Heart Blackened: Korea Remakes Silent Witness

They say money can’t buy love, but it can retain the best legal defense available. Sometimes that is just as important, or more so. For Im Mi-ra, this would be one of those times. The entitled heiress stands accused of murdering her father’s fiancée. Still loyal to his daughter, he makes a somewhat an orthodox choice hiring Choi Hee-jung, but he is a shrewd judge of character. Choi’s integrity is about the only thing we can take for certain in Jung Ji-woo’s Heart Blackened (trailer here), which opens this Friday in Los Angeles.

Yes, this is indeed a Korean remake of the Aaron Kwok-Sun Honglei-Yu Nan legal thriller, Silent Witness, but Jung has shaken it up a bit. He largely parallels initial set-up of Fei Xing’s film, but he shifts the focus from the prosecutor to the defense attorney. Although he is faithful to the big twist, he makes some alterations to the ending, so viewers who have seen the original still won’t know with 100% certainty where the film is headed.

Given the fame of Yoo-na, an aging but still popular K-pop idol, this murder case is sure to be a media circus. Ordinarily, Im Tae-san’s sharky corporate firm handles all his legal business, but they subcontract Choi for this case. Due to their friendship at school, Mi-ra is more likely to trust the young, independent counsel. In terms of image, she is a good counterbalance to the Ims. Unfortunately, the case looks bad for them. Technically, there is no smoking gun, but the circumstantial evidence is as damning as it gets. However, a stalkerish fan might have video footage of the vehicular murder. A mad scramble ensues to recover that footage, sight unseen, so it is sure to surprise at least one of the interested parties.

Filling Sun Honglei’s shoes is a tall order, but Choi Min-sik is more than sufficiently grizzled and steely. He definitely commands the screen as Im Tae-san, but he also delivers some surprisingly poignant moments down the stretch. Park Shin-hye is terrific in the expanded role of shy but principled Choi Hee-jung. By elevating her to the lead, the film takes on a bit of a Jagged Edge vibe.

Lee Soo-kyung also shows impressive range as Im Mi-ra, who is allowed more room for self-awareness and growth this time around. Lee Honey’s warm but messily human portrayal of Yoo-na makes us sorry to see her murdered, even though it is necessary to get the picture going. However, it is unclear why the film allots so much screen time to slimy super-fan Kim Dong-myung, beyond actor Ryu Jun-yeol’s teen heartthrob popularity.

Heart Blackened is a slickly produced film that deftly turns its surprise reversals of fortune, but it is never too far divorced from the human element. It also features some of Korea’s biggest stars and most reliable character actors, all working at the top of their games. Highly recommended for thriller fans (even those who have already seen Silent Witness), Heart Blackened opens this Friday (11/10) at the Los Angeles and Buena Park CGV Cinemas.

(Photo: CJ Entertainment)

The Advocate: a Missing Body

The sleazy Byun Ho-sung is not exactly Rumpole, but the lack of a corpse is the sort of loose end he masterfully exploits. However, at times it is unclear whether his client really wants to beat the rap. A rather complicated case unfolds both inside and outside the courtroom in Heo Jong-ho’s The Advocate: a Missing Body (trailer here), which opens this Friday in New Jersey.

After winning a spectacular product liability victory for a big pharma company, Byun is personally requested by the charismatic CEO Moon Ji-hoon for an apparently hopeless charity case. His former driver Kim Man-suk is accused of killing the woman he was allegedly stalking. He was arrested in the dead woman’s apartment with blood on his shirt and his prints on the supposed murder weapon. There was a lethal amount of blood splattered, but the body is absent.

Yet, just as Byun starts to make hay over other crime scene irregularities, Kim up and confesses in open court. Obviously, Byun smells a fix. With the assistance of his long suffering office manager, Mr. Park, Byun starts to follow the trail of clues back to Moon. Unfortunately, the shady company will push back hard.

Frankly, it is sort of shame The Advocate eventually evolves into a conspiratorial legal-medical thriller, because it starts out as a refreshingly intriguing old fashioned murder mystery. Still, even though it is ostensibly a breezy comedy-thriller, Heo is not afraid to go dark for an extended period of time, which is cool. In fact, there is no way you can come out of the film with a higher regard for lawyers. Unfortunately, the dastardly Moon and his corporate crimes are predictably shopworn elements by now.

Nevertheless, the high stakes intrigue offers a perfect showcase for the hardnosed and rubber-faced Lee Sun-kyun. Arguably, The Advocate could be considered the “Order” follow-up to the “Law” of his breakout hit A Hard Day. He takes a similar licking here and keeps on grimacing. A chameleon-like Kim Go-eun stands her ground against him as the principled prosecutor Jin Sun-mi, who is still hung up on Byun, her former senior at school. Jang Hyun-sung’s Moon is an adequate but not inspired villain. However, Hong Song-duk really anchors the film as the mysterious and troubled accused.

There are enough clever twists and turns unleashed at regular intervals to maintain the suspense and a good sense of fun. Although it is not as super-charged or wickedly sly as A Hard Day, The Advocate is slick and professional, just like the sort of mouthpiece you would want to litigate on your behalf. Entertaining in a swaggering with attitude kind of way, The Advocate: a Missing Body is recommended for thriller fans when it opens this Friday (10/23) at the Edgewater Multiplex Cinemas in New Jersey.

NYAFF ’14: Silent Witness

Evidently, the Chinese legal system is not overly concerned with potential conflicts of interest. For instance, nobody objects to a hotshot state’s attorney prosecuting the daughter of his longtime nemesis, even though she is also the beloved pupil of his art teacher wife. His integrity may very well be above reproach, but the defense attorney will possibly cut a few ethical corners that would be spoilery to address in detail. However, it is safe to say the media-frenzy trial is never headed exactly where the opposing counsels assume in Fei Xing’s Silent Witness (trailer here), which screens during the 2014 New York Asian Film Festival.

About the only cases Tong Tao has lost were his white collar prosecutions of slippery financier Lin Tai. Despite his history with her father, Lin Mengmeng still knows him as “Uncle,” but the evidence she murdered her father’s pop idol fiancée is so overwhelming, he must prosecute her anyway. Indeed, it is all so open-and-shut her defense attorney Zhou Li passively sits on her hands, apparently resigned to defeat, until she suddenly obliterates a key prosecution witness. It seems to be more of a game-ender than a game-changer, but there are several more stunning revelations coming down the pike.

Given the title, one might assume somebody out there saw something important. However, Silent Witness is rather more complicated than that. It is a direct descendant of Agatha Christie’s Witness for the Prosecution, but it clearly depends on the “flexibility” of the Chinese legal system to revise charges on the fly. A case like this would have probably taken decades to unfold in American courts, but it feels like Fei’s characters wrap it up in about a week.

Regardless, the series of shoes he drops are invariably clever. Yet, there is real drama at the heart of the picture. Considering his work in Silent Witness, viewers are strongly advised not to play poker with Sun Honglei. Even though we can tell his Lin Tai is nursing a secret, he still successfully pulls the rug completely out from under the audiences feet. It is a wickedly subtle slow build that completely upends viewers’ responses.

Yu Nan and HK superstar Aaron Kwok nicely anchor the film as the legal eagles navigating the schemes within schemes. Deng Jiajia is also quite compelling as the emotionally stunted Mengmeng. In a smaller but critical role, Zhao Lixin perfectly sells the first reversal as the unreliable witness, Sun Wei. In fact, Silent Witness boasts an unusually deep bench of intriguing supporting players, such as NYAFF special guest Zishuo Ding, who brings verve and energy to the film as Zhou’s associate, Meizi.

Silent Witness presents a nifty series of twists and turns that take on real emotional stakes thanks to the fine work of Sun and the accomplished below-the-titles ensemble. It is such an effective thriller, it would not be surprising if Hollywood started sniffing around the remake rights. Highly recommended for fans of courtroom dramas, Silent Witness screens tomorrow night (7/6) at the Walter Reade Theater, as part of this year’s NYAFF. New Yorkers looking for a way to beat the physical heat today with some smoldering tension should also check out Jimmy Wong Yu in the taut and evocative Soul (full review here).

DWF ’13: The Advocate

Ray Shekar is no idealist.  He is a lawyer.  He defends guilty monsters all the time, as long as they pay the piper.  His new client can afford his services, but he has trouble reading the Widow Daugherty.  The attorney-client relationship will be pushed and pulled all out of shape in Tamas Harangi’s The Advocate (trailer here), which screens as part of the 2013 edition of Dances with Films in Hollywood, USA.

Considering Shekar’s one hundred percent acquittal rate and the unsavory nature of his customers, he is not likely to be popular with the police.  Nursing a particularly personal grudge, Det. Perkins senses an opportunity for payback when the mouthpiece’s most recent client disappears under mysterious circumstances.  A similar fate seems to have befallen Daugherty’s husband.  When she woke up on their yacht, all that was left of him was a massive pool of blood.

Shekar will pound on the missing body issue, but the constant dribble of embarrassing revelations will complicate his case.  Motivation will not be a problem though.  He is dangerously attracted the Daugherty.  However, he cannot determine to his own satisfaction whether she is guilty or not.

Boy, The Advocate sure loves its flashback sequences, but in fairness, there is a method to their madness.  Granted, the reverse Jagged Edge concept is well worn territory, but at least Harangi revisits it with conviction.  Essentially, Advocate is a lot like the sort of scandal-driven thrillers that often turn up on late night pay cable, except it is surprisingly demur.  Even without a lot of naughty bits, the film still pulls viewers in, almost in spite of our better judgment.

In truth, it is rather good fun to watch Harangi drop one shoe after another.  Nevertheless, there are head-scratchers strewn throughout, starting with the obvious fact Shekar’s Della Street is considerably more attractive than his femme fatale.  Man, that’s just weird. Also, the whole working-out-of-his-house-while-the-office-is-remodeled thing would not inspire a lot of confidence in the real world.  Of course, it is probably easier to get a presentable but not palatial pad with a view on the cheap, rather than an L.A Law office suite.

While not wildly charismatic, Sachin Mehta’s Shekar is convincingly smart and driven, which is certainly a good start.  As his associate and on-the-wagon investigator, Steffinnie Phromanny and Marc Cardiff, respectively, flesh out the film nicely, adding character and credibility.  Unfortunately, the uninspired and uninspiring Kristina Klebe is a conspicuously weak link as Daugherty.

Harangi deserves credit for scrupulously establishing each twist and turn he throws at viewers.  Individually, none is especially shocking, but collectively they are rather impressive.  The multi-ethnic composition of the cast is also aesthetically appealing, as is the lack of fuss the film makes over it.  Oddly entertaining in a B-movie kind of way, The Advocate screens this Saturday (6/8) during Dances with Films ’13 at the Chinese 6 on storied Hollywood Boulevard.