and how much of a bad-ass he really is. In the film everything he does is precise, careful and deliberate, doing an excellent job portraying an agent, or how I might envision a famous agent and national hero to act when put under any sort of pressure.
The highlight of the film isn’t the story or even the solid acting, it’s the long and intense action sequences that take place throughout the film. For a two hour film, Seung-wan Ryoo does a great job breaking up the story with a handful of long action sequences rather than a ton of brief ones. The best part about these scenes is that they include both long hand to hand combat segments as well as bullet flying gunfights, mixing things up so that the audience doesn’t get bored with the same old schtick throughout the film.
The film does have its issues, one of which is the film’s inability to really grab the audience outside of the action scenes, which is only part of the equation in thrillers. The plots twists, which always exist in these thrillers, weren’t effective enough and is the focus of my disappointment. I may not have seen the twist coming (poor foreshadowing skills I guess) but when it became clear what was happening it seemed way too typical or formulaic, I was hoping for something more shocking. It was your standard betrayal or set-up scenario which eventually changes the focus of the film from one party to another, resulting in a crazy revenge fueled chase that keeps your eyes glued to the screen, but that happens only after the reveal, naturally.
The Berlin File was definitely an entertaining thriller but isn’t a memorable one and will likely be lost in the shadow of Ha Jung-woo’s other works. Looking back, the film doesn’t feel like your run-of-the-mill espionage flick but it also doesn’t feel like a great piece of cinema, something that doesn’t really stands out in comparison to similar features. The Berlin File is one of those films that I would watch on Netflix when I’m in the mood for light but thrilling entertainment, nothing too stimulating or provocative on a Saturday night when I’m eating pizza on my couch alone or with some friends.
Movie Review: An entertaining and action packed espionage thriller that’s missing the hard-hitting and engaging plot twist (6/10)
When you look at the box it seems like the DVD doesn’t come with much in the way of special features, but when you pop in the DVD you realize that it comes with a 87 minute Making Of (The Berlin File) documentary which contains interviews, commentary, and behind the scenes footage, providing us with an in-depth look at the filmmaking process. The disc also comes with roughly 10 minutes of deleted scenes, most of which are conversational and plot driven while one is more of an extended scene from the film.
DVD review: 4.5/10
The Berlin File is now available on DVD from CJ Entertainment
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