Leads' chemistry entertains audiences in 'Ransomed'

Buddy cop movies rarely go wrong. And with “Ransomed,” starring Ha Jung-woo and Ju Ji-hoon, the leads’ chemistry and their comedic scenes together manage to save an otherwise bland film about two very different men carrying out an unofficial...

Ju Ji-hoon, left, plays Kim Pan-soo, a taxi driver who gets involved in Lee Min-joon's mission to deliver a ransom and rescue a Korean diplomat in ″Ransomed.″ Ha Jung-woo, right, plays Min-joon. [SHOWBOX]

Buddy cop movies rarely go wrong. And with “Ransomed,” starring Ha Jung-woo and Ju Ji-hoon, the leads’ chemistry and their comedic scenes together manage to save an otherwise bland film about two very different men carrying out an unofficial mission to rescue a Korean diplomat being held hostage.

“Ransomed” is set in the Middle East, and opens with an official at the Korean embassy in Lebanon being taken hostage in 1986. After receiving indications that the official is alive, the Korean government sends another diplomat on a mission to rescue him — Lee Min-joon, played by Ha. Min-joon is tasked with delivering the ransom money for the kidnapped official's release.

On his journey, Min-joon meets Kim Pan-soo, a Korean taxi driver played by Ju, who ends up joining Min-joon on his mission. While the kidnapping incident and Min-joon are based on real-life events, Pan-soo is entirely fictional.

Main poster for ″Ransomed″ [SHOWBOX]

And it is all for the better that this fictional second character is created, because without the bromance chemistry between Min-joon and Pan-soo, “Ransomed” could have ended up very dull. The two leads’ performance saves the film from becoming a drab story with an exotic background.

The comedic scenes all come from exchanges between Min-joon and Pan-soo, and the pair’s lack of commonality at first and their mutual dislike of each other are endearing as they slowly start to find a middle ground and form an unlikely friendship. Ha’s and Ju’s performances as each of the characters make the audience wonder if they are not very good friends in real life.

Ju Ji-hoon and Ha Jung-woo play two men who form an unlikely friendship in the buddy cop film ″Ransomed″ [SHOWBOX]

This isn’t the two actors’ first collaboration, which could explain the great chemistry that Ha and Ju have on screen. The two acted together in the 10-million-ticket-selling ”Along with the Gods: The Two Worlds” (2017) and its sequel “Along with the Gods: The Last 49 Days” (2018). In the press conference held for “Ransomed” on July 4, the film's director, Kim Seong-hun, said that he had cast the two because their collaboration would “amount to more than just one plus one.”

That said, “Ransomed” does rely too heavily on the leads’ chemistry to execute the plot, comedy and the film's more important scenes. There is one pivotal moment towards the end of the film where Pan-soo nearly breaks the friendship that he and Min-joon had built up, and another scene where Min-joon sacrifices himself for Pan-soo. Whereas “Ransomed” chalks up these scenes to the two men's characterization and the actors’ performances, it would have been more convincing if more explanation and plot devices were used to untangle these important points in the film.

A scene from ″Ransomed″ [SHOWBOX]

In the end, “Ransomed” is a buddy cop film that stays true to its genre in that two very different people come together for a mission and form a friendship that is believable and entertaining to the audience. While it could have benefited from some extra editing – the film is 132 minutes long, and not all of those minutes are worthy – Ha and Ju's strong chemistry make “Ransomed” a near-solid summer flick.

BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]