Once Upon A Time In High School

Dang. I didn't like this movie as much as I thought I would. My main problem, surpringly enough, was the main character: I never realized it before, but it looks like I prefer strong protagonists, over weak, passive resistent ones. Hyun Soo wasn't exactly weak in all honesty... but for a majority of this film, he was a giant pushover. It made most of the film uncomfortable to watch, and he made me want to bang my head against a wall many times.

I've also discovered that I'm not a huge fan of Han Ga In, the girl that plays Hyun Soo's love interest. I've seen her in Super Rookie, and in a drama I've been help sub, Doctor Kkaeng... something about her just rubs me the wrong way. Of course, the character she played in this movie didn't help her case at all: I couldn't stand the character, and didn't understand what Hyun Soo saw in her! Thankfully Kwon Sang Woo is an amazing actor, and he made watching the movie more than worthwhile. ^_^

As for story and pacing... it was good. I must admit though, that by half-way through the movie I was tired of watching, and just wanted the story to end. It had a very strong beginning, and if the main character had been an easier character for me to root for, I would have enjoyed it a lot more. I think it just overshadowed the rest of the movie, and made it hard for me to enjoy it to its full potential. With every twist, I just wanted to scream, or shake one of the characters. I loved Hamburger though. He was a great, fun character. And the depiction of the school was really brutal. I can't believe how horrible teachers were allowed to treat students back then! I really couldn't blame Hyun Soo for finally snapping. It's just too bad it came so late...

In the beginning, I thought Bruce Lee would have a much bigger impact on Hyun Soo... instead, his influence didn't have any impact until the last 10 minutes of the movie. The main character seemed more moved by music, and 'turning the other cheek', than fighting. And the fight scenes weren't even that great. I've seen some great fight scenes in movies, and these just paled in comparison to all of those. These were more realistic, with lots of flailing, and head butts to stomachs.

Overall, it was a powerful film, though the moral came off a little ambiguous to me. But for some reason, I just couldn't enjoy into this movie the way I wanted to...

My Rating: