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The Berlin File 2013

by Expoloring Korean cinema 2024. 3. 13.

Everything was wrong from the beginning.
2013 Mega Action Project

Berlin, the city of destiny where a massive international conspiracy lurks.
National Intelligence Service agent Jung Jinsoo, while inspecting an illegal arms trading site, discovers the existence of a mysterious agent known as "Ghost," whose nationality is unknown and whose fingerprints cannot even be detected. As Jung Jin-soo pursues him to uncover his identity, he becomes entangled in an uncontrollable crisis involving a hidden massive international conspiracy.


Meanwhile, Dong Myung-soo, dispatched to eliminate Pyo Jongseong and take control of Berlin, tightens the noose by framing his wife, Yeon Jung-hee, as a traitor, using it as leverage to threaten Pyo Jong-seong and everything he holds dear. Pyo Jong-seong, in an attempt to prove his wife's innocence amidst Dong Myung-soo's threats, finds himself embroiled in chaos upon discovering unexpected secrets about his wife.

A breathtaking pursuit ensues as they are entangled in international conspiracies and pursue their own objectives!
In 2013, a mega action project unfolds!

 

Many consider it to have made a mark in the history of South Korean espionage films. The actors' performances were outstanding, but the overall delivery of dialogue was lacking, making it difficult for audiences to fully understand the story. Particularly, the North Korean dialect was criticized for its awkward pronunciation, making it hard to comprehend. Despite being a masterpiece, the film received negative reviews due to its poor dialogue delivery.

It became the top grossing film after attracting 1.05 million viewers nationwide in just two days of release, surpassing the impressive 860,000 viewers drawn by "The Thieves" during the same period, despite having about 100 fewer screens. On February 2nd, it attracted 630,000 viewers in just one day, surpassing 2 million viewers nationwide by February 3rd. Due to its explosive success, the number of screens increased significantly to 880. Although it temporarily relinquished the top spot to "Miracle in Cell No. 7" on February 7th, it surpassed 3 million viewers nationwide on the 8th, 4 million on the 10th, and reached 4.72 million by the 11th. There was speculation about whether it and "Miracle in Cell No. 7" would both achieve the 10 million viewer milestone, marking the first time two Korean films achieved this in a single year.

By the 16th, it had attracted 5.47 million viewers nationwide. While it initially outperformed "Masquerade" and "Miracle in Cell No. 7" in the first ten days with 3.38 million viewers compared to their 2.78 million and 2.81 million, respectively, it fell short of the 5.2 million viewers achieved by "The Thieves". It later slipped to third place after the release of "New World" on February 21st, attracting 649,000 viewers over the weekend. While "Miracle in Cell No. 7" surpassed 10 million viewers, "Berlin" gradually declined. By March, it struggled to fill 100,000 viewers nationwide on weekends, dropping to fourth place in the box office. By March 4th, it had attracted over 7 million viewers nationwide, but dropped to fifth place with less than 30,000 viewers over the weekend. By March 11th, it had attracted 7.1 million viewers, falling out of the top 10 box office rankings after the 19th. By the 22nd, it had attracted a total of 7.16 million viewers before ending its run. Its final cumulative viewership was 7,166,485, marking a successful run.

 

The stage is set in Berlin, where South and North Korean espionage agents converge. Jung Jin-soo, a South Korean intelligence agent, discovers the presence of a mysterious North Korean agent named Pyo Jong-seong, who was involved in illegal arms deals at the North Korean embassy. Meanwhile, another North Korean agent named Dong Myungsoo is dispatched to investigate, leading to tensions and suspicions among the agents. However, the involvement of the CIA and Mossad is brief, and the story simplifies quickly. Despite being set in Berlin, the film's scope remains relatively small, focusing mainly on the internal power struggles within the North Korean embassy. While the backdrop suggests Cold War tensions and Middle Eastern conflicts, the events primarily revolve around the intrigue surrounding the embassy, rather than broader geopolitical themes.

I agree that the action choreography in the sequence where Pyo Jong-seong and Ryeon Jeong-hee engage in a lengthy action scene, culminating in a fall from the 13th floor and the shattering of a glass roof, is worth watching twice. However, unfortunately, such sequences do not reappear afterward. Most of the action feels dull or incomplete, leaving a sense of something missing. Moreover, once the guns start firing, the action becomes oddly mundane. Director Ryoo Seungwan certainly knows how to evoke a visceral response when characters engage in physical combat, but once firearms are involved, it feels strangely toy-like.

The frustrating moment comes when one realizes that the beginning and end of the movie are different. In the latter half, the characters act as if they have forgotten they are spies. So, what exactly were they risking their lives for in this murky world of espionage?

At the film's conclusion, there's no lamentation about the characters' fate stemming from the North South Korean confrontation, no cold gaze at the betrayal of North Korea's new leader Kim Jong-un, and no outlook on lost hope while still guarding against South Korea's 'reactionary' capitalism. Jin-soo suddenly feels a sense of camaraderie with Jong-seong, setting him free, and Jong-seong warns Dong Myung-soo's father in North Korea before boarding a flight to Vladivostok, a naive and sentimental ending. Faced with this absurdly melodramatic ending, I was left bewildered.

Was I really watching a spy movie? The film somehow subverts the cyclical structure somewhere. I would rather return to the spies' everyday reality and find cause and effect within it. Yes, I understand what the result is. But why does this film feel like it's playing a double agent? How would it be if Ryeon Jeong hee's double life was essentially the true identity of the double agent?


I'd rather listen to the suspicions and voices of sacrifice surrounding the crisis of a married couple in "Berlin" rather than the dull and monotonous chase of spies. If the underlying story of this movie were to change into a narrative where the suspicions of Tae-jung Sung towards his wife, Ryeon Jeong-hee, who engages in extramarital affairs with other men under the pretext of diplomatic receptions, become a battleground within a giant spy organization, and they exchange trials and sacrifices to give each other a chance for forgiveness, how would it be? "Berlin" would then be nothing more than a melodrama revolving around Tae-jung Sung's suspicion and crisis regarding his wife. Perhaps this choice is more bearable than the moral vacuum of a true spy movie. But I am now imagining the true spy version of "Berlin." Spies are the bait that reveal the unconscious of a nation. This is what John le Carré said.