The Drug King

2018

2h 19m

Action

Crime

Drama

List

71%

Tomatometer

7 Reviews

32%

Audience Score

50+ Ratings

In the 1970s, a petty smuggler in Busan joins the illicit drug trade and rises to the top of the Japanese narcotics trade.

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Yasser Medina

Cinefilia

It becomes boring as it goes through the same prefabricated clichés about the rise and fall of a drug lord. [Full review in Spanish]

Rated: 5/10

Jan 25, 2024

Full Review

Andrew Heskins

easternKicks.com

A solid but overly familiar true-life crime drama from Inside Men director Woo Min-ho

Rated: 3/5

Apr 25, 2021

Full Review

William Schwartz

HanCinema

The tunes are almost never actually appropriate for the situation, especially if you're listening to the lyrics, and Doo-sam is exactly the kind of guy who doesn't.

Jun 21, 2019

Full Review

Brian Costello

Common Sense Media

Ultra-violent Korean crime movie has cursing, drug use.

Rated: 2/5

Mar 6, 2019

Full Review

Joel Keller

Decider

The Drug King is ambitious! It's also derivative. And funny! And familiar. It's an epic! But it feels about 20 minutes too long.

Mar 4, 2019

Full Review

Christian Jimenez

Flickering Myth

Woo has succeeded with a constrained yet solid style in a creating a devastating portrait that will surely be imitated in the future

Rated: 3/5

Feb 28, 2019

Full Review

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Audience Member

Whole time I was just "????" Cut scenes were bad. There were so many characters introduced without even introducing who they were or how relevant they were in the film. Story is very confusing. I never understood the general plot.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

01/27/23

Full Review

Navindra S

Starts out so fun and light-hearted, it gets you thinking that it'll be different from Scarface and American Gangster. Then the second half of the movie starts, and it literally turns into both of those movies.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

07/11/20

Full Review

Audience Member

Cinematic and beautifully done! Great soundtrack, some really dramatic and creative screenplay. Plot is 1000% predictable, however.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/05/23

Full Review

Audience Member

5/10. I don't know what the film want to be; a comedy or a serious movie. I expect to be more excited like Narcos TV series. The gangster stuff looks not so real like American or Mexican gangster. Couldn't believe this base on true story.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/21/23

Full Review

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Woo Min-ho

Director

Song Kang-ho

Lee Dusam

Jo Jung-suk

Kim In-goo

Bae Doo-na

Kim Jeong-a

Jo Woo-jin

Jo Seong-kang

Kim Dae-myung

Lee Doo-hwan

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Synopsis

In the 1970s, a petty smuggler in Busan joins the illicit drug trade and rises to the top of the Japanese narcotics trade.

Director: Woo Min-ho
Screenwriter: Woo Min-ho, Lee Jimin
Production Co: Hive Media Corp.
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama
Original Language: Korean
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 21, 2019
Runtime: 2h 19m

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