''Phantom Detective'' (; lit. "Detective Hong Gil-Dong: Disappeared Village") is a 2016 South Korean

neo-noir Neo-noir is a revival of film noir, a genre that had originally flourished during the post-World War II era in the United Statesroughly from 1940 to 1960. The French term, ''film noir'', translates literally to English as "black film", indicating ...

action thriller film Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include life ...

directed and written by Jo Sung-hee. Its central protagonist is a modern iteration of the classic Korean folk hero Hong Gildong. It was released in South Korea on May 4, 2016. It was released in U.S. and Canada on 20 May 2016.

Synopsis

Hong Gil-Dong (

Lee Je-hoon Lee Je-hoon (born July 4, 1984) is a South Korean actor. He started his career in indie films, then went on to appear in commercial films like '' The Front Line'' (2011), ''Architecture 101'' (2012) and '' My Paparotti'' (2013), and television ...

) runs an illegal detective agency with President Hwang (

Go Ara Go Ara (; born February 11, 1990) is a South Korean actress and model. She is best known for starring in the television series ''Sharp'' (2003), ''Heading to the Ground'' (2009), ''Reply 1994'' (2013), ''You're All Surrounded'' (2014), '' Hwara ...

). They try to take down evil people following the will of President Hwang's late father. Hong Gil-Dong is able to track virtually anyone down in a day, except for Kim Byeong-Duk (

Park Geun-hyung Park Geun-hyung (born June 7, 1940) is a South Korean actor. His career in film, television and theater has spanned over five decades. Filmography Film *''7 People in the Cellar'' (1969) *''Lovers of Seoul'' (1973) *''Spies in the National A ...

) who has eluded him for more than twenty years. Kim Byeong-Duk is the man who killed Hong Gil-Dong's mother. Hong Gil-Dong's memory begins at the age of 8 when his mother was killed. Finally, Hong Gil-Dong learns of Kim Byeong-Duk's location and drives there late at night. Right before he arrives, Kim Byeong-Duk is kidnapped and only his granddaughters Dong-Yi (

Roh Jeong-eui Roh Jeong-eui (born July 31, 2001) is a South Korean actress. She is known for her role as Dong-i in 2016 film '' Phantom Detective'', Hong Si-a in '' 18 Again'' (2020), and NJ in '' Our Beloved Summer'' (2021-22). Filmography Film Television ...

) and Mal-Soon (Kim Ha-na) are left. Following his urge for revenge, Hong Gil-Dong takes the granddaughters to find their grandfather. Soon, Hong Gil-Dong finds himself up against the ultra dark and powerful Gwangeunhwe organization.

Cast

as Hong Gil-dong **Ko Woo-rim as young Gil-dong *

Kim Sung-kyun Kim Sung-kyun (born May 25, 1980) is a South Korean actor. Kim began his career in theatre, then made his screen debut as a gangster boss's faithful henchman in '' Nameless Gangster: Rules of the Time'', followed by supporting roles in '' The Ne ...

as Kang Sung-il *

as Kim Byung-deok *

Jung Sung-hwa Jung Sung-hwa (; born January 2, 1975) is a South Korean actor. He is best known in musical theatre, and has starred in Korean productions of ''Man of La Mancha'' and ''Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' ( , ) is a French historical novel ...

as Innkeeper *

as President Hwang *

as Dong-i *

Kim Ha-na Kim Ha-na (Hangul: 김하나; or ; born 27 December 1989) is a South Korean badminton player. She was the mixed doubles gold medalist at the 2013 Asian Championships, and was part of the national team that won the Sudirman Cup in 2017. Kim wo ...

as Mal-soon * Lee Jun-hyeok as real estate agency owner *

Hwang Bo-ra Hwang Bo-ra (born October 2, 1983) is a South Korean actress. Hwang made her acting debut in 2003 and became popular after she played a quirky-looking "cup noodle girl" in a ramyeon commercial. In 2007, Hwang played the daughter/narrator in bla ...

as used-book store woman *

Byun Yo-han Byun Yo-han (born April 29, 1986) is a South Korean actor. He is best known for his roles in the television dramas '' Misaeng: Incomplete Life'' (2014), ''Six Flying Dragons'' (2015–2016), and '' Mr. Sunshine'' (2018). He has also appeared in ...

as Gwangeunhwe member following Hong Gil-dong (cameo) * Yoo Seung-mok as Tae-kwang auto repair shop owner * Hong Yeong Geon as Kim Jin-ho * Yoon Yeong-gyoon as Choi Tae-jeong *

as innkeeper * Lee Min-woong as Chinese restaurant employee *

Park Ji-Hoon Park Ji-hoon (; born May 29, 1999) is a South Korean singer and actor. Park first made his debut at eight years old as a child actor and advertisement model, appearing as a supporting cast member on the MBC historical drama '' Jumong'' (2006) ...

as police officer 1 * Park Jung-won as police officer 4

References

External links

* * * 2016 action thriller films South Korean neo-noir films South Korean action thriller films Works based on Hong Gildong jeon 2010s Korean-language films South Korean crime films CJ Entertainment films South Korean detective films 2016 action films 2010s South Korean films {{SouthKorea-film-stub