A Marvel-ous Superhero Journey: Hi-Five (2025) Review

Director: Kang Hyeong-cheol

Notable Cast: Yoo Ah-in,  Lee Jae-in, Ahn Jae-hong, Ra Mi-ran, Kim Hee-won, Oh Jung-se, Park Jin-young, Shin Goo

Before this review gets started, just wanted to say I absolutely love Yoo Ah-in as a performer and I am extremely grateful for his contributions to Korean cinema as a whole. I think he has made some of the greatest performances the country has seen over the last decade and I am beyond delighted to see him back on the screen once again. I will not get political here, but it is a shame to see him completely absent from the marketing of this film, and his lack of presence on even the poster seen here. His character is absolutely hilarious and he steals the show every time he is in frame, which thankfully, is quite often. With that out of the way, how is director Kang's latest comedic outing, this time being a superhero genre piece? It's absolutely fantastic, and I cannot wait for folks to see this one. If you love superhero movies in general and enjoy Kang's brand of extravagant humor, then this will be one you won't want to miss!

Hi-Five is about five different recipients of donated organs. Said organs vary, but each donation came from a dead superhuman, and his powers have been bestowed upon these five different transplanted individuals. The cast here is stacked, and if I can do this based on memory, we have: Lee Jae-in as Nine Girl. She is a taekwondo enthusiast and practitioner and she becomes super strong. Also, there is Ahn Jae-hong as Tank Man (I think, or maybe it was Boy, they make jokes on that), who has the ability to blow super powerful breath from his lungs. Yoo Ah-in (yay!) plays as Hwang Ki-dong, and I cannot remember his superhero name, but he can manipulate any electronically ran object within a huge vicinity. Kim Hee-won is Battery Man, and he can heal people, as long as he hydrates afterwards. Last, but certainly not least is Ra Mi-ran, and I won't spoil her power as it is revealed in a very fun way in the film. These five seemingly normal folks come together realizing that they have extraordinary gifts, and of course, evil is lurking in the background. We have a cult leader, played by veteran actor Shin Goo, who has the ability to absorb the lifeforce of other powered individuals, and he strengthens himself each time. He has a large group of people brainwashed, and is looking for our titular five heroes. You can see where this is all gonna lead, but I can tell you that you won't expect how it does so.

Hi-Five is definitely going to be the summer Korean blockbuster to beat. It is a fast-paced, hilarious, and hard-hitting romp that blends broad humor with some intense and equally hilarious set pieces that will have you cheering and laughing alongside each absurd and impressive moment. We get a chase sequence that I cannot put into words just how hard I laughed at. The visuals in that sequence are truly special, and I can't believe the music that comes into play. Talk about an iconic scene in the making. The laughs are played broadly and more often than not stick the landing with utter perfection. If you have seen the other classic Korean superhero movie, Arahan, strip back some of the grounded brutality from that, and you get Hi-Five. The combat may not be as intense as that one, but it is just as inventive and will keep you on the edge of your seat the entire time. This isn't an overly serious film, whatsoever, but when the drama bubbles to the surface, the tonal shifts never become as jarring as say Kang's previous, and also excellent outing, Swing Kids. This one stays pretty consistent in what it is going for but you do get very invested in these wonderfully written characters and will be rooting for them along the way. Everyone here works with an infectious chemistry and all five of our leads just have this electrifying presence. They are so funny and each have the right amount of heart and you get snippets into their past without needing full blown origin stories for each. The film never derails to focus big flashbacks, but brings itself alongside the current threats that are looming over them. I hate to take such an obvious jab, but this feels like peak Marvel, and I truly think the bigwig execs could take some notes from this movie. It doesn't do anything the genre hasn't tackled before but it never forgets to feel like a comic book first and foremost. Again, there are some totally absurd visuals and the way the main girl speeds along at multiple points, but it is done with such sincerity on display, that you find yourself totally invested and it feels real to the world it establishes so brilliantly.

The whole cast here is dynamite. Normally, I gravitate towards a specific character in these types of films, but I found myself equally favoring each person in our core five. Again, I know I mentioned Yoo Ah-in before, but he is great here, and just steals every scene he is in. He has this eccentricity with his image and the way he presents himself here, and while he is goofy and often making you laugh with how he manipulates everything around him, he lays on those iconic dramatic chops of his, and you really feel for where he came from and what caused him his grief. It doesn't try too hard to strike your feelings, but Yoo brings that gravitas to his performance that I think others may have fumbled with. Honestly, the same sentiment can be said about the rest of the cast, almost to the same wording even. Lee Jae-in, Ahn Jae-hong, Ra Mi-ran, and Kim Hee-won go for it and give it their all. They all play off of one another so well, and I truly hope that Hi-Five is successful enough to spawn a franchise. I could only imagine how well this plays in a jam packed theater. I cannot remember the last time I laughed this hard so consistently. Director Kang taps into the fun of his Scandal Makers / Sunny era, while trying to make something that plays to as big a crowd as possible, and he succeeds gloriously with Hi-Five.

I cannot believe how much I enjoyed Hi-Five. I assumed I would like it at the very least because one of my favorite filmmakers was helming the project, but to be honest, I've been very tired of superhero cinematic offerings for quite some time, and yet Kang injects new life into a worn out genre and gives it the oomph it has been sorely lacking for many years now. If he decides to bring the Hi-Five gang back for future installments, I'll be there day one! This is easily one of the best films to come out so far in 2025. This gets my highest recommendation possible. I don't think it will work for absolutely everyone, but for those that it meshes with, you will have an absolute blast with this one. 

Written by Josh Parmer

Money, Corruption, and Soju: Big Deal (2025) Review

 

Director: Choi Yoon-jin

Notable Cast: Yoo Hae-jin, Lee Je-hoon, Son Hyun-joo, Byron Mann, Choi Young-jun, Kim Ki-hae

In 1997, a continent-wide financial crisis struck throughout Asia, eventually cutting deep into South Korea. Everyone was struggling to stay afloat, and even a company like Gukbo, the leading producer of Soju in the country, was quickly falling to the wayside. South Korea is one of the biggest consumers of alcohol in the world, so to see a company that is sort of at the heart of the average Korean adult's life taking a plummet... well money grubbers in the form of a global investment firm, step in to "help" the company out. The CFO and Financial Director at Gukbo is played by the great Yoo Hae-jin, one of the best cases of a character actor turned leading man in recent history, and the one pulling the strings at the investment company is played by the young and equally talented Lee Je-hoon. The two form a bond, and the complications of this last hurrah for Gukbo has dire consequences, and a rippling effect of money hungry individuals cause a great rift between the two parties involved, on a large scale, and down to a very personal, philosophical level.

So, right off the bat, this is a film that seemingly will only appeal to a certain crowd. I think Big Deal does a great job of taking a niche sort of actual event and turning it into something engaging, at times tense, and ultimately emotionally resonant. This movie takes a look at a company that is falling apart during trying times for a country at large, and shows the corruption and the hands that look to exploit, when even a giant like Gukbo, is falling to its death. Lee Je-hoon is trying his best to get what he can off of this company, looking to earn money hand over fist for not only himself, but his own company as well. Byron Mann, yes Ryu himself (you heard me!), plays the foul-mouth lead of the Hong Kong branch of the investment firm, and he is great. His character is totally a caricature of the money hungry, crazed evil suit and tie, but he is having a ball, and since this is all about soju, take a shot every time he says the "F" word in English. Actually, don't... for your own safety, and if you aren't of age and are reading this, don't drink period. Anyway, the baddies in this, both from the investment team, and the heir of the Gukbo company himself, played by Son Hyun-joo, unfortunately are all quite paper thin in terms of how they are written and portrayed. I do like that Son only appears in a handful of scenes, as it gives him this sort of mysterious quality, but he bangs around his flip phone to show frustration, reminds everybody his company will float on, and that's about it. He is great in said role, but there isn't a ton of depth to his character. Again, the investment firm is quite flimsy in how they are portrayed, save for Lee's character, which forms the core relationship that is the heart and soul of this film, alongside Yoo's character.

 

Yoo is the one making things happen at Gukbo, and yet he feels like Son's pawn in the grand scheme of things. He is a company man, through and through, and for better or for worse, he does truly care about his work and yearns for brighter days and a redemption for Gukbo. He oversees many things and does all the heavy lifting, and while it takes a toll on him, he remains determined to see things get done. Lee has an interesting arc, and while I don't want to spoil things here in this review, but I will say, once more, that the relationship between he and Yoo is wonderful and quite well realized. I found myself emotionally invested in what was going on between them and I think that helped to elevate this film to a much higher level for me, when at time the screenplay seemed to have its shortcomings. Also, for fans of Korean directors, look out for a small cameo by one Jang Jae-hyun (Exhuma, Priests) in here.

On a technical level, Big Deal looks and sounds great. There aren't any big set pieces or flashy moments, but the film moves along at a nice pace, and it sure makes you want to crack open a bottle of soju. We get small glimpses into the manufacturing process, and those green bottles zipping down the production line are something to behold. Also, the small interactions where Yoo is showing Lee new products in the works and getting his "opinion" on the tastes of them are hilarious and add some levity to this overall sort of depressing tale. I do think the more dramatic moments are handled with a great level of realism and earnestness that give director Choi a good foundation for his directorial debut. He has worked on many solid screenplays over the years, so it is great to see him in the director's chair, and I hope he gives it another shot in the future, as I think there is some great promise here.

Towards the beginning I mentioned that I think this film will appeal to a certain crowd, and while I stand by that, I do think this is a very interesting piece of history I wasn't aware of, and the story may hit harder in its native South Korea. However, I do think it is awesome to see a film like this getting released in the States. I like when a company takes a chance on a title that normally wouldn't be seen like Big Deal, so I have to give Well Go USA props for that.  At the end of the day, what you get is a very interesting drama that unfolds under an intense behind the scenes battle of a mega company that is set to crumble in on itself and what comes from it all is the question of morals and what does the money behind our work actually signify. It speaks on the working class, the every day individual, and I wholeheartedly adored that element. I wish more films in this realm would explore the human condition just a bit more. I got to give Big Deal its flowers. By no means is it a perfect piece of cinema, but it is one with a lot of heart, and sometimes that is all a good movie needs!

Written by Josh Parmer

Time Does Not Heal: The Old Woman with the Knife (2025) Review

Director: Min Kyu-dong

Notable Cast: Lee Hye-young, Kim Sung-cheol, Yeon Woo-jin, Kim Moo-yul, Shin Sia, Kim Kang-woo, Choi Moo-seong, Ok Ja-yeon, Lee Hyun-gul

 

In a world where there is one to two “old man with a sordid past kicks ass” movies released a month, it’s nice to know that there will occasionally be an “old woman with a sordid past kicks ass” movie that gets released. However, in the case of The Old Woman with the Knife, the latest South Korean action thriller to hit the States from our friends at Well Go USA, it’s less about an aging killer being pulled back in and more about an aging killer reckoning with their role in their own life. With a strong sense of visual pizzazz, some impressively brutal action set pieces, and a positively riveting performance from Lee Hye-young, The Old Woman with the Knife is a sizzling slice of assassin cinema, even if the plot can get in the way of the story at times.

 

The Old Woman with the Knife establishes its plot and characters in provocative ways. A cinematic world of assassins is always fun to explore, and especially over the last decade or so, thanks to John Wick, movies have been having fun creating fantastic scenarios around killers and their deeds. In this universe, there is a group of assassins that act as “pest control” and eliminate the ill-gotten pests that infect our society. It’s a relatively small group, well-trained and well-equipped to get the job done, that follows their stringent guidelines about their work.

 

Freelance and Fantastical Work: A Working Man (2025) Review

Director: David Ayer

Notable Cast: Jason Statham, Michael Peña, David Harbour, Noemi Gonzalez, Jason Flemyng, Merab Ninidze, Maximilian Osinski, Cokey Falkow, Arianna Rivas, Isla Gie, Emmett Scanlan, Eve Mauro

 

By the film's end, A Working Man is a full-on fantasy where the realistic tones of its first half have entirely ceased to exist for a truly unhinged world. To the point that the location of its final action set piece looks like a Mario Bava soundstage. The fake-looking trees and a moon that looks like it's only 18 feet away set the tone for its physics-shattering action and brutal deaths. Ah, yes, this is precisely what I wanted. Action films are mostly fantasy films, and the final act embraces that aspect, if not the entire latter half. 

 

A part of me wishes the entire film were within this caliber of action cinema. When A Working Man is trying to be a heartfelt and grounded thriller that sees Statham's Levon attempting to rescue the daughter of his boss, the film struggles to find its footing in the tropes. What made the previous outing between star, Statham and director, Ayer, The Beekeeper work so well is that none of it felt like it needed to be grounded in the world we live in - just the world that the characters lived in. A Working Man spends far too much time trying to make us believe we're watching a gritty crime drama before shedding preconceptions and embracing the Cannon insanity of its finale. And when it does, it is precisely what this film needed to be. 

 

Get Stitches - Yadang: The Snitch (2025) Review

Director: Hwang Byeng-gug

Notable Cast: Kang Ha-neul, Yoo Hai-jin, Park Hae-jun, Ryu Kyung-soo, Chase Won-been, You Seong-joo, Kim Keum-soon, Lim Sung-kyun

 

Although South Korea continues to dominate the market for phenomenally great crime capers, that doesn’t mean that every film that makes it to the US will be a gut-punch of entertainment. 

 

On paper, Yadang: The Snitch sounds like it will rank right up there with some of the best crime caper blockbusters. It features a relatively stacked cast, slick action sequences, and one of those “keep ‘em guessing” narratives I thoroughly enjoy. To a certain degree, Yadang does have those aspects, and for many viewers, that’s enough to warrant a viewing and thorough enjoyment. Yet, the film is also bogged down by an unwieldy plot, tonal inconsistencies, and issues in some of its themes that undermine its overall experience. Take it for its charms and it’s a great time. Try to start digging a bit more, and the entire scheme tends to crumble a bit. 

 

Panic Fest 2025: Self Driver (2024) Review

Director: Michael Pierro

Notable Cast: Nathanael Chadwick, Reece Presley, Lauren Welchner, Christian Aldo, Harold Tausch

 

I’m not sure that companies like Uber or Lyft would appreciate the terms' Uber Horror” or “Lyft Horror,” but I’m unsure what else would be more fitting for a film like Self Driver. Saturated in a luscious score, lo-fi and drastically intimate camera shots, and a tense build that ends up sucking its viewers in, Michael Pierro’s Self Driver is the kind of indie thriller darlings that always end up cutting through during a film festival. It’s niche enough that it might be a harder sell for distributors if it gets picked up for a more significant release, but it’s the kind of strange and off-kilter film that we strive to find at Blood Brothers Film Reviews. It’s nuanced genre cinema of the best type and will definitely be a highlight of Panic Fest 2025. 

 

Told almost exclusively from the car of the ‘VRMR’ driver—again, think of it as the equivalent of Uber or Lyft—Self Driver is the kind of intimate thriller one only finds in the indie sector. Mostly that’s because Self Driver needs to be ultra-confident to pull off the narrative, and it absolutely is. 

 

Panic Fest 2025: The Only Ones (2024) Review

Director: Jordan Miller

Notable Cast: Tatiana Nya Ford, Emily Classen, Zach Ruchkin, Paul Cottman, Cayla Berejikian, Christopher Inlow, Jeb Aufiero, Nancy Anne Ridder, Jim Krut, Matt Burns

 

First, there was the meta-slasher. Scream and Wes Craven’s New Nightmare took the slasher blueprint, spun it just a smidge, and then let it run for a new era built on an audience - and its characters - knowing how a slasher trope works. But now we’re in a new era that goes beyond self-referencing slashers, like the previously mentioned Craven efforts. We’re in the meta-meta-slasher era. 

 

Although dissecting how the meta-meta-slasher works would reveal some surprises and spoilers for newer films, such as Bodies Bodies Bodies from A24, it's the most apt way to express the experience of The Only Ones. At its core, this indie horror film flirts with dark comedy and other horror subgenres as it progresses, but it owes its soul to the slasher genre through and through. For fans of the slice ‘em and dice ‘em horror genre, The Only Ones ought to carry enough kills and spins to earn a viewing, but it does require some insight into the genre to be fully effective. 

 

Panic Fest 2025: Beyond the Drumlins (2025) Review

 

Director: Daniel W. Bowhers

Notable Cast: Michael Kowalski, Emma Jessop, Dan Titmuss, Goodfella Mike G, Julia Kerr, Braford Selby, Ed Contini, Simone Boone

A few years ago, one of the prominent thematic trends in horror centered on “nature horror” or “earth horror.” Films like Gaia and In the Earth focused on how people caught in rural settings confronted the horrors of nature (sometimes with a slightly supernatural twist). So, when Beyond the Drumlins, the debut feature film from writer/director Daniel W. Bowhers, began down that path, it reminded us just how fleeting that trend was and how effective it can still be.

 

Beyond the Drumlins' conceptual horrors linger with its audience after the film ends. An archaeological professor, Dr. Rust, and his team venture into a rural area deep in the woods to find a spot for his future class to test their skills. Upon reaching their destination, they discover that the area has a sinister effect on them. Surrealist horror unfolds as members fall under the influence of the surrounding forest. Classic.

 

Panic Fest 2025: Stalkers (2025) Review

Director: Paul Thompson

Notable Cast: Olivia Stadler, Scarlett DiCaro, Hannah Mae Beatty, Allisha Pelletier, Same Wexler, Abbas Wahab, Marlo Aquilina

 

Far be it from me to have too many expectations going into a film festival, but I certainly did not expect what I got from Stalkers. On paper, Stalkers sounds like the classic slasher. Littered with exploitative elements, like having the lead character be a porn star, and then powering its horror elements with a whodunnit style narrative, the film felt like it was going to be cheesy, slashery entertaining through and through. Yet, as Stalkers plays out, it often rejects leaning into any exploitation elements and aims for something far more dramatic and, dare I say, better, for its material. 

 

Stalkers has something to say with its themes within the slasher premise, and never truly embraces the genre until its final act. It’s a surprisingly reflective and character-driven drama at its heart that just so happens to end up being a slasher. It’s perhaps one of the biggest surprises at Panic Fest 2025 already. 

 

Poetic Horror Justice: The Ghost of Yotsuya (1959) Review

Director: Kenji Misumi

Notable Cast: Kazuo Hasegawa, Yasuko Nakada, Yoko Uraji, Mieko Kondo, Joji Tsurumi, Naritoshi Hayashi, Hideo Takamatsu

 

Although the story that The Ghost of Yotsuya is based on has been around for what feels like since the beginning of time, of which there is a nice little documentary on that subject on the Radiance release of this film, it’s this 1959 version that really perked my interested. Why? What could make this version stand out against the slew of other adaptions? Director Kenji Misumi. The notable director had crafted some of the greatest samurai and action films of all time - working on notable franchises like Lone Wolf and Cub, Zatoichi, and Sleepy Eyes of Death just to name some of the biggest ones - but he rarely dabbled in the horror realm.

Thus, I needed to add Radiance’s Daiei Gothic box set to my collection, which featured this adaption of The Ghost of Yotsuya. It was worth it, too, because this version is a lush and often haunting film, complete with a wild third act, an impressive build of tension, and some gorgeous visuals to go with it. Although, at times, this feels like Misumi at some of his most restrained, it’s such a well-crafted film that showcases his understanding of build and atmosphere that any Japanese horror fan will want to watch it.