7.7 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
In this true story set in 1980, a down-on-his-luck taxi driver from Seoul is hired by a foreign journalist who wants to go to the town of Gwangju for the day. They arrive to find a city under siege by the military government, with the citizens, led by a determined group of college students, rising up to demand freedom. What began as an easy fare becomes a life-or-death struggle in the midst of the Gwangju Uprising, a critical event in modern South Korea.
Starring: Song Kang-ho, Thomas Kretschmann, Yoo Hae-jin, Choi Gwi-hwa, Ryu Jun-yeolForeign | 100% |
Drama | 39% |
History | 11% |
Action | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Korean: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Korean: Dolby Digital 2.0
English
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A, B (C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 0.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
What a difference a little indefinite article can make. A Taxi Driver without that “A” would be, well, Taxi Driver, and while there’s a certain urban grittiness to both films, they
otherwise couldn’t be more different. A Taxi Driver purports to be based on true events, and as evidenced by a rather touching brief
reminiscence during the final credits by a German journalist named Jürgen Hinzpeter (portrayed by Thomas Kretschmann in the actual film), at
least the broad outlines of
the story
are obviously factual. A Taxi Driver couldn’t be more relevant in a way considering how much Korea has been in the news lately, despite
the fact that this particular story takes place in 1980. As some introductory text
explanations which begin the film offer, the South Korea of that era was fraught with political discord, with a dictatorship giving way to a military
coup that may in fact remind some folks of at least some of the political underpinnings of North Korea. In a rather startling tonal detour
(something this film rather artfully maneuvers through at various subsequent points), after this dour setup, the film becomes almost whimsical as
it details some adventures of Seoul taxi driver Kim Man-seob (Song Kang-ho).
Man-seob drives a pretty ratty looking lime green compact which
has obviously seen better days, but which is his pride and joy, at least in the mechanical department. After a raucous opening that sees him
caught up in some of the political discord but still able to get an expectant mother in labor to her appointed rounds at the maternity ward before
it’s too late, the film once again traverses from almost slapstick comedy to some heartfelt emotion as it reveals that Man-seob’s real pride
and joy is his spunky daughter Eun-jeong (Yoo Eun-mi), a sweet little girl who nonetheless doesn’t suffer fools gladly, which has led to some knock
down drag out fights with the little boy next door, who unfortunately for Man-seob turns out to be the son of his landlord and landlady.
A Taxi Driver is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Well Go USA with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. The IMDb lists Arri Alexa Minis and a 2K DI as the technical specs on this production, and this has a really nicely sharp and well detailed presentation virtually across the board. There are some interesting grading choices going on, with the bulk of the first part of the film, and then several interstitial later sequences, being bathed in a kind of combo yellow-green tone which tends to emphasize elements like Man-seob's shirt, his cab, and the surrounding foliage. While the palette doesn't look exactly "natural" in these moments, detail levels are actually quite good. Later sequences, especially after the unrest is more thoroughly depicted, can be skewed toward blue or orange-red, and here fine detail levels do take at least a bit of a hit. Some of the CGI in the riot sequences is not especially convincing, and many of these scenes are almost opaque looking due to things like teargas cannisters exploding and other signs of carnage. Aside from the Well Go USA masthead, I didn't notice any moments of banding.
A Taxi Driver offers a nicely immersive DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track in the original Korean. A busy urban environment in the film's opening sequences provides good use of the surrounds to establish the hustle and bustle of city life, while the later "road trip" sequences offer at least passing moments of ambient environmental effects as the focal pair gets out and about. It's the last part of the film where the soundtrack really kicks into high gear, though, as some frightening skirmishes take place. Dialogue is always presented cleanly and clearly and the film's often kind of oddly lilting score also spreads nicely through the side and rear channels.
South Korea evidently entered A Taxi Driver as its selection for this past year's Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award, though it wasn't shortlisted for actual nomination. I was really quite taken with this effort, not only for the (apparently mostly true) history it provides, but more importantly for the rather incredible character of Man-seob. As stated above, the film closes with a really moving appeal from the real life Hinzpeter attempting to reunite with his long lost taxi driver, something that evidently didn't happen before Hinzpeter died. Online sources suggest that a post-mortem reunion (so to speak) was delivered by this film itself, one whose fame alerted the real life Man-seob's surviving son. Highly recommended.
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