May 11, 2025 (NY, NY)– THE OLD WOMAN WITH THE KNIFE is a Gripping Thriller.  Director Min Kyu-dong’s artful and thoughtful crime drama, based on the book of the same title by Gu Byeong-mo, hits theaters May 16, 2025.  This Well Go USA release is another great import from the Korean film market.

Synopsis:

Aging assassin Hornclaw has seen it all, but she never expected to mentor a reckless rookie like Bullfight. As their unlikely bond deepens, cracks form in the underworld they navigate together. When Hornclaw discovers someone wants her dead, she’s thrust into a deadly game of deception. With enemies closing in and trust in short supply, survival means staying sharp—both blade and mind.

Review:

The Korean film market has been at the forefront of the film production business for the last two (2) decades.  South Korea has gone from a country that imported and appreciated great American films to a country that produces and exports some of the finest films in the world.  Taekwondo Life Magazine has screened and reviewed a number of great Korean films since 2016.   The Old Woman with the Knife is just such a film.

The Old Woman with the Knife is a unique and gripping action, crime drama about an aging female assassin coming to grips with her mortality, her diminishing value in the world of assassins, and a dramatic and defining incident from her past.

The film’s storyline does not, on its face, lend itself to good, popular cinema.   The story of an aging female assassin as the basis of an action film may not seem to have broad appeal to a wide, international audience.   However, the execution of the story-telling by the acclaimed Director of the true story of Korean “Comfort Women” in World War II, Herstory, is what transcends those limitations. Min Kyu-dong is a masterful storyteller.  Both of these films champion women in very different, but engaging ways.

The winning synergy of the Direction and fine acting make this movie a winner.   The entire cast does a great job job at bringing humanity and gravitas to their roles.  The acting by Lee Hye-yeong, as the aging assassin (Hornclaw) is with ferocity, complexity, and humanity.   Without Lee Hye-yeong‘s ability to sell this performance, everything else about the movie cannot be supported.   Her triumph in the lead lifts the film.

Kim Sung-cheol‘s performance as Hornclaw’s adversary is well played.  As the story unfolds we come to learn that he is more than just a dangerous and deadly thug.   His performance is thought provoking.

The technique of weaving flashback segments into the current day ones is done artfully, and lends itself to the engagement of the viewer.   However, if you are not paying attention you may find yourself becoming confused about how many of the flashback segments support the dramatic conclusion.

While many of the elements of The Old Woman with the Knife sustain the telling of the humanistic story of the characters, make no mistake, this is still an action and crime drama.  There are many fast paced and violent fight scenes, and scenes related to the art of killing.   Those, alone, make for an exciting and interesting film.   The combination of all of the elements herein make for a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts.   That is, in my definition, good filmmaking.

I like this movie a lot and I highly recommend it.

Watch it in Korean, with English subtitles.

The Old Woman With the Knife, a is gripping and morally complex Korean crime thriller.  It was released in Korea under “Pagwa”.  This Well Go USA release of a Soo Film Production opens May 16th, 2025.

Director: Min Kyu-dong