Synopsis
One of the major box office success stories in Korean cinema, and creating a cultural syndrome quite unlike any other, < Friend > will go down in Korean cinema history as a major event. Neither a film following the blockbuster model of < Shiri > nor the restoration of tradition model of < Sopyonje >, < Friend > is about failures of men in a not so far away time.
Four friends who used to bake in the sun follow different paths in life. Especially for Joon-suk and Dong-su who became middle bosses in different gangs, they must face off each other, leaving their childhood memories behind. It is a portrait of the modern man, exiled from paradise. There is a hint that these friends are living in the presidents CHUN Doo-hwan and ROH Tae-woo, revealing that they will grow and disappear within the era. Their hope is the honor student Sang-taek.
Above all < Friend > is filled with charismatic acting. The magnificent job the actors did in their portrayal of the characters is more than enough to entice the viewers. The movie aims to correspond with the views with the actorsÕ realistic portrayals. Director KWAK Kyung-taek's autobiographical script chooses to tell the legend of the gangsters, rather than reality. The latter half is a bloody tale about betrayal and power struggle, as in Sergio Leone's < Once upon a Time in America >. It desires to be forever remembered, and it is a repetition of a conundrum. "Who really is faster, CHO Oh-ryun or the Turtle?" (LEE Sang-yong)