[HanCinema's Film Review] "I, The Executioner"

Ever since the English title to "I, The Executioner" was first announced I was a little puzzled as to why this film wasn't just being called "Veteran 2" like it is in Korean. Well, without getting into too many spoilers, the title is actually surprisingly appropriate. After a fairly amusing cold open where Do-cheol (played by Hwang Jung-min) raids a gambling parlor, the main plot transitions to them all hunting down Haechi, a vigilante serial killer who hunts down criminals that evade justice.

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The exact plot of "I, The Executioner" probably isn't worth overthinking. I did a bit of a double take when Oh Dal-soo pops up right after exposition about Haechi murdering a sex pest. This is, incidentally, probably why "I, The Executioner" is coming out so late after its prequel. Oh Dal-soo was in the original film too, and is reprising his fairly important role here as Do-cheol's boss, which makes him fairly difficult to remove, his career only just now having recovered to the point he can take on parts like this again.

None of this really matters to what "I, The Executioner" is doing just as a film, which is to serve as a surprisingly compelling blend of action and comedy with a predictable yet satisfying twist. The script makes the most of Jung Hae-in as rookie cop Seon-woo, who takes the lead in many of the movie's most elaborate setpieces. The whole fight down the stairway is fantastic, and Seon-woo is very well-defined as a character whose physical prowess impresses Do-cheol's team even as they acknowledge it probably shouldn't be necessary most of the time.

"I, The Executioner" benefits a lot in comparison to "Veteran" not just from having a better villain, but also by not having any gratuitous scenes where Haechi just acts evil for no reason. Haechi actually has surprisingly little apparent motivation, and this works to the movie's benefit. Since this screenwriting places all the emphasis on Haechi's schemes with the tension deriving from how Do-cheol might figure out what's going on.

"I, The Executioner" also benefits a lot in comparison to "Officer Black Belt" which coincidentally came out the same day on Netflix. Both deal with vicious criminal degenerates on parole, and "Officer Black Belt" describes them as being mostly unpleasant. The criminals in "I, The Executioner" aren't good people, but they're not especially malicious either. The crooks in the cold open even go so far as to cheer Do-cheol on when he's in danger of a nasty fall.

Jung Man-sik returns as the odious Jeon, who's never sympathetic, yet writer/director Ryoo Seung-hwan still makes a point of noting that the angry bloodthirsty mob is only making that situation worse. Granted, a lot of this is wrapped up in the franchise's obsessive need to argue that police officers are underpaid, but like I wrote before. You don't really have to think about the political implications "I, The Executioner" if you don't want to, and the film's certainly stylish enough it's easier to focus on the individuals gags and stunts than the ideology behind them.

Written by William Schwartz

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"I, The Executioner" is directed by Ryoo Seung-wan, and features Hwang Jung-min, Jung Hae-in, Oh Dal-soo, Oh Dae-hwan, Jang Yoon-ju, Kim Shi-hoo. Release date in Korea: 2024/09/13.