The Man from Nowhere (film)

The Man from Nowhere

Original Korean poster
Hangul 아저씨
Revised Romanization Ajeossi
McCune–Reischauer Ajŏssi
Directed by Lee Jeong-beom
Produced by Lee Tae-heon
Written by Lee Jeong-beom
Starring
Music by Shim Hyun-jung
Cinematography Lee Tae-yoon
Edited by Kim Sang-bum
Distributed by CJ Entertainment
Release dates
  • August 4, 2010 (2010-08-04)
Running time
 119 minutes
Country South Korea
Language Korean
Box office US$43 million[1]

The Man from Nowhere (Hangul: 아저씨; RR: Ajeossi) is a South Korean action-thriller film starring Won Bin and written and directed by Lee Jeong-beom. It was Korea's highest grossing film in 2010 and had 6.2 million admissions and a revenue of 47.10 billion won.[2] The film was released in the United States and Canada on October 1, 2010. The film follows the story of a decorated ex-black operations soldier (Won Bin) who embarks on a bloody rampage when the only person who seems to understand him is kidnapped.

Plot

Cha Tae-sik leads a quiet life running a pawnshop. His only friend is a little girl, So-mi, who lives next door. So-mi's mother, Hyo-jeong, is a heroin addict who steals drugs from a feared organized crime group. She pawns her camera bag to Tae-sik; he does not realize it has the stolen drugs inside. Crime lord Oh Myung-gyu sends his subordinates, brothers Man-Seok and Jong-seok to retrieve the drugs; Jong-seok and his henchman Lum Rowan torture Hyo-jeong to find the drugs' location, then kidnap her and So-mi. Two gangsters, Du-chi and "Bear" go to Tae-sik pawn shop, but Tae-sik easily overpowers them. When he finds that Hyo-jeong and So-mi have been kidnapped, he gives them the bag, and Rowan kills Bear to set him up as the fall guy.

Realizing that Tae-sik may serve better as a mule, the gang brothers force Tae-sik to perform a delivery to Oh Myung-gyu, who they have set up. Police arrest Tae-sik and discover Hyo-jeong's body, with her organs harvested, in the back of the car he used to make the delivery. Tae-sik escapes from the police station to search for So-mi, and during his escape, the police are bewildered at Tae-sik's display of power, combat techniques, and agility. On further investigation, they discover that he was once a black operations soldier for the Korean government with numerous commendations, but he retired after he was wounded and his pregnant wife was murdered by an assassin.

Tae-sik tracks Du-chi to a nightclub, beats up two of Du-chi's guards, and stabs Du-chi with his own knife. As he asks where the brothers are. Rowan walks in and shoots at Tae-sik, killing Du-chi in the crossfire. The two fight to a standstill, and Tae-sik suffers a bullet wound. Tae-sik chases after Rowan and the brothers as they flee, but he is too late; Tae-sik barely escapes from undercover cops. Critically wounded after his encounter with Rowan, Tae-sik finds his former partner, who performs an impromptu surgery. Tae-sik then acquires a gun from him and continues on his journey.

Tae-sik finds and frees several child slaves in a drug manufacturing plant, in the process killing off the younger of the brothers, Jong-seok. He tracks down the elder brother, Man-seok, at the gang's condo, where a dozen gang members and Rowan are also waiting. Man-seok says that he has had So-Mi killed and shows Tae-sik a container that has what he says are her eyes. He demands to know what happened to his younger brother, and, in a rage, Tae-sik kills the gang members, including Rowan and Man-seok.

As Tae-sik prepares to commit suicide out of grief, a scared and dirty So-mi emerges from the darkness. She had been saved by Rowan, who took pity on her because she had been kind to him. It is then revealed that the eyes in the container belonged to the gangsters' surgeon, who had been killed off-camera by Rowan. The police allow Tae-sik and So-mi to ride together after they arrest him, and, while she sleeps, Tae-sik asks if they can be dropped off at a small convenience store. Tae-sik buys a backpack along with other school supplies. He tells her that she's going to be on her own now, as the police have to take him away. Before he goes, he asks her for a hug and breaks down in tears as they embrace.

Cast

  • Won Bin as Cha Tae-sik
  • Kim Sae-ron as So-mi
  • Kim Hee-won as Man-seok
  • Kim Sung-oh as Jong-seok
  • Kim Tae-hoon as Detective Kim Chi-gon
  • Thanayong Wongtrakul as Lum Rowan
  • Kim Hyo-seo as Hyo-jeong, So-mi's mom
  • Lee Jong-yi as Detective No
  • Song Young-chang as Oh Myung-gyu
  • Jo Seok-hyuon as Moon Dal-seo
  • Jo Jae-yoon as Jang Doo-sik
  • Hong So-hee as Yeon-soo
  • Hwang Min-ho as Nam Sung-Sik
  • Kwak Byung-Kyu as Detective Kim
  • Lee Jae-won as Du-chi

Release

During its August 6–8 opening weekend, the film recorded 712,840 admissions, taking the number 1 spot on the box office charts for five weeks straight. It had sold a total of 6,228,300 tickets when it finished its theatrical run on November 17, 2010.[2] The film grossed a total of US$42,484,155 in South Korea.[3] On October 1, 2010 CJ Entertainment gave the film a limited theatrical release to North American theaters where it grossed US$35,751 in 1 theater its opening weekend. After widening the release up to 19 theaters, the film grossed US$528,175 in the U.S. and Canada.[1]

Reception

The Man from Nowhere has received positive reviews from English-language critics, holding a score of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. As of August 2013, six of six critics gave 'Fresh' reviews, according to Rotten Tomatoes.[4] One of those critics, Russell Edwards of Variety, wrote, "Brutal violence dominates the dynamic Korean thriller The Man From Nowhere. Local heartthrob Won Bin (Mother, Tae Guk Gui) transforms himself into an action hero in writer-helmer Lee Jeong-beom’s swift and blood-soaked yarn, about a mystery man who gets caught up in a gang war while trying to protect a child, recalling Luc Besson's The Professional."[5]

Awards

  • 2010: (19th) Buil Film Awards – October 8[6]
    • Best Music: Shim Hyun-jung
    • Special Award (Buil Independence Judge): The Man from Nowhere
  • 2010: (8th) Korean Film Awards – November 18[8][9]
    • Best Actor: Won Bin
    • Best New Actress: Kim Sae-ron
    • Best Cinematography: Lee Tae-yoon
    • Best Lighting: Lee Cheol-oh
    • Best Editing: Kim Sang-bum, Kim Jae-bum
    • Best Visual Effects: Park Jung-ryul (for action scenes)
    • Best Music: Shim Hyun-jung
  • 2010: (2nd) Korean Wave Industry Awards – December 4
    • Popular Culture Award (Film section): The Man from Nowhere
  • 2010: (6th) University Film Festival of Korea – December 13
    • Best Director: Lee Jeong-beom
    • Best Actor: Won Bin
    • Best Cinematography: Lee Tae-yoon
    • Best Music: Shim Hyun-jung
  • 2010: (13th) Director's Cut Awards – December 17
    • Best Production: Opus Pictures (Lee Tae-heon) The Man from Nowhere
  • 2010: (11th) National Assembly Society of Popular Culture & Media Awards (Korea) – December 20
    • Movie of the Year: The Man from Nowhere
  • 2011: (2nd) Film Journalists Association Annual Film Awards (Korea) – January 27
  • 2011: (3rd) Beaune International Thriller Film Festival – March 30 – April 3[11][12][13]
    • Grand Prize: The Man from Nowhere
  • 2011: (47th) Baeksang Arts Awards – May 26
    • Best Film: The Man from Nowhere
  • 2011: (33rd) Golden Cinematography Awards – September 1
    • Gold Medal Cinematography: Lee Tae-yoon

Soundtrack

The Man from Nowhere Original Soundtrack
Soundtrack album by Mad Soul Child, Mystery
Released August 4, 2010 (2010-08-04)
Recorded 2010
Genre Soundtrack
Length 3:59
Mad Soul Child, Mystery chronology
LALALA (2009)

Soundtrack list:

  1. The Man From Nowhere
  2. In Tae - Sik s Memory
  3. Trash Can
  4. Mother In Danger
  5. Chasing Her
  6. Chain Of Mystery
  7. Fights In Golf Club
  8. Finding Clue
  9. Dark Knight
  10. Somi in Danger
  11. Surviving Today
  12. Agent. Tae - Sik
  13. Dirty Cash - Mystery
  14. His Path Of Life
  15. There's No One But You
  16. Shave Himself
  17. Delivering Drug
  18. Jump Off
  19. Spit - Mystery
  20. The Last Bullet
  21. Ajussi
  22. Dear - Mad Soul Child

Remake

In March 2012, Dimension Films acquired the rights to do an English-language remake of The Man From Nowhere; plans are to have Shawn Christensen, who wrote and directed the 2012 short film Curfew, write the adaptation.[14]

An Indian remake titled Rocky Handsome starring John Abraham was released in March 2016, to mixed to negative reviews.[15][16] [17]

References

  1. 1 2 "The Man from Nowhere". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 18 November 2014.
  2. 1 2 "The Best Selling Films of 2010". Korean Film Council via Koreanfilm.org. Retrieved 2012-09-01.
  3. ↑ "South Korea Box Office". Box Office Mojo.
  4. ↑ "The Man from Nowhere". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. Retrieved 2013-08-16.
  5. ↑ Edwards, Russell (October 26, 2010). "Brutal violence dominates the dynamic, glossy Korean thriller The Man from Nowhere". Retrieved 2013-08-16.
  6. ↑ "19th Award Winning Film". Busan.com, Oct 8, 2010. Retrieved 2010-12-02.
  7. ↑ "Won Bin won his first Daejong Best Actor Award". HanCinema, Oct 30, 2010. Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  8. ↑ "Won Bin won Best Actor Award in Korea Film Awards". HanCinema, Nov 18, 2010. Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  9. ↑ "The Man From Nowhere sweeps Korea Film Awards". 10Asia, Nov 19, 2010. Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  10. ↑ "2010 Blue Dragon Film Awards Winners". HanCinema, Nov 27, 2010. Retrieved 2010-11-30.
  11. ↑ "The Awards 2011". film festival official site, Apr 4, 2011. Retrieved 2011-04-04.
  12. ↑ "Nowhere, Kingdom stir Beaune". Film Business Asia, Apr 4, 2011. Retrieved 2011-04-04.
  13. ↑ "International Festival of Detective Films of Beaune 2011: the winners!". Moviemakers3, Apr 4, 2011. Retrieved 2011-04-18.
  14. ↑ Brooks, Brian (8 March 2012). "Shawn Christensen To Write The Man From Nowhere Redo For Dimension Films". Deadline.com. Retrieved 2013-08-16.
  15. ↑ Bhattacharya, Roshmila (7 April 2014). "John Abraham plays a killing machine in 'Rocky Handsome'". Mumbai Mirror via The Times of India. Retrieved 2014-04-16.
  16. ↑ "John Abraham's Rocky Handsome to release in February 2015". The Indian Express. 7 April 2014. Retrieved 2014-04-16.
  17. ↑ http://www.dnaindia.com/entertainment/report-john-abraham-shruti-hassan-s-next-rocky-handsome-s-release-date-announced-2122766

External links

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