Brief Story Line
Zo (Zo In-sung - Moving TV series, The Great Battle etc) was an experienced spy working for the South Korea and assigned in Vladivostok, Russia to investigate on the human trafficking ring together with Agent Lim (Jung Yoo-jin - Boss, DNA Lover TV series etc). They tried to convince a restaurant worker named Chae Seon-hwa (Shin Se-kyung - Tazza: The Hidden Card, Captivating the King TV series etc) to become their asset and provide info on the investigation.
Meanwhile Park Geon (Park Jeong-min - Harbin, Hellbound TV series etc), an official from North Korea was sent to Vladivostok and investigate on something involving Counsil General Hwang Chi-seong (Park Hae-joon - The 8 Show TV series, Yadang: The Snitch etc). The two separate cases were somehow intertwined with Zo and Park Geon at each other's throat and Seon-hwa caught in the middle of it.
So how would the story conclude? You could find out in this movie.
End of Brief Story Line
From the beginning, this movie gave a dark feeling as could be seen from its setting and appearances of the people. Not long after, it suddenly became violent with surprisingly brutal fight scenes which made me in awe. As the movie progressed though, the pace became slower as it focused more on the spy story. It was actually well intended but personally I felt it took a bit too long. Not until we reached half way through the film that something major happened and the intensity was truly felt. From that moment on, it was very suspenseful with continuous action till almost the end. It reminded me a lot of those John Woo's Hong Kong action movies like A Better Tomorrow and its sequel, Hard Boiled and so on.
The choosing of Vladivostok was a nice touch (even if the shooting location was not there). From what I read, this was the third of unofficial "Overseas trilogy" by director Ryoo Seung-wan (previous 2 movies were The Berlin File and Escape from Mogadishu which unfortunately I have not seen). I did however see his other movies like The Battleship Island and I, The Executioner that I enjoyed. This movie itself was released in South Korea back in mid February 2026 and Netflix acquired its distribution right. No wonder it never played in Indonesian theaters.
This film has a duration of 119 minutes including closing credits but no mid or post end credit scene. The ending was satisfying to my opinion, with an unexpected revelation from Manager Zo's words after he was queried before the ending scenes. I thought the main cast performed their roles convincingly here whether in the dramatic or action part. This also marked the second time Zo In-sung and Park Jeong-min worked together after the hit Smugglers that was also directed by Ryoo Seung-wan. They were supported by few others in minor capacity like Jang Hyun-sung (Cashero mini series, Rebound etc) as Zo's boss, Joo Bo-bi (Low Life TV series etc) as North Korean defector Kim Soo-rin and some cameos of people I had seen some K-dramas.
As an action spy thriller movie, I was pretty entertained mainly by the intense and Hong Kong style action sequence. But the espionage part was not too distinct for me and felt rather generic (like it only touched a bit on the surface). This film felt more like action thriller with the spy thing just as background story. However, as a whole it was something that I enjoyed though not something that truly stood out. Not sure whether the movie left great impression to critics, however it performed modestly in the South Korean Box Office though not a Blockbuster kind. Btw, I just found out what the title meant when I saw the first minute of this movie (In case you are like me and wondering what it was about). So if you are interested in watching wonderful action movie that came to life in the second half, then you are in for a treat. But if you expect an awesome espionage thriller, then this might not really satisfy you. The choice is yours.
Mike's movie moments rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
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