The Killer: A Girl Who Deserves to Die: Best Babysitter Ever

I don't remember many of my babysitters. I don't think I had that many. Maybe my parents didn't go out that much. I know for sure they never went on vacation without my brother and me so when two middle-aged women go on an extended girl's vacay and leave the mercenary boyfriend in charge of the troubled teenage girl (Lee Seo-young), I can't securely say that what follows is utterly preposterous. Maybe mom and dad never left us alone because there really are predatory crime rings ready to abduct bourgeois adolescents then sell them into underground sex rings. I do feel pretty sure that if an attempt had ever been made in that regard on my older brother and me, none of the babysitters we had would've been able to defend us like Bang Ui Gang (Jang Hyuk) of The Killer: A Girl Who Deserves to Die.

Then again, good help has always been hard to find as evidenced throughout Choi Jae-hoon's bloody action thriller. How else to explain the way the thugs keep coming at the film's protector despite his ability to stab, shoot, and karate chop an elevator full of attackers. Does no one think, "Hmm. Rushing this guy with an axe might not be the best strategy." Very few. And most of those guys aren't very smart either. Well, fear makes you dumb. It does me. Those who don't feel fear — like one bleached blond bruiser (Bruce Khan) and one dirty cop (Lee Seung-joon) — won't necessarily fare better than the scaredy cats. Because the only thing that's going to save you in The Killer is a guy like Bang Ui Gang. Great hair. Patrician overbite. No competition.

The Divine Fury: Shadowman, Mixed Martial Artist

The ostensible leading man for fright flick The Divine Fury is Park Seo Jun who plays Yong Hoo, a traumatized mixed martial artist who discovers mid-career, he's got a gift at fighting demons. Yong Hoo has a troubled past, however. After he loses his father (Lee Seung-joon) in a car accident caused by a Satanic serpent sectarian, he becomes a metaphorical killing machine in the MMA cages where his rage against the world — and the church — has earned him world champion status. Life's not all big gold belts and sponsorship money for our hero, though. He's an empty shell of a man plagued by mysterious stigmata that often erupt while he sleeps ruining countless top sheets and pillows at the finest hotels.

This malady drives him to seek help first from the medical establishment where doctors acknowledge he has a skin wound but can't fathom its underlying cause. Their stupefication leads him to consult a friend's psychic sister (Jo Eun-hyung) who directs him to follow a cross (quite literally) which leads him to his salvation in the shape of Father Ahn (Ahn Sung-ki). Ahn is a middle-aged exorciser who appears in better shape than his soon-to-be disciple. He's world-weary, tireless, and speaks Italian and Latin as well as Korean. In short, he's cooler than his charge and should've been the lead. Perhaps guided by the wisdom of age, he accepts second billing and celebrates his mentee's preternatural abilities at casting out evil spirits. Will the two be able to defeat the cult leader and disco entrepreneur (Woo Do-hwan) with his self-inflicted wounds, voodoo dolls, and Aquaman jumpsuit? Well, the thing about the Devil is you know he's always capable of making an encore.

War of the Arrows: History and Archery Shoot a Pointed Arrow to Your Heart

I'm not sure why the idea of watching a historical drama tends to dishearten me because when I think about it, I bet I like them more often than I don't. Looking back over the years, I can immediately name a few epics set way back when which made my annual top ten lists: The King and the Clown, A Frozen Flower, Musa - The Warriors... Even so, I was ready to be bored to tears when I sat down to watch War of the Arrows. Boy, was I wrong.

Kim Han-min's anything-but-dull drama set in the 17th century is, for all its fancy robes and bedazzled leather, a heart-stopping action pic with an extended chase scene in which bows and arrows prove every bit as thrilling as martial arts or souped-up weaponry ever did.

On the run is Nam-yi (Park Hae-il), a disgraced archer whose father was beheaded for being a traitor, and whose sister Ja-in (Moon Chae-won) is, at one point, abducted by a Manchurian kidnapper-prince (Park Gi-woong) who wants to tame her like a leopard's pelt. Well, the royal rapist is about to learn not to mess with an independent woman with a strong set of teeth. As to his invading militia, they're about to pay the price for underestimating members of the Joseon Dynasty.

Pursuing Nam-yi is a bald Machurian commander (Ryoo Seung-yong), his second-in-command Wanhan (Lee Seung-joon), and their small posse of fellow warriors who despite tricked up arrows and studded leather armbands, find themselves dropping off one by one. A random tiger that comes out of nowhere doesn't help matters for them either.

Although half of War of the Arrows is consumed by this great chase, my favorite part comes right beforehand -- an uplifting scene in which a feudal lord's son (Kim Mu-yeol), assisted by lovable sidekicks Gang-du (Kim Gu-taek) and Gab-young (Lee Han-wi), leads a prisoners' revolt against the invading army. Tired, dirty, and unarmed, the townsfolk charges their captors and through sheer numbers and unstoppable fury drive the enemy into the sea before burning the Manchurian flag. It's one of those common man against the oppressor feel-good scenes that always makes you feel more optimistic about being one of the hoi polloi.

Note: Some reviews accuse War of the Arrows of plagiarizing Apocalypto which does make me want to see the latter movie.