Man, you got to watch this Oriental Western made by South Korean film-maker Kim Ji-woon to understand the difference between the Indian bilge and the films made in the small corners of the world.

As even you schmucks would realize, the South Korean film The Good, the Bad and the Weird is inspired by Sergio Leone’s old spaghetti Western The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.

The movie was playing in theaters in the U.S. a few months back but we missed it in one of our bad decisions.

Hence, when the DVD appeared on Netflix we leaped at the opportunity to see this South Korean film.

We just finished watching the movie and, boy, we got to tell you this – there’s not a single Indian filmmaker among the teeming clowns in Bollywood and Kollywood who can pull off a feat like Kim Ji-woon.

When you are following in the footsteps of an old classic like The Good, the Bad and the Ugly it’s easy to fall short.

Deo gratia, Kim Ji-woon doesn’t stumble, not for one moment.

The Good, the Bad and the Weird is a wild ride and a thoroughly satisfying entertainer.

In Sergio’s Footsteps
The South Korean film broadly follows the outline of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: Essentially, the movie is about three gun-slingers in pursuit of a buried treasure.

The difference is in the setting, details and the Asian cast.

Eschewing the Wild West of America, the film’s makers have opted for the barren deserts of Manchuria in China during the 1930s.

And the three key actors are Song Kang-ho, Lee Byung-hun and Jung Woo-sung.

Of the three main characters, Song Kang-ho gets the most screen-time as Yoon Tae-goo, the Weird; Lee Byung-hun is Park Chang-yi, the Bad and Jung Woo-sung plays Park Do-won, the Good.

All three deliver the goods but it’s Song Kang-ho, with a face that only a mother could love, whose image in his funny costumes is indelibly etched in our mind as he goes about fighting various elements in his relentless pursuit of the buried treasure. Song Kang-ho proves that you don’t need finely chiseled features or a doting father with the last name of Bachchan to make it as an actor in the movie business (not that the bozo Abhishek has made it).

All you need is talent and dedication, both qualities in short supply in the Indian movie business.

With its train heist, horse-chases, the relentless pursuit of Yoon Tae-goo by all for the map, the Jap soldiers, the many fights and escapes and the final Mexican standoff, The Good, the Bad and the Weird moves along at a super-brisk canter that keeps you glued to the screen. And that’s not a mean feat considering the story in its outlines is not new.

The action scenes, and they are a plenty here, are very well executed and a couple of twists keep the movie from being completely predictable for those who have seen Sergio Leone’s work.

SearchIndia.com recommends The Good, the Bad and the Weird. You can get the DVD from Netflix in the U.S. As for the folks in India, well, need we say more. 😉

  the Bad and the Weird, The Good