Fantastic Fest: A Man From Nowhere [Review]

When the Alamo’s Lars Nilsen introduced A Man From Nowhere during last Thursday’s screening, he stated that lead actor, Won Bin, has been known as Korea’s Leonardo Dicaprio of sorts, and that this film somewhat shatters that clean, debonair image. Regardless of the fact that his character mercilessly murders a TON of people in this movie, the abs speaketh for themselves and, yes, hot and sexy heartthrob he shall remain. Wouldn’t it have it been lovely to see Ryan Reynolds and Won Bin compete shirtless in the ring Sunday night during the Fantastic Debates? We’re pretty sure Won Bin would rip him to shreds. Nonetheless, Won Bin can now add indisputable ass-kicker to his resume and call it a night.

A Man From Nowhere tells the tale of a pawn shop owner with a tortured past who befriends his neighbor, a young girl and daughter of a stripper. When the girl and her mother are kidnapped by a group of ruthless gangsters, it is revealed that the quiet pawn shop owner is actually an ex-mercenary of the government, and he becomes inextricably involved in rescuing his young friend while destroying the drug-dealing, organ-harvesting murdering assholes that abducted her.

Korean filmmakers seem to be great at making a good revenge flick and A Man From Nowhere is definitely no exception. It has heartfelt emotion as well as an impressive knife fight, car chases, ludicrously evil villains as well as respectable ones, explosions, meth labs, demented surgeons, a bathroom showdown and the ever popular scene in which a man enters a room of a bazillion bad guys and manages to take em all out with style and precision.

The second effort by director Lee Jung-beom, A Man From Nowhere will definitely stay with viewers and keep them enthusiastically anticipating what is to come from this promising filmmaker.