The last of the Roundup trilogy is the 2024 film The Roundup:Punishment. It is all about cyber gambling vs Ma Soek do and his team of detectives. This may be the final entry in the popular film series starring Ma Dong-seok, aka; Don Lee.
Thus far we have had themes of extradition from a foreign country; The Roundup, foreign gangs infiltrating the local drug trade; The Roundup: No Way Out and now a foreign gang taking over the cyber gambling arena; The Roundup:Punishment. The detectives work this time with the Philippine Police to investigate an online gambling takeover.
Of course there is still human trafficking and bitcoin to explore so the trilogy may well expand its reach.
The story
Seok do and his team are cracking down on drug dealing online. An informant is murdered and they try to track down his killers. It becomes personal after they meet the victim’s mother. She kills herself and Ma sets his sights high and they work an international sting on the villain.
The Cast
Ma Dong-seok is Ma Seok do.
Kim Mu-yeol is Baek Chang-gi.
Park Ji-hwan is Jang Yi-soo
Lee Dong-hwi is Jang Dong-cheol.
it works; slowly
The Roundup: Punishment works but oh so slowly. The plot is drawn out and the only really good thing to be said about the film is Ji-hwan’s return as the “Leo Getz” of this universe.
There is a lot of two-ing and fro-ing in this iteration of The Roundup universe. Two villains share the spotlight, one in Korea and the other in the Philippines. The Korean detective team, after being disbanded, work overtime to bring the criminals to justice.
As usual, there are a lot of fight scenes involving batons, knives, fists and feet. It the fight choreography that makes The Roundup: Punishment work so well. There are guns at play, but these are in the minority as, unlike the US, not everyone has access to firearms, legal or otherwise.
Kudos
There is a scene at the start of the film where the detectives put drug delivery boys in a small closet. In a homage, or at the very least and nod and wink, to the Marx Brothers (A Night at the Opera: the stateroom scene.) it is, perhaps, the only real laugh out loud moment in the film. Although Ji Hwan is pretty funny as the “special” cop.
The sting
The sting itself is clever and, to a huge extent, satisfying. It is the end result of this operation that makes The Roundup: Punishment a worthy successor to the trilogy itself.
Of course the whole thing comes together with the comical support of Jang Yi-soo. He is given a badge in this one and the results are funny and, to a huge degree, ironic.
behind the camera
Heo Myeong-haeng this action thriller with a deft touch. As well he should, he did stunts on Kim Ji-woon’s The Good The Bad the Weird. The cinematography by Sung-je Lee is both tight and expansive. Each frame is focused on the action taking place.
The Verdict
The Roundup: Punishment is a 4 out of 5 stars for effort alone. Unfortunately, for me at any rate, it still moves too slow. Arguably this is down to a more intricate plot line and some tricky international complications. The addition of the cyber crime setup could also be seen as a slowing up of the action. The film can be rented or purchased via the regular platforms, i.e. Amazon Prime, AppleTV and Google Play.
Do not hold your breath for The Roundup 4. Ma Dong seok is apparently working on a film about a demon fighting team.
the trailer
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