Baramui paiteo (2004) Reviews

• Brilliant!

  john_ritson32005-10-22

  I believe that this is one of the best movies to come out Korea in along time. It has got heart and soul and you can see that the director and the cast really care about bringing to life this story of one of the greatest martial artist in history. However despite how much I enjoyed this film there were a few flaws. First some emotional parts in the story moves to fast and there are scenes f Korean and Japanese customs (such as shaving his eyebrows) that we don't understand and we are not given an explanation to. Another thing is that some moments of this movie are incredibly exxagerated and some are just made up for the movie. I don't understand why they did this since Oyama Mas had an amazing life without all the made up scenes. Last is the action, I hear that most people didn't like the action because the fight scenes were short and brutal. However because I do martial arts and know a lot about Oyama Mas I believe that this was the right way for the movie. This is because Oyama never did any soft kungfu which you see in most movies these days, He did hard taekwondo and later created kyokushin karate and he always tried to finch his opponent with one punch. combat is not a dance where you can predict each other movements.

• fighting masterpiece Korean style

  info-25132004-10-14

  'Paramui Paito (Fighter in the Wind) is based on the events in the life of legendary Korean martial artist Choi Bae-dal. Or more precisely, the film is based on the comic book based on the martial artist's life _ a difference that can be felt throughout this entertaining but factually suspect movie. The first of a handful of local films about famous Koreans who lived during the Japanese occupation period, ''Fighter in the Wind tells of the early part of Choi¡¯s life, how he sneaked into Japan in the late 1930s in hopes of becoming a pilot, joined the martial arts community there, and after training by himself in the mountains for 18 months, came down to become the top fighter of that country. The film offers a seemingly sentimentalized version of the same story, especially playing up the outsider aspect of Choi's experiences, of his being a Korean in Japanese society. Given the story's xenophobic elements, which include evil yakuzas exploiting Koreans, it will be interesting to see how a Japanese audience responds to the film when it gets released there as planned. ''Fighter¡¯s best moments hint at the moral complexity of films like ''Raging Bull,¡¯¡¯ Martin Scorcese¡¯s boxing masterpiece. At first, Choi¡¯s motivation to become Japan¡¯s best seems to be connected to righting injustices felt by Koreans in Japan, but as he travels to martial arts schools enduring punishment after punishment, it becomes less clear as to what he is trying to prove. But such insights are all too brief in the film, which is so heavy on the melodrama and action that it's difficult to take too seriously. By the end, the story resembles a kung fu film from Hong Kong, complete with a geisha girlfriend (Ara Hirayama), who tries to turn Choi into a lover not a fighter, and elder statesmen of the Japanese martial arts community who will go to any lengths to keep a Korean from becoming Japan's best. It's not the most inventive of plots, but the film keeps it entertaining throughout. Singer and actor Bi (Rain) was initially cast for the lead role of Choi but had to pull out due to schedule conflicts. It¡¯s a good thing too, for the rail-thin pop singer wouldn¡¯t have been able to take the physical punishment the role required. Instead, we get Yang Dong-geun, a burly actor who plays the part to near perfection. It¡¯s refreshing to see this young and talented actor take on a substantial role for a change, and he brings to ''Fighter the necessary savagery and physical presence to make it work.

• Not a "martial arts film" but a great film about martial arts!

  to_kill_better2006-07-08

  A romanticised biopic of karate legend Mas Oyama (here called "Choi Baedal") this is rare gem in Korean cinema and the genre of martial arts films. As many reviewers have mentioned, the fight scenes in this movie are shorter and more brutal than the average Hong Kong action film, but this is easily forgiven as the quality of the film-making is so high. Most people watching martial arts movies will find themselves dozing through the story waiting for the next fight, but the good storytelling, quality acting, beautiful cinematography and stylish editing make the story elements of "Fighter in the Wind" a pleasure to watch. The cast all seem perfectly at home in their roles, making it easy to love or hate the characters as required. Dong-kun Yang plays Baedal with the right mix of naive idealism and hard-headed brutality. The stunning Aya Hirayama provides a likable love-interest. Taewoo Jeong is charming as Baedals cheeky con-man friend Chunbae, and Masaya Kato is suitably arrogant and superior as old-fashioned karate master Kato. This may be a film based around martial arts, but it is not a typical martial arts movie. The story features some spectacular fighting techniques from the surprisingly acrobatic Yang, but the fighting is an embellishment to an otherwise fascinating and well-told story rather than the focus of the movie.

• are you guys watching the same movie????

  jimbill52005-02-08

  i cant believe the comments made about this movie!this has to be Korea's best output in the martial arts genre since musa!!the fights certainly pull no punches you can hear heads and bones crunching!!i suggest you take another look and as you will see this a fine movie!!acting is good,the locations brilliant as the camera takes you around ghetto's to the wondrous scenes in the mountains,the training he puts him self through would make rocky balboa blush!!!the ice climb is excellent,you also get a feel for the period,this guy took no prisoners i can tell you,don't be put off from some reviews see this as a ruff n tumble session of extreme!!the last shot has to be seen to be believed!!!10/10 for a real gem of the martial arts kind!!!

• As my first Korean film, not bad

  rsuriyop2005-03-27

  To be quite honest, I didn't know anything about this film before I had purchased it. In fact, I had only bought it for two reasons. The first was that I knew it was a martial arts film and two, because it featured Masayo Kato, who appears in a few movies that I happen to like. However, by the time I had finished watching the movie, I had to admit that it exceeded my expectations for a few reasons. For instance, it had some drama, which most martial arts films tend to lack; the picture quality was superb; and above all, it was an autobiographical sketch based on a real life martial arts master. I won't go over the story, as I'm sure that a few other people had already given it away anyway. But to those who have criticized the film on the basis that it was "boring" just because the fights were too quick and not very well choreographed, I think it's important for them to acknowledge the fact that this was based on a true story. Most fights really did end relatively quick because of Choi Bae-dal's lethal blows. In fact, it was said that most fights between him and his opponents did not last more than three minutes, while other matches ended with only single blows coming from one of Bae-dal's kicks or punches. Needless to say, I did enjoy the film as I've already emphasized above and was glad that I saw it for another reason: because I would not have embraced Bae-dal's depicted character with the same respect that I currently have for the other great martial arts legends, the likes of which include Musashi, Bruce lee, Wong Fei Hong, et al. 8 out of 10