This Thrilling 2022 Martial Arts Action Movie Is Already a Certified Classic (2025)

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What Is the Killer About? Jang Hyuk Is a Master of the Rule of Cool in ‘The Killer' Your Rating Cast References

The Killer

By Miranda Adama

Published 3 days ago

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This Thrilling 2022 Martial Arts Action Movie Is Already a Certified Classic (2)

The action genre loves a retiree getting pulled back into the fray to do some violence. From The Equalizer to A History of Violence to Pig, it’s undeniable how compelling and even endearing audiences find a normal, peaceful life giving way to the violent origins that shaped it. 2022’s The Killer is a frenetic but fluid—and surprisingly warm—entry into the subgenre. The Killer follows Bang Ui-gang (Jang Hyuk), a man of few words with a dry sense of humor and a quiet caffeine addiction. The inciting incident that calls Bang out of domestic bliss and back into the criminal underworld? His wife Hyeon-soo (Lee Chae-young) asks him to babysit.

What Is the Killer About?

This Thrilling 2022 Martial Arts Action Movie Is Already a Certified Classic (3)

The Killer is based on The Child Who Deserves to Die by Bang Jin-ho and manages to adapt the tropes of the domesticated action man to the screen with a compelling dimension. Bang has been tasked with babysitting Yoon-ji (Lee Seo-young), the troubled teen of a family friend. His deadpan responses and mostly stoic demeanor are contrasted by how willing he is to immediately cave to Hyeon-soo’s demands and Yoon-ji’s ever-changing needs. It’s the accidental father trope audiences love from stories like The Last of Us, The Witcher, and Logan but—thanks to Bang’s efficiency and the film’s realism—make it more tangible. This doesn’t mean that the stakes aren’t high, however, and Yoon-ji’s troubles become his troubles.

With the endearing balance of Bang’s past and present, as well as the chaos of a criminal underbelly that exploits teens and adults alike, director Jai-Hoon Choi (The Swordsman, The Hypnosis) offers narrative spikes and action set pieces that rival western martial arts films like John Wick, with signature camera work and style of modern Korean classics like The Man from Nowhere and The Villainess. Saturated hallways, claustrophobic elevators, and neon-drenched lobbies support a wealth of single-take action sequences as well as the perfect amount of fun gimmick shots. But the real glory of The Killer lies in actor Jang Hyuk’s committed portrayal of Bang Ui-gang.

Jang Hyuk Is a Master of the Rule of Cool in ‘The Killer'

Jang Hyuk is undoubtedly one of the coolest action stars to ever be on-screen. His previous work with director Choi Jai-Hoon on The Swordsman showed his ability to meet precise choreography with menacing fluidity. The Killer gives Jang even more room for dynamic action, with intensive melee that sees him meet guns, axes, knives, and a handful of more gimmick-based action that shouldn’t be spoiled for first-time viewers. In his capable hands, a switch from a slash to a hammer grip on a knife feels like a character choice, not just choreography.

With nuance in his sparse dialogue and his ability to carry characterization and high stakes into intensive combat, he makes the world and characters around him shine as much as he does. He meets the softer, more comedic beats of the screenplay organically. He checks a text message just after an elevator full of henchmen arrives to take him out, knowing he has the time while these disposable baddies process the evidence of carnage around Bang already. With a gun in one hand and a to-go coffee in the other, Jang meets the intensity of combat sequences with the casual frustration of an IT professional being called in after hours.

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But Bang isn’t just aloof, and he’s never edgy. His relationship with Yoon-ji—who is saved in his cell phone contacts as Punk Ass 5—slowly evolves from “my wife asked me to do this, so I will” to a genuine desire to protect Yoon-ji. The conflict of the film comes from someone Yoon-ji thought was a friend setting her up to be trafficked. As Bang gets to know Yoon-ji, primarily to see if she has friends she can trust and stay with while he cleans up the mess of this encounter, he discovers that she’s a girl very much on her own. Bang’s desire to be home alone and his history of violence are mirrored to him by a teenage girl who hasn’t yet learned who to trust or how to protect herself. Bang, and the film as a whole, take that seriously. Yoon-ji is never written off as an annoyance. Her naivety is never used to justify the cruelty she experiences as the film intensifies. Instead, viewers get the pleasure of seeing Jang and Lee soften into their characters and build a compelling dynamic.

This makes the film’s third act reveal all the more rewarding, both in its more harrowing details and its heartwarming center. With stylish sets, elevated tropes, and thrilling combat that makes you gasp and giggle, The Killer is the perfect action film, no matter why you come to the genre.