The Killers
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The Killers is a perfect midnight omnibus movie—an audacious anthology that reinvigorates the hitman genre with four brilliantly crafted, thematically linked yet stylistically distinct short films. Directed by four visionary Korean filmmakers, the collection blends horror, dark comedy, neo-noir, and surreal allegory into a wildly entertaining experience that thrills as much as it provokes.

The anthology opens with Kim Jong-kwan’s Metamorphosis, a hypnotic tale of power awakened through vampiric bloodlust. Roh Deok’s Contractors follows, weaving a darkly comedic pyramid of contract killings and subcontracted violence. Chang Hang-jun’s Everyone is Waiting for the Man plunges into neo-noir intrigue, tracking a ghostly assassin through the neon underbelly of the city. Finally, Lee Myung-Se’s Silent Cinema delivers a surreal, dialogue-free crescendo—a poetic meditation on cinema itself, realised through stunning visual storytelling.

Defying genre conventions, The Killers balances terror with absurdity, ensuring midnight audiences scream one moment and laugh the next. From vampire awakenings to hitman farces, from bounty hunters clashing in retro-styled bars to the shadowy depths of a diasporic underworld, the film pulses with nostalgic flair—a love letter to cult cinema’s past while carving its own bold identity.

KIM JONG-KWAN
Born in 1975, he graduated in film from the Seoul Institute of the Arts. After working various jobs, in 2010 he made his debut with the feature film Come, Closer. Her second film, Worst Woman (2016), was released in the same year as The Table (2016). In 2019, he directed Persona_Walking at Night, a segment of the Netflix series. Subsequently, he directed the films Josée (2020), Another Record (2021), Shades of the Heart (2021) and Vestige (2022).

ROH DEOK
With her first feature Very Ordinary Couple (2012), Roh Deok won the Asian New Talent Award at the 2013 Shanghai International Film Festival. In 2015, she made her second feature The Exclusive: Beat the Devil’s Tattoo.

CHANG HANG-JUN
Chang Hang-jun made his debut in the 2002 film Turn on the Lighter. His other works include Break Out (2002) and Spring Breeze (2003), Ghost House (2004), TV series Sign (2011). In 2017, for his first theatrical outing in nine years, he surprised many by coming up with a mystery thriller, Forgotten, which was welcomed by 1.4 million moviegoers in South Korea.

LEE MYUNG-SE
Lee Myung-se is a celebrated Korean filmmaker known for his visually striking style. His notable works include the crime thriller Nowhere to Hide (1999), the Joseon-era mystery Duelist (2005), and the surreal romance M (2007). He contributed to the anthology The Killers (2024) and directed the VR documentary Missing Pictures: Lee Myung-Se (2022), reflecting on fatherhood in Korean culture.

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Fri Apr 25, 2025 | 21:30
Gartenbaukino
Red Lotus 2025

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South Korea 2024
118 Min | Color and black & white | Korean with English subtitles

Directed by KIM Jong-kwan, ROH Deok, CHANG Hang-jun, LEE Myung-se

The Killers © Showbox