Action
Crime
Judge, Jury and the Court of Public Opinion: A TIFF Review of ‘I, the Executioner’
September 8, 2024Ben MK
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The bread and butter of many a Korean actor and director, the action genre has proven to be one where filmmakers in the East have regularly outshined their counterparts in the West. Whether it's horror-infused epics like Train to Busan, Western-themed extravaganzas like The Good the Bad the Weird, or satirical social commentaries like Concrete Utopia, the influence of Korean culture on the genre is undeniable. Full of a unique style and swagger North American filmmakers have yet to fully duplicate, Korean actioners are their own distinct breed. And with I, the Executioner, that continues to hold true, in this action-packed crime thriller about the hunt for a homicidal vigilante. The sequel to writer-director Ryoo Seung-wan's 2015 smash hit, Veteran, the story once again follows detective Seo Do-cheol (Hwang Jun-min), a husband, father, and one part of the five-person police team known as the Mapo Major Crimes Division. Tasked with catching a vigilante serial killer known as Haechi, who's been targeting individuals the online community have deemed guilty of committing heinous acts against others, Do-cheol and his colleagues have been having a difficult time cracking the case, and the lack of progress has been taking its toll on Do-cheol's personal life. When a rookie cop named Park Sun-woo (Jung Hae-in) joins their task force, however, the likelihood that they might actually catch Haechi begins to look a little more promising. Nicknamed the UFC patrolman on account of his adept fighting skills and overzealous approach to apprehending suspects, Sun-woo appears to be precisely the kind of new blood the team needs. But is his presence at this particular juncture in their investigation really just mere coincidence? Or could Sun-woo have an ulterior motive for joining their squad? Right from the start, the result establishes itself as a worthy successor to Veteran. Still, you don't have to have seen its predecessor or even be familiar with it to enjoy I, the Executioner for what it is. A high-octane action thriller that makes for an entertaining sequel while also doing double duty as a compelling standalone story, it's another solid, well-executed entry in the crowded Korean action genre. Whether its main protagonist returns for a third installment, however, depends entirely upon how arresting audiences find it. |
I, the Executioner screens under the Special Presentations programme at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival. Its runtime is 1 hr. 58 min.
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