Year:  2019

Director:  Lee Byeong-heon

Rated:  NA

Release:  August 22 – September 12, 2019

Running time: 111 minutes

Worth: $15.00
FilmInk rates movies out of $20 — the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worth

Cast:
Ryu Seung-ryong, Lee Ha-nee, Shin Ha-kyun, Jin Seok-kyu

Intro:
…a golden nugget of a film that is as unashamedly-ridiculous as it is entertaining.

Not since Colonel Sanders’ eleven herbs and spices has there been as big of a secret in the fried chicken world as the undercover stakeout at the centre of Korean action-comedy Extreme Job.

Pressure placed on Captain Ko (Ryu Seung-ryong) to advance in the ranks of the Korean narcotics investigation unit finds him and his ragtag crew of accompanying misfits go undercover as owners of a fried chicken restaurant. Under their surveillance is neighbour Mubae (Shin Ha-kyun); a resurfacing drug-kingpin who dreams of “an era of meth” in Korea.

The fact that a charming film like Extreme Job exists is a testament to absurd yet interesting ideas actualised in Korean cinema.

The motley crew assembled in the stakeout – including a newbie recruit keen to make his first arrest, a budding chef, a tough as nails operative, and a determined moustachioed gent – dazzle due to their well-meaning-but-clumsy nature, with their time on the job a comedy-of-errors.

The most exemplary failure made by the team is in their success as restaurateurs. A feat which renders them unable to focus on the investigation due to the insane demands of the business. You know that restaurant on Instagram that everyone goes to? This would be the one. Their struggles with popularity are the only stumbles of Extreme Job; like an overcooked piece chicken left in a fryer, the film spends an excessive amount of time dwelling on the narcotic unit’s inability to investigate.

Here, the action takes a back-seat in favour of pseudo-drama, drying out the meat on what is otherwise a tender film that focuses on family and classism. Extreme Job, however, regains balance towards the tail-end of the movie with director Lee Byeong-heon serving up a deliciously camp action set-piece that rewards the viewer’s patience.

Drugs. Stakeouts. Fried chicken. Extreme Job is a golden nugget of a film that is as unashamedly-ridiculous as it is entertaining.

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