lastliberal Myung-se Lee may dream of one day being the Korean John Woo, but he has a long way to go.This was a good film, but it it not in Woo's class. The action was in short bursts, with most of the time spent in routine police procedure. Well, I say "routine" as Detective Woo (Joong-Hoon Park) is anything but routine. I don't know why they would give Miranda warnings in Korea, but he certainly throws out any other procedures that we take for granted in an obsessive hunt for a drug dealer. I just wish we had him going after Osama bin Laden.The hunt takes almost three months and his partner Kim (Dong-Kun Jang) doesn't fare well in the venture. I did find it very interesting that Woo instigated a snowball fight with Kim to take his mind off a shooting. Having been in the trenches dealing with scum, I know that sometimes you have to do those things to heal.One kudo I give the film is the cinematography and music. I was really impressed with the way the leaves, the snow, and the rain, as well as color was used to set the mood.I'll look for more by Myung-se Lee to see if he gets better.

AwesomeWolf Version: Original Korean cut, R3 Korean DVD, Korean audio and English subtitles.'Nowhere to Hide' is one of those all style and no substance Korean action films that is destined to be played in the SBS cult-movie slot. In saying that, I'm actually around two years late: it already played once as an SBS cult-movie about two years ago. However, after watching it for a second time on DVD, it doesn't seem as awesome as it did two years ago. It's unfortunate really, because I'm all about awesome.Woo (Joong-Hoon Park) is a rather unorthodox detective, paired with Detective (Kim Dong-Kun Jang) investigating a murder. The main suspect is Sungmin (Sung-kee Ahn), an apparent master of disguise. Being the unorthodox detective that he is Woo, tries to track down Sungmin by abusing other suspects and sleeping in the homes of people close Sungmin. Funny how no one thought to report him.Somehow, 'Nowhere to Hide' manages to drag out an incredibly thin plot to almost two hours. It really is a case of all style and little to no substance. I'll admit that it is visually stunning, but why? 'Why?' is something that has not yet been explained to me, and at first glance, none of the IMDb comments seem to answer why either. It is almost as if director Myung-se Lee decided he was going to make a cop-thriller that was long and filled with pretty pictures, but yet had no point.As an action movie it is entertaining, but nothing special. It is funny at times, but the action and humour just can't seem to keep up the interest for the full 112 minutes. I hate to admit that it even becomes a bit of bore and some points. I guess I should have watched the shortened international version.Anyone who thinks 'Matrix: Revolutions' borrowed from this film should really check out 'Volcano High' - the end in particular. I know 'Nowhere to Hide' borrowed music from Sergio Leone's 'Once Upon a Time in the West', as well as featuring Korean rock and the BeeGees.'Nowhere to Hide' is entertaining, but too long for it's own good. It should still appeal to fans of Asian action movies, but I was not impressed - 6/10

josh-hall Nowhere to hide has to be one of the most perfectly made cop/villain thrillers i have ever seen. The movie has such a a great, yet tense feel to it and is so determined to blow the audiences minds away. The groundbreaking camera-work, beautiful cinematography, tense and violent action (featuring some of the coolest fight scenes i have ever seen) and a to die for soundtrack make this film in my opinion one of the greatest cop thrillers that has been made today. Laying right up there with 'Heat' and 'Infernal Affairs'. This film i think is not only a must see for Asian extreme fans, but for any one a fan of thrillers. 9 out of 10.

Sean Choi Lee Myung-se is one of the most gifted directors of the contemporary "new wave" movement in Korean cinema. He is a director who's in love with the medium of film, and it shows in his dazzling Nowhere to Hide. The film's plot involves a standard cops and robbers chase, but that's not where its strength lies. This film doesn't bother itself much with "substance," e.g. richly developed characters with whom we can sympathize, a serious look at "the human condition," etc. Instead, Nowhere to Hide is all about style and the joy of making films. Lee's style is sort of an amalgamation of Wong Kar-wai (the visuals) and John Woo (the action), and Nowhere to Hide offers some sumptuous feasts for the eyes. To offer some salient examples: There is an early assassination sequence which is so beautifully shot and creatively edited that it plays out like an impressionist music video (and it also happens to be my favorite scene from any film of its year, 2000); There is a fight sequence which is done completely in shadows; And there is a final fist fight between a cop and robber in the rain that is wonderfully aesthetic. During many scenes of this film, Lee stretches, breaks, and otherwise "tweaks" the visual grammar of film to produce a work that is consistently challenging and thoroughly original. Seldom has "eye candy" been this sweet. This film might not have much by way of substance, but in terms of pure filmmaking craft and originality, it's pretty hard to beat.