The Beast – Biseueo (2019)

Directed by: Jung-Ho Lee | 130 minutes | action, crime | Actors: Sung-min Lee, Jae-myung Yoo, Seong-Bong Ahn, Daniel Choi, Ho-jung Kim, Ja-yeon Ok

‘The Beast’ (‘Biseuteo’) is a thrilling thriller from South Korea, in which two rival police inspectors have to solve a mysterious disappearance case. When the battered body of the 17-year-old girl is found, the Incheon Police Department is eager to find the culprit. Especially if it seems that this is a serial killer who may have already made several victims. Once partners, Jung Han-Soo (Sung-min Lee) and Han Min-Tae ((Jae-myung Yoo) are now inspectors and leaders of two different investigative teams. Their chief will soon be promoted to commissioner and the one who successfully completes the murder case. solves will succeed him. Their ambition to move up the ranks and their drive to find the killer reinforces their methods used. While Han is more shrewd and willing to bend the rules, Han is more of the wrecking ball type, where he can break takes the law for granted This “the end justifies the means” attitude gets him more and more in trouble and he has to go further and further to correct or cover up mistakes he made.His relationship with his (almost) ex-wife, who is the pathologist who is also on the case, comes under further pressure.To make matters worse, a female drug dealer has just been released from prison, who still has a bone to pick with him.

Director Jung-Ho Lee tightens the thumbscrews, especially with Jung, and as a viewer you are drawn into his descent into increasingly criminal behavior. He also wrote the screenplay of ‘The Beast’, which is loosely based on Olivier Marchal’s 2004 French thriller ’36 Quai des Orfèvres’, but only takes the premise of two law-breaking cops to get promoted. taken over. The elaboration, with all kinds of intriguing subplots that all come together again, produces a typical thriller, which they seem to have patented in South Korea. Along the way, the film has a few surprises in store, which may not be very original, but are interwoven in the story in such a way that it does not seem disturbing for a second. The tension build-up is meticulously tuned: a good example is the repeated ringing of a mobile phone. Just when you want to shout as a viewer: “Now pick up, man!” does that actually happen – or does the signal stop. The film maintains a slow, but brooding pace for a long time, with occasional sudden outbursts of violence. The climax is a stake-out of an apartment complex where the killer may be hiding, but where a Chinese drug gang also trades. The agents from Incheon then come into conflict with a group of federal detectives who are also busy with a stake-out, which, due to Han’s mistake, degenerates into a massive fight that is beautifully portrayed. Although the makers do not shy away from heavy brawls, including close-ups in detail – the real atrocities of the serial killer remain largely out of the picture. These are left to the viewer’s imagination through audio clips (the killer records the screams of his victims), a clever find that may have even more impact from showing what the killer is doing.

‘The Beast’ is not a cheerful film and the title can be interpreted in different ways and refer to different ‘beasts’. The film is not completely perfect: it could have been shortened a bit here and there, for example. The acting of the two protagonists Jae-myung Yoo and Sung-min Lee is top notch. The way in which the latter shows how he is losing control over his life, business and mental health is especially impressive. Maybe not a film that will stay in your memory for a long time, but for fans of Korean action films or well-made police thrillers, this is definitely a must.