Buddy Cop in-training with heart: Midnight Runners (청년경찰)
The basic premise: two polar opposite police academy students go out on the town and encounter a crime in progress. It’s the basic buddy cop premise, but with the awkwardness of youth mixed in. So, why should you watch it? Watch it if you’re looking for a buddy cop movie with some comedy and a heart! The eye candy of Park Seo Joon doesn’t hurt either if that’s something you look for ;).
I can’t say that I liked it because of one particular reason, whether due to its humor or its heart, because what it did do, was to bring about a good blend of the two. The comedy stemmed mainly from two tropes:
- Due to the difference between the two main characters: one being more studious and the other, more of a jock.
- Due to their youth and naiveté, mainly in their inept pursuit of girls.
It also felt like a fighting genre movie in a way. Show how they started down their path (going to police academy) → encounter an adversary that they can’t defeat → train to defeat that adversary → defeat their adversary.
I mention this because I felt like it contributed to the success of the movie. Execute a common story structure well with the added elements of comedy & heart. In a way, it was the execution of the main story structure that gave the director the levity to add comedic and emotional elements without it overwhelming the entire movie.
There’s nothing that stands out to me about the movie. The premise of the story isn’t ground-breaking and just generally nothing surprising, but what it does is just great execution by all parties involved: director, crew, main characters, writer, etc.
I also really like the message they were conveying: sometimes doing the right thing means breaking the rules. They would even use some comedic elements to bring that point across, where the guys would banter about whether they should do something or not, even though they’re not supposed to. The comedic element helps get the message across by disarming the audience, to make them feel like they’re not being lectured to.
I also liked how they compared the perspective of the neophytes compared to the “adults” in the room. For me, it brings to mind that sometimes we really should adopt a child-like attitude in our lives: to be honest with yourself and others & to do things because you know it to be the right thing to do.
What I got out of the movie was that life should be lived with nuance. It’s kind of like the lawyer’s favorite response, “It depends.” Rules are important and should generally be followed, but also, “it depends”.
OVERALL SCORE: 8.5
- STORY: 8.0/10
- DIRECTING: 8.5/10
- WRITING: 8.5/10
- LEAD Actors: 9/10
- SUPPORTING Cast: 7.5/10
- CINEMATOGRAPHY: 7.5/10
- MUSIC: Okay, didn’t notice it
- WATCH again with future spouse? 8/10 (if she hasn’t watched it, it’d be a nice escape :D)
The run down: A fun, well-paced watch with lots of heart and good comedic timing. Nothing ground-breaking, but just a small story, well told!
