Saddle up for Arrow Video’s “The Good, The Bad, The Weird” on 4K UHD
- Kay Reynolds
- 4 hours ago
- 8 min read
Updated: 2 minutes ago
4K ULTRA HD REVIEW / HDR SCREENSHOTS
Korean actor Song Kang-ho, known for his role in the Academy Award Best Picture winner “Parasite,” plays ‘The Weird,’ Yoon Tae-goo, a resourceful bandit who gets his hands on a treasure map. (2) Lee Byung-hun plays ‘The Bad,’ Park Chag-yi, who was hired to steal the map first, and now he and his gang are chasing Yoon Tae-goo across the desert wilds of Manchuria.
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“THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE WEIRD”
4K Ultra HD & Blu-ray; 2008; R for profanity, some sexual material, action violence
Best extra: All good! “The cast” featurette (and the alternate endings!)
INSPIRED BY American Westerns, with a nod to Sergio Leone’s “The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly,” we get this “kimchee western” from Kim Jee-woon, creator/director/co-writer, with Min-suk Kim, “The Good, The Bad, The Weird.”
The time is 1939, just before the start of World War II as Japan began its occupation of Korea, Taiwan, and, eventually, China. Set in the desert wilds of Manchuria, The Bad, Park Chag-yi (Lee Byung-hun, “RED 2,” “The Magnificent Seven” remake, and the enigmatic Front Man of “Squid Game”) is hired to find a treasure map from a Japanese officer traveling by train. The treasure is a mystery, but it's big and others are after it. Chag-ye us an assassin and bandit, and his train derailment is the first of many well-orchestrated, explosive effects. The train set is a standout. The passenger coach, loaded from top to bottom with travelers and their complex accumulation of belongings and farm animals, is shown in stunning detail.
A shootout and chase by Chang-yi and his outlaw gang begins after he learns The Weird, thief Yoon Tae-goo (Song Kang-ho, “Parasite,” “Snowpiercer,” “The Host”) has already stolen the map. Who should show up next but The Good, Park Do-won (Jung Woo-sung, “Steel Rain,” “Reign of the Assassins”), a tried-and-true bounty hunter hunting for Chang-yi. Tae-goo will become a bonus prize if he can catch him.
When told by his friend that the bounty on his head is only 300 won, Tae-goo exclaims, “What? I’m only worth a piano?”
“A used one at that,” his friend replies.
This is one l-o-n-g chase, capture, escape, chase film. Everyone wants the map, while Park Do-won wants the criminals. “Every scene was an impossible mission … looking back, it was an insane attempt,” Director Kim Jee-woon tells us. And we believe it.
As he points out in his introduction, few Korean westerns had been made despite their popularity in his country. “I wanted to try a western, but I thought it was impossible,” he says in a featurette. “But then I saw a film from the Korean Film Archive. It was called “Break Up the Chain” by director Lee Man-hee – a western film. I thought, if the story’s set in Manchuria during the Japanese colonial period, I could make a western film based in Korea. So, I decided to give my favorite genre, Westerns, a try.”
There are more Asian westerns now, but “The Good, The Bad, The Weird” holds an international top-spot. It is total chaos from the beginning, bearing little resemblance to Leone’s masterpiece except in spirit. Still, the props are there, the horses, guns, and shootouts amidst evocative and elaborate settings. Production details are first class.
There’s plenty of action, and comedy, mostly through the antics of Tae-goo, usually seen riding a Chang Jiang CJ 750 MI motorcycle. Based on the IMZ-Ural (modern versions are called Gear Up), the model was also used in Ron Pearlman’s “Hell Boy.” Caught during an escape attempt, Tae-goo blames Do-won's "loose ropes" for setting him free. Tae-goo was only seeking out the bounty hunter to let him know about the issue. Good thieves think on their feet.
Arrow offers two versions of the film on the 4K disc, the original Korean cut at 136 minutes long and the shorter international cut at 129 minutes. IMBD reports the UK required cuts to remove scenes of three gruesome horse falls. TGTBTW is violent throughout, and it’s easy to see the shoot was rough on the actors and animals. Jung Woo-sung broke his arm in one scene. In the “Dusty Dust-ups and Sweaty Saddles” featurette, Martial Arts/Action Coordinator Jung Doo-hong reports that another action coordinator, Ji Joong-hyun, died. That death still haunts him.
Director Kim Jee-woon says the film's longer version references more Korean history of the time, while the shorter cut made it easier for Western audiences to enjoy. I watched both, without knowing much about Korean history or the UK cut demands, and preferred the tighter, shorter version.
Former film critic and scholar Steven Schneider includes “The Good, The Bad, The Weird” among his work, “1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.” I don’t know about that, but this Asian blockbuster stands out as a unique and unpredictable film experience.
VIDEO
Jee-woon and cinematographer Lee Mo-gae captured everything on 35mm film stock and in the Super 35 format (2.35:1 aspect ratio). It was originally mastered in 2K, with a number of VFX during the first act action sequence involving a train in the Manchuria desert.
Arrow says in the enclosed booklet, the 4K/SDR master was supplied by South Korean-based CJ Entertainment. The on-screen results indicate the original camera negative was not scanned in 4K, but an upconversion from the 2K master, which still exhibits halo artifacts around edges at times from over-sharpening and varying levels of clarity and film grain. Once the film moves into the second and final act, the film grain is more consistent, and the clarity improves slightly.
On the positive side, Arrow Video’s HDR10 and Dolby Vision grading is excellent, showing off outstanding color, with vivid but natural contrast in night and day, interior and exterior scenes. Complexions and clothing look realistic. And the frequent close-up imagery, mimicking Leone’s visual style, is superb, leaping toward viewers.
At its theatrical release, the film received 27 nominations from Asian and international film festivals and associations. It’s easy to see why.
Sadly, Arrow did not include a Blu-ray film disc in its 4K UHD package, making it difficult to enjoy the film through other household setups. The lone Blu-ray only holds the bonus featurettes.
AUDIO
It’s loud, with deep, thundering bass thanks to an uncompressed DTS-HD Master Audio eight-channel soundtrack. Pounding hooves, explosive artillery, gunshots, ricochets, and roaring engines soar through front, back, and side speakers. If dialogue is lost, it’s through the director’s choice for effect. Presented in Korean, subtitles provide English dialogue in addition to other languages. The score is by Dalpalan (aka Kang Ki-young) and Jang Yong-gy,u playing homage to Ennio Morricone.
Additional music includes Glenn Miller’s “Moonlight Serenade” as background for a stalker-killer scene. It’s an unusual choice, and the director was proud of how it turned out. Another surprise choice is Santa Esmeralda’s flamenco version of “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” used in the grand chase scene. Initially used as a test, the match of music to scene was so good, Kim Jee-woon decided to leave it in the film, although it was already well known from the soundtrack to Quentin Tarantino’s “Kill Bill Vol. 1.” “It was too perfect,” he says.
EXTRAS
Bonus features, Arrow has them beginning with a front-and-back fold-out poster, three postcard-sized portraits of its stars, and a 40-page, perfect-bound illustrated book by Darcy Paquet, Kyu Hyun Kim, Cho Jae-whee, and Ariel Schudson.
Most of the extras are found on the Blu-ray bonus disc. However, the 2024 Introduction by Kim Jee-woon and three commentaries are only found on the 4K disc.
Bonus features, Arrow’s got ‘em beginning with a front-and-back fold-out poster, three postcard sized portraits of its stars, and a 40-page, perfect bound illustrated book by Darcy Paquet, Kyu Hyun Kim, Cho Jae-whee and Ariel Schudson.
Most of the extras are found on the Blu-ray bonus disc.
Bonus features 4K disc:
Archival 2009 commentary of the International Cut by director Kim Jee-woon and actors Song Kang-ho, Lee Byung-hun, and Jung Woo-sung. It's nice to have the actors’ viewpoint on the film and their roles.
A new audio commentary by film critic James Marsh and film critic and producer Pierce Conran, who describe the film’s connection to other films and genres, the careers of the cast and crew, and the historical context. Entertaining and informative.
A more technical archival audio commentary of the Korean Version by director Kim Jee-woon, cinematographer Lee Mogae, lighting director Oh Seung-chul, and art director Cho Hwa-sung.
Introduction to the film (90 secs.) by Kim Jee-woon.
Bonus Features Blu-ray:
NEW “Corralling Chaos in the Desert” (26 mins.), an interview with director Kim Jee-woon. The director says he likes his film to be called a “kimchee western” after his country's “spicy and vibrant” food. He also discusses working on location, working with the actors, use of color and music choices.
NEW “Dusty Dust-ups and Sweaty Saddles” (15 mins.), an interview with martial arts coordinator Jung Doo-hong (“From the World of John Wick: Ballerina”) talks about the challenges of making the film and its dangers, and finding inspiration from Hollywood and Italian westerns.
The Showdown
(1-4) The showdown was patterned after the finale in Sergio Leone’s classic “The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly” (1966) starring Clint Eastwood, Eli Wallach, and Lee Van Cleef.
Archival making-of films and featurettes:
“Running Fast” (90 mins) is a feature-length making-of showing raw footage and filmmaker interviews.
“The Good, The Bad, The Weird and The Vicious” (19 mins.) promotional roundtable.
“Analogue” (13 mins.) is an Electronic Press Kit covering cinematography, logistics and stunts.
“Space” (10 mins.) Looks at production design with Cho Hwa-sung.
“Sound” (11 mins.) Chio Tae-Young explores sound design and production.
“Movie/Storyboards Comparison” (14 mins.)
“Behind the Scenes Promo” (15 mins.)
“Making-of EPK No. 1 & No. 2” (4 mins.)
Interviews: (11 mins.) “Song Kang-ho,” “Lee Byung-hun,” “Jung Woo-sung” and “Cannes Film Festival Highlight Reel”
Deleted Scenes” (44 mins.) with optional director’s commentary.
“Alternate Scene Music” (47 secs.) with a director’s commentary.
“Five Alternate Endings” (18 mins.) is one of my favorites.
Korean, international, U.S., and U.K. trailer galleries
Image gallery
“The Western is an American genre,” Kim Jee-woon explains. “That’s where it originated, and movies of this genre were exclusively made there until the emergence of the Spaghetti Westerns … If you think about a Western film, it’s so easy to picture what the movie would be like. The wilds and the frontier. That’s what the map encompasses. There’s adventure, and there’s a frontier spirit that sparks the journey. That map has the power to create it all, from the wilds to the unclaimed land. Also, a treasure map brings out human desires. You can include all the traits and factors of the West into one map.”
Worth a re-watch or two? Definitely – but you can find out for yourself. Enjoy!
— Kay Reynolds
SPECS:
100 GB disc
Original 2K mastering and upconverted to 4K for this presentation.
35mm film stock, captured in the 3-perf 35 Super format (2.35:1 aspect)
Video bitrate: Varies from 42 Megabits-per-second to 94 Mbps.
Box office: $36 million domestically in South Korea, $43 million worldwide, with a production budget of $10 million. It finished as the No. 1 South Korean film in 2008.
Rotten Tomatoes: Top critics’ 72 percent, Moviegoers 83 percent
Metacritic: Critics 69 percent, User score 7.4
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