Action vehicles can go two directions. They can build themselves around high-concepts and kinetic movement. Because cinema is an inherently motion filled medium, some action films aim to emphasize this. Other action films are simple; largely based around one very particular skill that its protagonists have.
The Roundup: No Way Out takes the latter concept to the extreme. Never before has someone punched so many things and looked so sincere while doing it. That’s because Sergeant Ma Seok-do (Don Lee, Train to Busan) is back, baby! The third in a series that aim to be the Fast and the Furious of Korean crime procedurals continues on with the legacies of its predecessors. This time, there’s more stuff to be punched.
I’m not always partial to this style of film. Previous installments in this series focused very heavily on the foreign other as corrupting influence. The inherent premise must take a pointedly laissez-faire approach to police brutality, which is something that I usually find icky. I find it icky here too, but in the spirit of being charitable I will confirm that I have a very good time with this one.
Largely, this is a result of the physicality of Don Lee’s performance. The hulking Korean super cops’ screen presence is incorrigible. He dominates the screen, but simultaneously leaves just enough room for his various comic relief sidekicks to accentuate his movements. Routinely, they warn villains of their impending demise right before they get clocked by Ma’s sledgehammer fists. Laughter ensues. It’s a simple enough formula; one that the various stakeholders believe they can rinse and repeat for about another decade. I imagine that this will get tiresome at some point, but for now it works just enough to maintain the series’ momentum.
- Rated: 18
- Genre: Action, crime
- Release Date: 7/21/2023
- Directed by: Lee Sang-yong
- Starring: Don Lee, Go Gyu-pil, Kim Do-geon, Kim Min-jae, Lee Beom-soo, Lee Ji-hun, Lee Jun-hyuk, Munetaka Aoki
- Produced by: Kim Kyeong-taek
- Written by: Cha Woo-jin, Kim Min-sung
- Studio: ABO Entertainment, BA Entertainment, Big Punch Pictures, Hong Film, Plus M Entertainment
