Netflix’s Seoul Vibe Review: Bank robberies, car chases, and corrupt leaders

The year is 1988, and South Korea has been chosen to host the Olympics for the first time in its history. After years of brutality, censorship, and the effects of colonialism and war, things are starting to look up for residents when a new democratic administration takes office.

Korean cinema frequently examines this volatile period in history, whether by explicitly addressing what happened during dictatorships, as in Im Sang-The soo’s President’s Last Bang or by assuming the weight through a single fictitious figure, as in Lee Chang-1999 dong’s film Peppermint Candy.

In reality, many figures from the era, including former ruler Chun Doo-hwan, who was responsible for awful events, are still alive or have only recently died. Some films, such as Netflix’s newest release, Seoul Vibe, linger on the precipice between democracy and tragedy, reviving history.

Seoul Vibe was initially introduced to the world in December 2020, when the production firm revealed plans to make a film with that title starring actors Yoo Ah-in and Go Yoon-Jung, who did not appear in the film.

Netflix was confirmed as the film’s distributor, and the ensemble cast was unveiled months later, during the summer of 2021. Filming began that summer, and despite a few hiccups owing to cast and crew COVID-19 positive, the film was set to be broadcast as part of Netflix’s August 2022 rotations.

With a running period of about two hours and twenty minutes, Seoul Vibe transports spectators to a time when Korea was not the country that it is now. There is a twist: it is a robbery film with a comic thread running through it.

However, one of the film’s main charms is its cast. Yoo Ah-in plays the main character, Park Dong-wook. Yoo had previously appeared in Lee Chang-Burning, dong’s in which she co-starred with actor Steven Yeun, and in the zombie film #Alive.

The main cast includes Go Kyung-Pyo, one of the stars of Park Chan-wook’s upcoming film Decision to Leave, Lee Kyu-Hyung (All Of Us Are Dead), Park Ju-Hyun (Extracurricular), and former Wanna One member Ong Seong-wu. Idol and rapper Song Min-ho, as well as D.P.’s Kim Sung-Kyun, make cameo appearances.

A team of drivers and mechanics set out to accomplish the impossible

Seoul Vibe is set in 1988, during the Seoul Olympic Games. The 1988 games were a watershed moment in Korean history because, in 1987, the country formally transitioned into a phase where dictatorships were no longer in place, ushering the country into what it is now.

The Olympics in 1988, dubbed “the Miracle on the Han River,” heralded the start of economic recovery that lifted the country out of the turmoil that began with the Korean War and continued through the 1970s and 1980s.

But in this movie, the camera travels to the streets of Seoul after a brief prelude in Saudi Arabia, where the main character, Park Dong-wook, is introduced. Dong-wook returns to Seoul from Saudi Arabia with his loyal companion Joon-gi (Ong), only to discover that the city is fast-modernizing in preparation for the Olympics.

New characters are introduced one at a time. Yoon-hee (Park), Dong-younger wook’s sister, is vivacious. Oh Woo-sam (Go) is the group’s DJ, while Bok-Nam is a local who knows the city by heart. After the group reunites, things quickly go wrong, as they are now leading an investigation against some of Korea’s old guards.

Corruption and bribery are common in this town, and it is up to them, a driving team with a passion for cars, to knock down some of the bad in the world. How do they accomplish this? By impersonating a mobster (Moon So-ri) and a former military general (Kim Sung-Kyun). Kim’s avatar has a striking similarity to former ruler Chun Doo-hwan, who passed away in 2021.

This task is so large that the group considers collaborating with the leader of their rival gang (Song) to complete it. Aside from that, there are no frills in the plot, and the villains are filled out to be even more terrible than one might conceive at times. Beyond the fact that both films include a lot of car chases and races, fans of Edgar Wright’s Baby Driver may discover some similarities in Seoul Vibe.

When contrasted to Baby Driver, which has a similar visual approach, Seoul Vibe’s cutting and setup hit a little too close to home. However, calling the picture a rip-off of Baby Driver would be unfair, as it has virtues apart from what may overlap between the two films.

A Biting Nostalgic Throwback 

Seoul Mood can be summed up as a vibe, with its flamboyant eighties jewelry and apparel, dirt vehicle races, and shaky handheld cameras.

It depicts the essence of an era via the lens of one gang dismantling a money laundering scam, linking it with the larger historical background going on in South Korea at the time. Seoul Vibe has a superb cast that ties everything together and sells the fact that these people have been good friends and companions in crime for a long time.

The humor works effectively throughout the film, landing at opportune times to optimize its effectiveness, but if there is one criticism about the picture, it is that it feels like a cartoon modified for live-action. Each scene oozes classic 1980s aesthetics, amplifying it in others, and embraces how the plot advances in the same way that a comic book is read. Perhaps it’s because this narrative has been told many times before, and in Seoul Vibe, it’s been twisted to include overarching commentary about the state of society at the time.

In one early scene, Dong-wook is taken aback when their cab driver acquaintance offers them McDonald’s when picking them up at the airport. “Does Seoul have McDonald’s?” he inquires, raising an eyebrow. During the 1988 Seoul Olympics, the first McDonald’s in South Korea opened in the Apgujeong area. However, these are usually limited to brief moments, making them less evident to people unfamiliar with the setting’s peculiarities.

This is a city on the verge of a major transformation, a watershed point in history, and the McDonald’s sequence establishes that fact early on. Even while the new guard departs for greener pastures — fondly designated as Los Angeles — the old guard remains in the shadows, retaining the money they stole and living in a country that has moved on.

However, if Seoul Vibe disappoints in any way, it is that it should be witnessed in a group setting rather than online.

It’s a humorous action film at heart, and the plot doesn’t try to complicate itself much beyond that. This is a major theft to pull off against some of the country’s biggest personalities in the past, and the stakes are great, as the spectator is continually reminded throughout. The favorite protagonists are faced with jail time if they do not complete the job, so if they fail to complete what they set out to do, there will be serious consequences.

It’s crucial to understand, though, that Seoul Vibe contains a lot of political commentaries. The plot is propelled forward by the robbery element, but these are ordinary individuals facing out against what was previously their society’s political backbone. Audiences enjoy it when ordinary people face forces and figures far larger than themselves, which makes this film even more enjoyable to watch.

In any case, Seoul Vibe is entertaining. On the surface, the plot suggests that it could have devolved into a political thriller, but it maintains things lighter while continuously reminding us of the stakes and what will happen.

Although the plot and characters are quite predictable, one cannot but root for them. Seoul Vibe is worth a weekend watch for its old-school references and flair for stunning visuals and settings. It may not reinvent the genre or the themes it explores throughout the film, but it provides more than mindless action and car chases.

Seoul Vibe is accessible exclusively on Netflix since August 26, 2022