The Drug King

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Movie
German title The Drug King
Original title Mayakwang ( 마약 왕 )
Country of production South Korea
original language Korean
Publishing year 2018
length 139 minutes
Age rating FSK 16
Rod
Director Woo min-ho
script Woo min-ho
music Jo Yeong-wuk
camera Go Nak-seon
occupation

The Drug King (Original title: Mayakwang ) is a 2018 gangster film by the South Korean director Woo Min-ho . The film is based on the true story of the South Korean drug baron Lee Doo-sam. The film opened in South Korean cinemas on December 19, 2018 and was released internationally on Netflix on February 21, 2019 .

action

In 1972 in Busan , the trained jeweler Lee Doo-sam earned a living as a petty criminal in a criminal syndicate. However, he wants to get rich himself and build his own empire on the side. In Japan he meets with the North Korean Kim Soon-pyung. He tells him that shipping the ingredients for Crank from Japan to Busan and producing drugs and exporting them back to Japan is a gold mine. Doo-sam works from that moment to take up this endeavor. But in Korea he is caught and detained by the drug authorities because his old gang has betrayed him to get away. In prison he meets the captain Choi Jin-pil, who is supposed to control the route from Busan to Japan. However, he was arrested not for smuggling, but for adultery.

When both are released, they strike a deal to smuggle drugs into Japan. He bribed Seo Sang-hoon from the drug squad and found Professor Baek to be an excellent “cook” for drugs. Doo-sam's team can generate high sales quickly. However, Choi Jin-pil is taking over the business more and more. So Doo-sam looks for new connections and learns from Baek how to make drugs. Meanwhile, the Seoul investigator Kim In-goo is on his heels. He notices the corruption of the Busan police and soon relies only on his own team.

When Doo-sam resumes his cooperation with Kim Soon-pyung and meets the influential Jung-ah, his rise is rapid. At times he is arrested by Kim In-goo. But Doo-sam's relationship quickly frees him. But Doo-sam is getting more and more into his performance. This breaks his connection with Jung-ah. When Soon-pyung gets into trouble, he doesn't help him. So Doo-sam's empire begins to crumble. The government is cracking down on corruption and its allies are disappearing. After all, it is a drug courier and Doo-sam's wife through whom they gather evidence to arrest him. Finally, In-goo receives the notebook with all of his contacts from Doo-sam. The extent of the corruption becomes clear.

reception

In South Korea , Drug King had nearly 1.9 million moviegoers.

Yoon Min-sik praised Song Kang-ho's acting performance and describes the film as humorous and visually appealing. Otherwise, Drug King falls short of expectations due to a weak plot and wasted supporting actors. Lee's table immediately reminds you of Scarface (1983) and therefore feels clichéd. Nevertheless, it is at least a passable film.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Shim Sun-ah: (LEAD) New film looks at dramatic life of notorious Korean drug kingpin of the 1970s. In: Yonhap . November 19, 2018, accessed February 22, 2019 .
  2. ^ The Drug King (2018). In: Korean Film Biz Zone. KOFIC, accessed February 14, 2019 .
  3. ↑ Yoon Min-sik: 'The Drug King' has strong acting by Song, but not much more. In: The Korea Herald . December 16, 2018, accessed February 22, 2019 .