A Bittersweet Life

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A Bittersweet Life

2005

2h 0m

Drama

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Popcornmeter

100%

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12 Reviews

90%

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10,000+ Ratings

A gangster (Lee Byung-hun) starts a violent feud after he refuses to kill his boss's (Kim Yeong-cheol) cheating girlfriend.

Anton Bitel

Little White Lies

scenes of Tarantino-esque mayhem, messy rebirth and ultra-violent destruction serve to dramatise Sun-woo’s conflicting inner desires as he shadow-boxes with himself as much as taking down everyone else.

Apr 11, 2024

Full Review

Empire Magazine

Rated: 4/5

Apr 1, 2006

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Panos Kotzathanasis

HanCinema

The film is filled with cliches of the category, starting with the script and continuing with the characters. However, Kim Jee-woon seems to realize the fact, and does not take the film so seriously, in a tactic that adds to the entertainment it offers

Dec 16, 2018

Full Review

Tim Brayton

Antagony & Ecstasy

The worst things about it are still awfully solid, and the best things are deep and probing far beyond what you'd ever naturally expect from a film of this model.

Rated: 8/10

Mar 4, 2015

Full Review

Adam Lippe

Examiner.com

It's all artifice. No matter how good the acting, how stylish the visuals, or efficient the screenplay, A Bittersweet Life never convinces us that it's not a movie.

Dec 17, 2011

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Don Willmott

Filmcritic.com

What's great about all this isn't just the gloriously choreographed violence (among the best I've ever seen) but also Lee Byeong-heon's bravura and surprisingly profound performance

Rated: 4/5

Mar 10, 2009

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Mark C

Heavily romanticized gang film saved by Lee's magnetism.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

07/08/25

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Audience Member

It's a very sad movie, so much going on in the movie. The lead actor can't shoot, they portray him as the quiet, mysterious and a ruthless man and still he can't fight three guys that jumped hum. The mafia guys hardly have any guns, there is no police at all...

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

06/02/25

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Will S

Simply outstanding. Gratuitous without being excessive. Mean, but with a great sense of humor. Extremely awesome John Wooish modern gangster film.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

04/05/25

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Dani G

It's one of those cases where you are watching a very enjoyable (and sometimes gratuitous) non-stop violence and bloody fest that's not ok, but you don't have a problem watching it again to enjoy once more. I wonder if John Wick took some elements from this one

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/18/25

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b s

又是一部有强烈韩国风格，荷尔蒙爆满，但却脱离现实的电影。作者在满足商业片爽感的前提下，通过佛经和回忆植入了自己的思想，多少会带来一点抽离和不协调。

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/11/25

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K Y

Forever Classic In My heart

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

03/06/25

Full Review

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Kim Jee-woon

Director

Lee Byung-hun

Seon-u

Kim Yeong-cheol

Boss Kang

Shin Min-a

Huisu

Kim Roe ha

Munseok

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Synopsis

A gangster (Lee Byung-hun) starts a violent feud after he refuses to kill his boss's (Kim Yeong-cheol) cheating girlfriend.

Director: Kim Jee-woon
Producer: Oh Jeong-wan
Screenwriter: Kim Jee-woon
Production Co: Bom Film Productions
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Korean
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 22, 2019
Runtime: 2h 0m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital Surround EX