DVD Corner

The Good, The Bad, The Weird 4K UHD Review

“The Good, The Bad, The Weird” is eventful, but runs out of steam. 

Clearly inspired by “The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly,” 2008’s “The Good, The Bad, The Weird” is a South Korean western written by Kim Jee-woon and Kim Min-suk. As you might imagine, the 30’s set story primarily revolves around 3 characters- Park Chang-yi (the violent, emo, cocky bandit bad guy) who is hired to steal a treasure map from a man named Kanemaru, Yoon Tae-goo (the weird small-time thief with a dark past) who actually steals the treasure map, and Park Do-won (the good bounty hunter who is after Park Chang-yi). The map is also coveted by a group of Manchurian bandits and Japanese and Manchurian army troops. Who will end up with the map?

Director Kim Jee-woon’s “The Good, The Bad, The Weird” is a film that is certainly not lacking in style. The filmmaker brings plenty of flair here with wild zooms, handheld shots, tracking shots, inventive action, colorful production values and costumes, intense shootouts, and unique camera movements. He keeps the movie moving at a fast pace, but at 129 minutes, the movie feels decidedly drawn out for what is essentially a big chase movie. There’s not enough story here to justify the runtime and the final 45 minutes (while full of action) starts to run out of creativity. We all know the story is leading to a showdown between Park Chang-yi, Yoon Tae-goo and Park Do-won. It’s just a matter of how it all plays out. 

The cast keeps the movie flowing. Song Kang-ho (best known for “Parasite”) steals the show as the oddball Yoon Tae-goo, Jung Woo-sung exudes cool as Park Do-won and Lee Byung-hun (who you may recognize from “Squid Game”) is a proper baddie.

Viewers have the option of playing the International or Korean version of the film.

Video/Audio:

Presentation: 2.35:1 2160p. How does it look? Right away the image quality is noticeably sharper. The colors are particularly more vibrant.

Audio Track: Korean 7.1 DTS-HD MA. How does it sound? The 7.1 track is nothing short of lively.

Extras:
* US, UK, Korean and International trailers
* Photo gallery
* 5 alternate endings
* “Coralling Chaos In The Desert”- A 2025 interview with director Kim Jee-woon
* “Dusty Dust-Ups And Sweaty Saddles”-  A 2024 interview with Korean stunt choreographer Jung Doo-hong
* Archival extras- “Analogue” (a featurette on stunts, cinematography and lighting), “Space” (production design featurette), “Sound” (sound design featurette), alternate scene, deleted scenes with optional commentary, 2 making of featurettes, movie/storyboards comparison, behind the scenes featurette, 4 interviews with Kim Jee-woon and actors Song Kang-ho, Lee Byung-hun and Jung Woo-sung, Cannes Highlight Reel, “The Good, The Bad, The Weird And The Vicious (talks between Kim Jee-won and the cast), and “Running Fast” (vintage promotional extra).
* An intro by Kim Jee-woon.
* 3 commentary tracks. One by Kim Jee-woon and cast members Song Kang-ho, Lee Byung-hun and Jung Woo-sung (on the International version), one by film critic/producer Pierce Conran and film critic James Marsh (on the International version) and one by Kim Jee-woon, DP Lee Mo-gae, lighting director O Seung-cheol, and art director Cho Hwa-sung (on the Korean version).

September 30, 2025 - Posted by nicklyons1 | 4K UHD Review | Arrow Video, Lee Byung-hun, Song Kang-ho, South Korean Film, The Good The Bad The Weird 4K UHD Review, western