YADANG: THE SNITCH: A K-Popcorn Flick

With the dominance of action-packed, four-quadrant blockbusters churning out of Hollywood every year, sometimes every month, one might be forgiven for thinking that they’re a predominantly American creation. Contrary to popular belief, though, Americans don’t have a chokehold on the “popcorn” film: Lots of style, some substance (if any), but overall just a fun movie that you can just enjoy with a bucket of popcorn and not think too much about the logic. I could point to numerous examples, but this is particularly prevalent in Korean director Hwang Byeong-guk’s action-packed crime-drama Yadang: The Snitch. It’s fast, it’s loud, and it’s a great time if you just enjoy the ride.

Drugs & Deception

Lee Kang-su (Kang Ha-neul) makes his living as a “Yadang:” A professional snitch that acts as a liaison between the police and those arrested for drug charges. His job is to convince them to give up other people in their organization in exchange for reduced sentences of their own, which of course the police in turn use for more high-profile arrests. Glamorous? Not particularly. Lucrative? Somehow, yes. It’s this triangle of symbiosis that helps keep the streets of Seoul clean. Well, as clean as possible.

Kang-su works for the Deputy Chief Prosecutor Koo Gwan-hee (Yoo Hae-jin), and has for years as he’s advanced through the prosecutorial ranks. They had a pretty good gig going until things got a bit more complicated. One day, police captain Oh Sang-jae (Park Hae-joon) picks up an actress, Uhm Soo-jin (Chae Won-bin) in the hopes of using her as an informant of his own, only for Kang-soo to barge in and take the whole thing over for Koo, and Soo-jin gets arrested in the kerfuffle of the bust. Naturally, Captain Oh is pissed, and as he pursues Koo and Kang-soo, so begins the weaving of a web of lies, trickery, and deceit with plenty of bullets, punches, and car crashes to boot.

A Commendable Crime Flick

True to its title, Yadang: The Snitch revolves around multiple people who can never fully be trusted for one reason or another. In terms of performance, Kang Ha-neul is a clear standout, being equal parts cocky, charismatic, and chaotic at all times. Park Hae-joon takes the typical all-business, rarely smiling approach to his police work that is a great foil to Kang. The film charges at you at a rapid pace, with lots of action and enough humor sprinkled in to balance the intensity. Matching this energy, composers Kim Hong-jip and Lee Jin-hee deliver a dynamic score spanning multiple genres that adapts to the intense or comic tones as needed.

For the most part, the film is played straight, yet also doesn’t take itself too seriously, allowing the characters to mug occasionally, sometimes directly at the camera. Some might roll their eyes at anyone breaking the fourth wall who isn’t Deadpool, but fun is fun. Even with a two-hour runtime, it could have been a tad bit tighter, but it didn’t feel overly inflated. I did hope for a third act that was a bit more high-octane, but aside from the climax it actually pumped the brakes a bit in order to move the plot along. Still, Yadang gets where it needs to go and ends on a good note.

Yadang: The Snitch: Pull the Trigger

If you’re looking to change up your popcorn flick pick, this is a fun choice. It’s got action, humor, and a plot that keeps you thinking. It may not be Mission: Impossible or The Departed in terms of stunts or plot, but it holds its own as an enjoyable start to the sunshine season.

Yadang: The Snitch opened in theaters Friday, April 25th.