There are not many Korean Western-style films and series. “The Good, The Bad, The Weird” is a movie that should now be deemed a classic in Korean cinema. It was inspired by the 1966 Spaghetti Western classic, “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” (homage/genre tribute). The Korean movie is streaming on Apple TV and The Roku Channel. It’s a fun flick for K-drama newbies.
♦ The Good, The Bad, The Weird (2008)
- GENRE: Western • Action • Adventure • Comedy
- IMDb Rating: 7.2 out of 10 stars
- MyDrama List: 7.7 out of 10 stars
- Slant Magazine: 2.5 out of 5 stars
STORYLINE:
A wild, comedic Western-style chase film set in 1930s Manchuria. Not a crime comedy in the modern sense, but full of outlaw antics and humor.
Set in 1930s Manchuria, this classic Western is transformed into a high-velocity Korean adventure with heart, humor, and blistering action. Three (3) very different men pursue a single treasure map, in the lawless borderlands of foreign occupation and fractured loyalties, nothing goes according to plan.
- Yun Tae Goo, an irrepressible train robber known simply as The Weird. More opportunist than outlaw. He stumbles upon a map that, according to legend, leads to a hidden treasure. But luck in Manchuria attracts attention as fast as bullets find their targets.
- Park Chang Yi, The Bad, is a cold-blooded hitman and gang leader with a growing list of enemies. He isn’t interested in history or hidden legacies. He just wants the map and the lavish wealth it promises, and is willing to acquire it by any means necessary.
- Park Do Won, The Good, is chasing both men. He is a bounty hunter whose moral compass might be clearer than the others’ but isn’t without his own shades of gray. In other words, he’s not immune to the lure of profit and survival.
A sprawling train robbery erupts into a chaotic chase that literally rolls across plains and deserts. Confrontations with Japanese forces, bandits, and rival hunters add layers to the chaos, and the violence escalates. It also raises the stakes beyond mere treasure to survival and legacy.
Main Characters:
- Park Do Won [The Good] (played by Jung Woo Sung, “Made in Korea”,“The Divine Move”, “12.12: The Day”, “Steel Rain 1 and 2”, “Cold Eyes”, “Beasts Clawing At Straws”)
- Park Chang Yi [The Bad] (played by Lee Byung Hun, “The Match”,“Squid Game 1, 2 and 3”, “Concrete Utopia”, “Mr. Sunshine”, “Terminator: Genisys”, “Memories of the Sword”, “I Saw the Devil”, “Iris”, “Joint Security Area”, “Master”, “Ashfall” “Our Blues”)
- Yun Tae Goo [The Weird] (played by Song Kang Ho, “Secret Reunion“, “The Attorney“, “A Taxi Driver“, “Uncle Samsik“, “Emergency Declaration”, “The Face Reader”)
Where to Watch: Apple TV and The Roku Channel
LINKS OF INTEREST:
Review: Good Bad Weird | Oh Hello There
The Good, The Bad, The Weird by Kim Ji-Woon (Review) | Opus
A Good ’Ol Western, With Just A Touch Of ‘Weird.’ | NPR
Opinion for The Good the Bad the Weird? : R/Koreanfilm. | Reddit
The Good, the Bad, the Weird (2008). | Alternate Ending
Review and Summary: The Good, the Bad, the Weird (2008) | Ashley Hajimirsadeghi
TRAILER/TEASER:
Independent Film Company. “THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE WEIRD – Official Trailer.” YouTube, 16 Apr. 2010, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Tk80iXCspM.
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Entertainment Trivia About the American Film
Three gunslingers, Blondie (The Good), a calm and skilled bounty hunter; Tuco (The Ugly), a talkative outlaw he repeatedly captures and then frees for reward money; and Angel Eyes (The Bad), a ruthless hitman- hunt for information about a stolen cache of Confederate gold. Set during the American Civil War. When all three men learn that the gold is buried in a remote cemetery, but each holds only part of the information, they are forced into a tense, shifting triangle of cooperation and betrayal.
Main Actors:
- Clint Eastwood as Blondie (“The Good”)
- Eli Wallach as Tuco (“The Ugly”)
- Lee Van Cleef as Angel Eyes (“The Bad”)
Trivia: Filmed mostly in Spain, not the American West.
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