a bittersweet life

A BITTERSWEET LIFE Script Underway For Netflix Remake Of Korean Neo-Noir Hit Thriller

Remember news of a potential remake development for 2005’s A Bittersweet Life? Well, that is a thing yet again. The word now from Deadline’s Matt Grobar has it that Kevin McMullin is penning the script for a production to be overseen by Netflix, and by Chernin Entertainment’s Alex Jackson. Kim Jee-woon’s Korean gangster flick starred Lee Byung-hun in the role of Sun-woo, a weary underworld enforcer who turns on his boss after refusing to kill his mistress for cheating, upon falling in love with her himself. The neo-noir hit played for Cannes that year and became a beacon of Asian cult cinema fandom for years to come with leading man Lee riding the wave to stardom in future hits like Kim’s 2008’s The Good, The Bad, The Weird, and 2010’s I Saw The Devil, and later appearing in Kim’s 2016 thriller, The Age Of Shadows. Kim’s body of work is […]

A BITTERSWEET LIFE: Umbrella Lands 4K Restoration Limited Collector’s Edition Coming In April

Lee B. Golden III

2005 was a terrific year for niche Asian film fans fond of actor Lee Byung-hun amid the ceremony for his darling hit thriller, A Bittersweet Life, about a mob enforcer faced with retribution by his boss after falling for his repressed mistress. The film is a point of inspiration for some directors and was even the topic of a potential remake in the U.S., the updates on which remain to be seen. Moreover, the film also is available on streaming on some platforms which is great given the film’s Out-Of-Print status from physical media in most markets in the years since. Nevertheless, if you’re knowledgeable of Aussie-based firm Umbrella Entertainment and you’ve been craving this title as a longstanding hopeful addition to your collection, consider yourself in luck. The company is releasing a decked out 4K restoration of the flick on Blu-Ray this April, loaded with special features and gems, […]

Korean Action Drama, A BITTERSWEET LIFE, Is Getting A Remake With Michael B. Jordan Starring

Lee B. Golden III

Director Kim Jee-Woon’s 2005 action drama, A Bittersweet Life, certainly lended one of the most brutal and memorable titles Korean cinema had to offer near the start of the millenium with actor Lee Byung-Hun front and center. Fast forward to present day where Twentieth Century Fox is poised to advance a remake effort with the promise of actor Michael B. Jordan leading the cast. Jennifer Yuh, Nelson (Kung Fu Panda 2, Kung Fu Panda 3) is being tapped to direct the remake with the goal of steering it as potential franchise starter with Jordan playing a high-level mob enforcer who becomes romantically embroiled in a deadly cover-up with his boss’s young mistress. 21 Laps’s own Shawn Levy, Dan Levine and Dan Cohen are producing in association with CJ Entertainment with Jason Young overseeing for Fox. Jordan is next slated to appear in the February 16, 2018 release of Creed helmer Ryan […]