A South-Korean take on the Spaghetti Western genre, "Kudo: Age of the Rampant" often wears its Quentin Tarantino influence on its sleeve, even going so far as to frequently play a musical selection taken from "Django Unchained". While an imitation can't reach the heights of the real deal, the film still manages to be a highly entertaining, years-spanning revenge film that features several complex characters.
At first, the film seems to be about a group of bandits fighting the unjust rich and ruling class on behalf of the less fortunate. They're basically a more violent version of Robin Hood. They don't just steal from the rich--they often kill them, too. After an introductory sequence, however, the group retreats to the film's periphery for a while, as we move onto Act II (the film is divided into five acts). Now we're introduced to Dolmuchi, a butcher (helpful onscreen text informs American audiences that it South Korean society at this time, a butcher was regarded as little better than a slave). Dolmuchi makes a deal with Jo Yoon, illegitimate son of a wealthy noble. When Dolmuchi fails to follow through on his end of the deal, his mother and sister are killed, and he is left for dead, but rescued by the bandits, who he joins. For the next several years, he goes along with their attempt to fight the rich, but never forgets about his own need for vengeance against Jo Yoon.
There are many tangents the film allows itself to go on. While they may at times be too indulgent and contribute to a runtime that's a little too high, they mostly work. A whole sequence is devoted to Jo Yoon's childhood, showing the struggles he endured as an illegitimate child, especially once a legitimate son was born. While he is clearly the villain and does despicable things, the audience does feel some degree of sympathy and understanding for him. In some places it can almost be difficult not to root for the guy--he gets ambushed at one point, but manages to fight off dozens of attackers on his own. In the end, he is only defeated because of an act of kindness. In the same way, Dolmuchi is a great character. He has a big arc, changing both internally and in his appearance as he goes from despised butcher to respected member in the bandits' hierarchy.
The film is peppered with great martial arts sequences that, while often extreme, are also grounded. There's no excessive, physics defying wire work to be found here. That these sequences are often accompanied by Spaghetti Western style guitar music sets them apart even further.
The story takes several twists in the last hour, and I am loathe to say much more so as not to give anything away. The film deserves to be experienced. It's a sweeping revenge epic with some memorable characters that mixes several different styles together to create one that is all its own.
A-
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