MEN OF PLASTIC (압꾸정) (2022)

Genre: Comedy/Drama
Director: Im Jin-soon
Cast: Don Lee, Jung Kyung-ho, Oh Na-ra, Choi Byung-mo, Oh Yeon-seo
Runtime: 1 hr 52 mins
Rating: PG13 (Some Coarse Language)
Released By: Golden Village Pictures
Official Website: 

Opening Day: 22 December 2022

Synopsis: The most glamorous part of Seoul, Apgujeong thrives with new possibilities. Dae-guk (Don LEE) who is a native of Apgujeong and rules its ground, is eager to start his own groundbreaking plastic surgery business. Then he encounters Ji-woo (JUNG Kyung-ho), the most talented surgeon in the area who lost his medical license due to someone sabotaging his reputation. Dae-guk effortlessly comes up with an idea to make this business happen, and he does everything he can to make Ji-woo his partner. Together, Dae-guk and Ji-woo open a whole new era of Apgujeong.

Movie Review:

We can’t decide whether this Korean movie is a comedy or a cautionary tale. We’ve often heard how Koreans (especially the celebrities) are no strangers to plastic surgery. In fact, you may have friends who have travelled to Koreato get a facelift done – all in the name of looking beautiful. For those who are even more in tune, you’d know that Apgujeong-dong in Gangnam is where you’ll find the famous plastic surgery street, and together with it, countless fabulous looking people. And this is where the story takes place – while you may be ogling at the abundance of eye candy, you may also be disturbed by what goes on behind the scenes in the cosmetic surgery capital of the world.

Don Lee, with all his 90kg of screen presence, plays Dae-guk, a business minded guy who has a brilliant idea to open a plastic surgery complex. What he needs is a partner, and he finds one in Ji-woo, a charismatic plastic surgeon (played charmingly by Jung Kyung-ho). It’s a dog eat dog world, so if you are not careful like Ji-woo, you’d be easily sabotaged and have your medical license suspended.

The two men are determined to make it big in Apgujeong-dong, and with the involvement with a few other shady characters portrayed by Oh Na-ra, Choi Byung-mo and Oh Yeon-seo, the 112 minute movie is a tale that makes you wonder who can be trusted, and who’s a straight faced liar who is up to no good.

For viewers who are not already aware of how dodgy things can get in the cosmetic surgery business (or any profit making industry, for that matter), you will be introduced to a series of unethical practices. Surgeons can be swapped without the patient’s knowledge or consent after they are under anaesthesia. Unlicensed doctors perform surgeries and are not responsible for the consequences. Hard sell marketing gimmicks are used to push for cosmetic surgery tourism. And most unsettling of all, is the use of illegal substances in the course of delivering plastic surgeries to customers. Would you even know whether there are after effects months or years down the road?

Marketed as a comedy, this movie delivers the laughs, thanks to Lee’s larger than life persona. He is the guy you want on your side. You support him as he goes about his seemingly unscrupulous ways to make his way to the top. The bulldozer character is nicely complemented by Jung’s enigmatic plastic surgeon who is basking in the limelight as he finds fame in the process. The men have good on screen chemistry and it is a joy to watch the two of them play off each other’s personality, right up to the moment when they realise they may not be on the same side after all.

Just when you start to wonder how the movie will conclude as things turn sour towards the end of the movie, you remember this is a fictionalised tale (which may not be that dramatised given the subject matter) that serves as a reminder that there is always a price to pay for success, be it in the form of fame or beauty.

Movie Rating:

(An entertaining movie that also makes you think about the shady business that's going on in the cosmetic surgery capital of the world)

Review by John Li