''The Policeman's Lineage'' () is a 2022 South Korean

crime drama Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...

film, directed by Lee Kyoo-man and starring

Cho Jin-woong Cho Jin-woong (born Jo Won-jun; March 3, 1976) is a South Korean actor. He is best known for his roles as Sejong's loyal bodyguard in ''Deep Rooted Tree'' (2011), a mobster in '' Nameless Gangster: Rules of the Time'' (2012), and a mysterious vil ...

and

Choi Woo-shik Choi Woo-shik (; born March 26, 1990) is an South Korean-Canadian actor based in South Korea. He first gained widespread recognition for his leading role in the film '' Set Me Free'' (2014). He then co-starred in the films ''Train to Busan'' (201 ...

. The film, based on Japanese novel ''Blood of the Policeman'' by

Joh Sasaki is a Japanese writer and journalist; chiefly known for his historical fiction and mystery novels. Biography Joh Sasaki was born in Yubari, Hokkaido, Japan. He spent his early youth in Nakashibetsu City and later ventured to Sapporo where Sasa ...

, is about two cops with different methods forming a team to investigate a case that turns the police force upside down. The film was released theatrically on January 5, 2022.

Cast

as Park Kang-yoon, head of the Metropolitan Investigation Unit *

as Choi Min-jae, an undercover honest police officer **

Park Sang-hoon Park Sang-hoon ( ko, 박상훈, or ; born 13 March 1993) is a South Korean cyclist, who rides for UCI Continental team . Major results Road Source: ;2010 : 1st Time trial, Asian Junior Road Championships ;2011 : Asian Junior Road Champions ...

as young Choi Min-jae *

Park Hee-soon Park Hee-soon (; born February 13, 1970) is a South Korean actor. He graduated with a Theater degree from Seoul Institute of the Arts, and was a member of the Mokwha Repertory Company from 1990 to 2001. He became active in film beginning 2002, a ...

as Hwang In-ho *

Kwon Yul Gwon Yul (; December 28, 1537 - July 6, 1599) was a Korean Army General and the Commander-in-chief (도원수; 導元帥) of the Joseon Dynasty, who successfully led the Korean forces against Japan during the Japanese invasions of Korea (임진� ...

as Na Young-bin, a criminal who deals only with the top 1% *

Park Myung-hoon Park Myung-hoon ( ko, 박명훈; born May 28, 1975), is a South Korean actor. He made his acting debut as a stage actor in the 1999 play ''Class''. He is best known internationally for his role as Geun-sae in the Academy Award winning film ''Para ...

as Cha Dong-cheol, a criminal who survived a deal with the police * Lee Eol * Jang Seo-kyung * Lee Sung-woo as Team leader Han, (Narcotic investigation) * Son In-yong as detective * Lim Chul-hyung as Sun Woo-bum, A senior official at the Seoul Government Gwangsu University. He helps Kang Yoon in his near-death investigation.

Production

In July 2019

and

were confirmed to appear in the film based on Japanese novel ''Blood of the Policeman'' by

. They have worked together before in 2011 historical TV series ''

Deep Rooted Tree ''Deep Rooted Tree'' () is a 2011 South Korean television series starring Han Suk-kyu, Jang Hyuk and Shin Se-kyung. Based on the novel of the same name by Lee Jung-myung, it aired on SBS from 5 October to 22 December 2011 on Wednesdays and Thur ...

''. Park Myung-hoon joined the cast in January 2020. Choi Woo-shik and

worked together in 2018 horror film '' The Witch: Part 1. The Subversion''. The film was shot in Ulsan in February 2020. Last leg of shooting was completed in Nam-gu, Ulsan City courthouse.

Release

The film was released theatrically on January 5, 2022. It made it to 'Korean Cinema Today - Panorama' section of

27th Busan International Film Festival The 27th Busan International Film Festival () was held from October 5 at the Busan Cinema Center in Busan, South Korea till October 14. This year, the festival restarted events and program sections which were not conducted due to COVID-19 for la ...

and was screened on October 6, 2022.

Reception

Box office

The film was released on 1,184 screens on January 5, 2022. As per Korean Film Council (Kofic) integrated computer network, the film ranked at no. 2 at the Korean box office in the opening weekend with 374,432 cumulative admissions. it is at 13th place among all the Korean films released in the year 2022, with gross of US$5.56 million and 679,503 admissions.

Critical response

Kim Mi-hwa of Star News praising the lead cast stated, "

and

, who are diametrically opposite in terms of appearance and character, brings joy to the viewers." She also praised the performances of supporting cast of

, and

and wrote, "savory performances of various supporting actors breathe life into the film." Kim felt that the film "is a mix of stories of police, gangsters, and drugs familiar to Korean audiences." But she stated that "the new chemistry that comes out of them mixes with flavor like a seasoning." She criticised the sound quality, writing, "not being able to hear the lines well in some scenes even though the actors utter the lines clearly." Concluding she wondered, " hether the filmwill be able to captivate the audience with a delicious movie made with familiar ingredients."

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Policeman's Lineage, The 2022 films 2020s South Korean films 2020s Korean-language films 2022 crime drama films South Korean crime drama films Films postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic Films based on novels Police procedural films Films based on Japanese novels South Korean police films