Everything reviewer ajlee3 said I totally agree with.Let me just add that without the talent of the movie's "hero" Lee Sung Jae, this movie would have been totally forgotten within weeks of its release. As it is, it actually sold quite well. That is likely due to the fact that Lee was able to salvage something with his superb acting skills (all 4 points I give to this movie go to Mr Lee), and also because the director milked every imaginable angle from Mr Lee's fantastic Bruce-Lee-like physique.Lee apparently realized this movie wasn't destined for greatness, as he said in an interview that with two movies in a row that were box office flops, he didn't feel nervous about being in this movie; i.e., he wasn't stressed out from pressure. However, Koreans greatly appreciate movies like this one, as so many of them have suffered from the injustices depicted therein. If only they found a better way to get the message across.

"Yu-Jeon-Mu-Jwae, Mu-Jeon-Yu-Jwae" - Innocent if rich, guilty if poor.This is a movie about a prisoner escape that occurred during the heyday of Korean nationalism and international image-consciousness, the Seoul World Olympics of 1988. The movie exposes the contemptuous practice of lengthening prison sentences for petty crimes by decades at the whim of the prison warden, juxtaposed against the light sentences given to corrupt bureaucrats. The basic message is that Korea has a long way to go before it can step up to 1st world standards in human rights and equality, starting with its criminal justice system.As noble as the message is, there is just way too much melodrama and over-the-top clichés to take this movie seriously. The one-dimensional warden goes out of his way to be cocky, snide, and evil with every spoken syllable and every gesture. Pick any villain in your favorite Saturday morning cartoon and he is it. The prisoners are portrayed with a schoolboy-like innocence obviously meant to draw viewer sympathy. The music, the pacing, the agonizingly long death scenes, all serve to squeeze as much viewer sympathy for the prisoners as possible. The point could have been made more powerfully if it were made with more subtlety. If you watch this, be prepared for a head pounding to make sure you get the point.