Assassination is a meticulously crafted film crammed with diverse elements, including sumptuously detailed set design, goofy slapstick humour, and even a meet cute. Best of all, there’s a kickass heroine (complexly realised by Gianna Jun). Dong-hoon’s screenplay constantly surprises, though more often with sudden bursts of brutally soundtracked gory violence than through its narrative of double-crossing spies.

All of this comes at a price: the exhausting runtime. Bravura camerawork, flawlessly executed fight choreography and effective music soften the blow, but a further edit could have made the Shakespearean familial tragedy at its core even more powerful.

Although the convoluted plot is at times headache-inducing, Assassination impresses with its many setpieces, executed in just 24 days of shooting, and fascinatingly considers duplicity, identity, and determination.

RATING: 4/5

INFORMATION

CAST: Gianna Jun, Lee Jung-jae, Ha Jung-woo, Oh Dal-soo, Cho Jin-woong, Choi Deok-moon

Director: Choi Dong-hoon

WRITER: Choi Dong-hoon

SYNOPSIS: In 1933 the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea singles out three people whose identities are unknown to Japan for a special mission.