The Outlaws 2 (2022)

Just as good as the first one!

I was kinda nervous about this one because some films got ruined by their sequel. But don’t worry it’s just as good as the first one maybe even better.
It give me many range of emotion. Laugh, thrill, excitement, anger. Even though it’s thriller film it got some funny moments (whole audience laughed the entire time).
All characters are smart. So you won’t feel frustrated watching it (in this genre cops are dumb. They catch the bad guy by luck because they are main leads). but our main lead is strong but WITTY AND INTELLIGENT!
Of course every Ma Dong Seok movie had super satisfying kick ass moment. It was so good that everyone clapped at the end.
Just watch it guys!

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"I guess you're smarter than you look"

Big hitter ahjussie, Ma Dong Seok, returned as Detective Ma in this old school smash mouth action film. This time he took on a Big Bad who had been kidnapping and murdering Koreans overseas. Strap into your seat and brace yourself because with Ma at the lever it was going to be one wild ride!

The story begins in 2008 after the turmoil of The Outlaws. Detective Ma and his boss, Jeon Ill Man, travel to Vietnam to pick up a Korean crook to bring back home to repatriate. Ma's not buying guilt as his reason to want to return home and before you can throw a 1-2 punch Ma and Jeon end up neck deep in bodies. The blood-soaked path quickly leads to the murderous Kang Hae Sang as the Big Bad in charge. Before long good guys and bad guys are headed back to Korea with the action never slowing down.

Though there are some blood spurtingly, bone crunching, gorey battles, especially when Kang Hae Sang is around, Ma's brand of humor always lightens the mood to keep the movie from becoming too dark. The story is well paced, never allowing your attention to stray. A few familiar faces from the last film return to help Ma out in this one and provide a punching bag when needed.

There are plot holes and some parts of it are ridiculous. Despite that I literally laughed out loud on numerous occasions. It could also be gruesome, I had to close my eyes during one of the more vicious fight scenes as well. Ma Dong Seok is so charismatic that he owns every scene he is in. He is pure joy to watch saunter and put the beat down on baddies. When asked if he wants to split some stolen loot down the middle, without making it sound cringey, he replies, "The middle of who?" Son Seok Koo made for a properly ruthless baddie who never met a person he didn't want to stab. At times he seemed as unstoppable as a T-1000, until he was confronted by a Ma-10,000.

The Roundup might have been predictable, but so is a rollercoaster. I don't mind knowing where it is taking me as long as it gives me some thrills, laughs, and excitement along the way. In this, The Roundup did not disappoint.

2/16/23

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An Upgrade Permit of a Better Scale

The followup of The Outlaws series, this sequel elevates to a (better) level. Although the theme is quite as repetitive as the first one, it gives a new vibe of a different setting: SEA or Southeast Asia (only Vietnam, don't expect other countries tho). Storywise, this gives a good combo of action-comedy essence as usual (I have a good laugh for their roles in-between. Not terrible, yet not that cringey, just a good one)

However, what makes this movie outstanding? Yes, like domestically: Kang Haesang, this brutal villain to the core... you can say that at the scariest level: Kang Haesang > Gu Jakyeong (My Liberation Notes). Although I admit, he's not as iconic as Jang Chen (I frankly understand why the 1st villain stands out the most); but oh my god... his IT factor wowed me all over whenever he shows up. He shooked me to the floor, not gonna lie. And also, Jang Isu... I cracked up whenever his turn comes up. But it's too bad that he doesn't give a backstory on how he came back alive

So, is this worth recommending? Yes. Should you follow up the 1st, then watch the 2nd? Actually, depends; because as I've stated, it's a total repeat (similar storyline from the beginning of the film: police part) [not villain one, mind you], just different villains and fewer settings from the first movie. Have good support for this movie in your local cinemas, or wait for them released on the OTT platform in a later date

I shall volunteer myself deported if I've got myself criticised on this one

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I gave s1 a 10 but this was lacking
ma dongsuk is a gem, his fight scenes are refreshing especially after the brutal villains, he comes on like a soda pop and btch slaps everyone into another dimension?
but that's about it, this only worked for him. the villains were all so skinny and but they don't die. ma dongsuk had 0 character development and very little screen time, he was there to fight. the villain was way too "Idc I'll kill and I won't die"
the events were meh, tho we were invested in the action and we laughed a bit, more at the ridiculousness than comedy
my favorite part was "let's split it 50/50", "who gets the 50", honestly cheese like that only works for ma dongsuk
and as mom said he was her fav part?

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"it's our duty to protect our own"

Right off the bat, I think it wasn't better than the prequel. With 12M box office and quite a lot saying it was better than the first, with those expectatuins I was a bit disappointed leaving the cinema, but don't get me wrong it was still a great film.

We follow the same police force with Ma Seok Do and the rest, this time around they try to arrest a suspect overseas, where they experience numerous struggles

No it doesn't have a mind-blowing story, it will probably go the way you expect it to be. However it does have a gripping action scenes and gore, sided with good humor.

Not sure if this is filmed overseas or not but I liked the cinematography this time around, it gave good distinction between Vietnam and Korea.

Son Sukku being the main antagonist this time around was probably a big burden, Jang Chen was an icon and it would have been hard to top it off. Still despite that he was aboe to deliver a chilling performance, big props.

It's an easy film to understand and a perfect watch with the entire family, will for sure rewatch this when it releases in streaming platforms.

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Not only is The Roundup a superior sequel to The Outlaws, it may be the strongest Ma Deong-seok movie yet!

PROS
+ High-energy plot pacing with many satisfying action and pursuit scenes
+ The added "globetrotting" gives the film a refreshing adventurous element
+ A sense of urgency is present adds a nice amount of tension to the thrilling plot
+ The casting and acting are top-tier (especially from the villain character)
+ MDS is as cool as ever and he has some kinetic and memorable fights
+ Even the sound direction adds to the action with each punch resonating a powerful "whoop" that shakes the room

CONS
- There is A LOT of blood and guts for an action movie with so few guns (maybe the future sequel could add more guns)
- Do not expect to be moved emotionally or anything, this is simply a highly concentrated action thriller with no drama

How many times do you get to see a movie that seems like it was made just for you? The Roundup is an excellent action/thriller that is easily recommendable to anyone that enjoys the genre.

Make sure you watch The Outlaws before The Roundup. While it is nowhere as action-packed or exciting, it does a better job establishing the characters present in this movie.

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Better villain than Jang Chen?

After watching this film, people will compare Kang hee sang to Jang Chen and some even say Kang is better or stronger than Jang Chen but that's utter bullshit.
If Kang hee sang is an assassin type, Jang Chen is a combatant type. With machete or knife, Kang hee sang got the edge but with bare hands or without weapons, Jang Chen wins by a mile. He's the one who gave most trouble to Ma seok du without any weapon while kang got obilerated while holding a weapon. Is this part Better than 1st part? Yeah but in a different aspect
It's a chase while 1st part is more of cops and robbers game. Both are enjoyable.

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