Good concept, poorly executed.

everything you have heard about this movie is true.

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

You want realistic military training? How about the first one to assemble their gun gets to shoot the competitor in the head? How about target practice with real soldiers interspersed between?How about a film that out grossed Titanic in Korea?How about a really hot secret agent (Yunjin Kim)?Lots of action and exploding buildings. Not really up on the politics, so I am sure I missed something. As some have said, the film is a metaphor for those who want to see a united Korea. The two lovers represent that effort.At the end, it is a rush to find the assassin at a futbol game between the two countries.

From the start you will get the idea that this movie is going to be a blast! Soon you will realize that this is not the case! I liked this movie but was expecting so much more! I don't know what the director was trying to achieve! An action movie with a message! Stop the conflict and reunite! Or he was trying to make a thriller with a lot of action in it! As a thriller it fails! From very early on it is obvious who the leak (traitor) is,since there are not many characters to blame! It is interesting to see however the traitor got the info! The story wasn't that bad. But it only function was to set up the surprise twist (which isn't a surprise at all)! The acting is solid! Yunjin Kim (from "Lost) gives a good performance! The action scenes were nice,a bit above average,but nothing really eye popping! The people who are responsible for marketing this movie earn praise. "Shiri or Swiri" got a lot of publicity for a movie that is nothing special!

In the year 1999 the film that dominated most East Asian film markets was James Cameron's Titanic which would go on to be the highest grossing film of all time. However, in South Korea the film that was number one at the box office was Shiri, an action-packed film that would go on to set South Korean box office records and force the Hollywood juggernaut to take notice that films produced in other countries could compete with the likes of Titanic. In the end 1/7 of South Korea's entire population would go to the theater to watch Shiri and it also received accolades in other Asian countries and helped revitalize the South Korean film industry whose government imposed that South Korean films had to be shown at least 106 days a year so that it could compete with foreign films and it also put on the road to stardom Choi Min-sik and Han Suk-kyu.Shiri opens with scene after scene of the brutal training endured by those who wish to become members of the 8th Division, an elite force of North Korean Commandos. Amongst these individuals is a young woman named Lee Bang-hee who not only surpasses her male counterparts in fighting skills, but who is unmatched in her marksmanship. With her weapon of choice she perfectly severs the spinal cord with one shot and obliterates the heart with the next. Surviving her training, Bang-hee is sent to South Korea and assassinates several important political figures until suddenly disappearing. However, one day she returns and seems to be up to her old tricks again. Two special agents are assigned to her case, Yu Jongwon and Lee Janggil; however, she continues to foil them time after time. While searching for Bang-hee who has recently assassinated an arms dealer and a scientist who were working together under the table, Yu and Lee soon learn that the 8th division led by their old nemesis Park Mu-young is plotting to steal a new weapon called CMX which is ten times stronger than an average bomb, liquid, and virtually undetectable and are unable to stop Park when he successfully does steal the CMX. Park calls the agency and informs them that ten sites in Seoul are set to be destroyed by the 8th Division. If this scenario wasn't bad enough, it is taking place right at the same time the leaders of both South and North Korea are planning to attend a soccer match in which the North and the South play each other.Combining action, romance, and melodrama Shiri is quite an engaging film that can be appreciated on many different levels. Due to its success a number of clones were produced that did not quite live up to the original, but they helped revamp the slumping South Korean film industry to show the world that blockbusters do not only originate in Hollywood.

Shiri is a film that is more than just the sum of its parts. Surrounds the lives of a couple of secret agents in South Korea who are chasing after a mysterious North Korean assassin (par excellence). As with thriller the film twists and turns, but the real difference between this and many other movies of the ilk is that it takes in the feelings and emotions of the people in it on two major fronts. One is on a personal front (the relationship of one of the agents with his recovering alcoholic girlfriend) and the other is that of Korean Unification.Without giving too much away, this film builds and builds as the cat and mouse storyline sees the agents get increasingly frustrated with the their assassin always being one step ahead of them somehow.The film is takes from Heat and Nikita in particular, but has its own original strands. The lead actor from "OldBoy" (another Korean movie) dazzles in his supporting role, but the main trio are brilliantly acted also and hopefully we will get to see them again in various other films.Overall, a great movie. No aspect is overall, be it the action or the romance, but everything seems to blend in together well. Highly recommended for fans of South Korean film making, currently the finest in the world.