The Plot: A Glossy but Hollow Remake of a Hong Kong Thriller
The simplicity that made Soi Cheang’s 2009 Hong Kong thriller Accident work is lost in Lee Yo-sup’s glossy remake, The Plot. The Korean remake is overcomplicated and lacks substance, making it a disappointing adaptation of a well-crafted original.
A Korean movie poster
Accident’s premise was effective in its simplicity, making it a thriller that could unfold almost anywhere. The original film, directed by Soi Cheang Pou-soi, starred Louis Koo Tin-lok as the leader of a gang that staged elaborate assassinations made to look like accidents. When a member of his own team is killed on the job, he becomes consumed by distrust and paranoia.
In The Plot, Gang Dong-won assumes the role of troubled architect of death Young-il. The film introduces Young-il’s team, comprising Lee Mi-sook’s ageing femme fatale, Lee Hyun-wook’s transvestite, and Tang Jun-sang’s rookie, as they reel from the death of a teammate. The situation is made worse by the high-profile nature of their next target, a prominent political figure, whose daughter wants him sidelined permanently.
“The situation is made worse by the high-profile nature of their next target, a prominent political figure, whose daughter wants him sidelined permanently.”
As the media circus surrounding their target escalates, Young-il grows suspicious that a mysterious insurance broker might be conspiring with the rest of his own team. The Plot complicates its premise significantly, staging more ostentatious accidents, inserting a dizzying number of confusing flashbacks, and introducing myriad peripheral characters.
A Korean actor
Outside of the highly charged set pieces, which might be better suited to a Final Destination horror film, Cheang’s direction smouldered with palpable paranoid intensity. Korean cinematic sensibilities demand more bravura, but The Plot’s execution is lacking. The film’s score is pounding and headache-inducing, making it difficult to focus on the plot.
Buried deep within The Plot is a strand of legitimate social commentary about the public’s festering distrust of traditional institutions like government, big business, and the media, and how we would rather indulge fringe voices who peddle baseless, sensationalist conspiracy theories instead. However, if Lee succeeds in articulating anything substantive on this subject, it is accidental.
A Korean cityscape
The Plot is a disappointing remake that fails to live up to the standard set by Accident. With its overcomplicated plot and lack of substance, it is a hollow adaptation that lacks the simplicity and intensity of the original.
