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The Con Artists (기술자들) Movie Review

The Con Artists (기술자들) Movie Review | by tiffanyyong.com

Recommended Audience: Fans of KIM Woo-bin, KIM Young-chol, GO Chang-suk, LEE Hyun-woo, JO Yoon-hee , LIM Ju-hwan and KPop/Korean movie fans

The Con Artists Singapore Poster

The Con Artists (기술자들) Movie Synopsis

The Con Artists_official (2)Ji-hyuck(KIM Woo-bin), a remarkably intelligent safe-cracker and con-artist with exceptional talent in every kind of fraud, holds hands with Goo-in(GO Chang-suk), his best friend and guy with top connections, and Jong-bae(LEE Hyun-woo), the youngest hacker in the field who can hack even the most impenetrable security system. The fantastic team rob a top-secured jewelry shop, and make headlines overnight.

The Con Artists_official (37)Keeping a close eye on them, Chairman CHO (KIM Young-chol), the black hand of the financial world, draw Ji-hyuck and boys into his grand operation, which is to steal, in just 40 minutes, black money in the sum of 150 million dollars hidden in Incheon Customs, which boasts of the top security system in North East Asia.

The Con Artists (기술자들) Viewer Rating: 3.5/5 ***

The Con Artists (기술자들) Movie Review:

The Con Artists_official (49)Korean Pop will most probably be overjoyed with this film as there are quite a few pretty faces in this film, and I was glad, they were not JUST pretty faces, but also actors who managed to pull off their roles pretty well. Fine, I was actually referring to the trio (Ji-hyuck(KIM Woo-bin); Goo-in(GO Chang-suk); Jong-bae(LEE Hyun-woo) and Chairman CHO (KIM Young-chol)).

The Con Artists_official (22)There were a few things which I was impressed with. One, the impressive scale of the port and how the whole heist was carried out with the skills of a few men.

The Con Artists_official (50)Second, the accuracy of hacking a safe, the security system etc, it was so real (and if you read the “Do You Know” section), that I had little problem believing the authenticity of their skills. Only worry is if this film will encourage more youths to go into such fraud activities!

I haven’t caught “The Inheritors”, so I’m definitely not biased towards Kim Woo-bin, but I had to admit that his bad-ass cheeky look definitely suit his film character!

The Con Artists_official (55)Disappointment? Eun-ha (Jo Yoon-hee) was nothing more than a vase. I thought there would be something more to her, perhaps, another con-woman trying to con Ji-hyuck of his money, or even a strong lady who somehow stood up against something. But sadly, she was just the typical weak, dainty flowerpot whose character will be more popular 10 years ago.

The Con Artists_official (27)Being the bubbletea girl, I can’t help but notice the number of time Gongcha appeared in the film. I forgot to see if the company sponsored or fund the movies too, but I guess it must be, if not why would the film choose Gongcha over other local Korean cafes?

The Con Artists_official (25)Lim Ju-hwan as Lee Jo Hwon (Cho’s right hand man) was a character which intrigued me, but sadly, under-developed. He was faithful to Chairman Cho (like all right-hand man), and he had a scar across his face, something which will look hilarious on other’s face. If the reason behind his loyalty was revealed, it would perhaps made the film a little more interesting.

The Con Artists_official (52)Nitpicking aside, this is definitely one of the best “heist-related” films I’ve watched, more logical and cooler than some Hollywood films. Do catch it to see the various unexpected twists and suprises!

Do You Know?

The Con Artists_official (38)The Con Artist has another english name called “The Technicians” which is a direct translation from the Korean name 기술자들.

The Con Artists_official (21)Producer YOOK Kyung-sam explained how difficult it was to rent the location for the Incheon Customs scene: “All ports are considered a strict secured area, as huge container trucks are con-stantly coming and in and out of the area…The production team had to meet the Port Authority, police, and even National Intelligence Service personnel, and they only managed to get a permit to rent the Gwangyang Port (Second largest port in Korea) after 5 months.

The Con Artists_official (9)Jong-bae, the hacking specialist, was created with the help of a practicing white hacker. To give birth of a realistic character, KIM sought advice from a CEO of a mobile security company, who is considered the 3rd white hacker in the world. Jong-bae was brought into life, through a thorough research on the specialized program and computers used by hackers, to studying their overall life patterns. KIM also tried to enforce the appearance of a hacker, by putting finger tattoos on LEE Hyun-woo, who played Jong-bae in the film.

The Con Artists_cameosStay till the end and you can catch actors Im Chang Jung, Choi Daniel, and Cha Tae Hyun (My Sassy Girlfriend) appear as cameos in the film.
Actor and singer Im Chang Jung plays a comical chef at a Chinese restaurant, Choi Daniel plays the intermediary who sets up the meeting between Kim Woo Bin and Jo Yoon Hee’s characters. Cha Tae Hyun is introduced as the new technician at the end of the film, which suggest there might be a sequel to the film.

the con artist abu dhabiThis was the first Korean production to film in the city of Abu Dhabi, with locations at the Abu Dhabi International Airport, the Emirates Palace and the Hilton Capital Grand

The Con Artists_official (43)To create a perfect script, director KIM Hong-Sun not only conducted a thorough research by meeting with actual safe-cracker, National Intelligence Service personnel and serious crime detectives, but also learned how to forge bills, use 3D printers, and collected other crime-related information and knowledge to apply to the film. In addition, KIM also paid close attention even to the tiniest detail in the film in order to bring his characters to life, such as the shape of the cogwheel in the safe, and pictures hanging in the film set.
The Con Artists_official (5)

Behind The Scenes and Interviews

Check out The Con Artists (기술자들) Facebook Page!
The Con Artists (기술자들) is out in cinemas on 2 April 2015.

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*Disclosure: No monetary compensation was received for the movie review.

20 thoughts on “The Con Artists (기술자들) Movie Review”

  1. Pingback: Twenty 스물 (疯狂20) Movie Review | by tiffanyyong.com

  2. I love how you mentioned about their efforts in making the movie acts more real. Love how their team researched. This is an interesting movie but I don’t think this would be available in our cinemas but if ever it will be, I’ll definitely watch it with my mom. This is our kind of movie. 🙂

  3. Korean movies are a hit as well as their Koreanovela and KPop music. I watch Korean films even if I am not familiar with the actors’ name

  4. I love Kim Woo Bin in any TV or movie projects! He just pulls off that bad boy vibe very easily, and is always really into character. I’m looking forward to the realistic breaking in you mentioned.

  5. I’ve never heard of the movie before, and I’m glad to have learned it from your blog. I’m always willing to try foreign films, especially Korean because they have great storylines.

  6. OMG, I need to download this movie. I am not woo bin fans but I do love his acting. so great. hihi btw anyone can help me find out where can I download it? thanks

  7. My sister definitely is a fan of Kim Woo-bin and Korean films. The plot sounds interesting. We will watch out for this!

  8. Looks like a good movie. I haven’t watch any Korean action movie but this one is interesting, I have to watch this with hubby 🙂

  9. I have not heard of this, but your description makes me want to watch it. You are so lucky to have access to watching Korean and Chinese films. – Fred

  10. first time to learn about Con Artists movie here.. I’ve watched the Korean series The Heirs where Kim Woo Bin is part of. I’m still biased towards Lee Min Ho but Kim Woo Bin is a great actor as well.

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