Attack the Gas Station
Encyclopedia
Attack the Gas Station! is an action
crime
comedy film
, directed by Kim Sang-Jin and written by Park Jeong-woo. It was released in 1999
.
The film tells the story of a quartet of thugs who rob a gas station out of sheer boredom, having robbed it only a few days previous. Unable to get any money from the register, they take everyone hostage and start dispensing gas and keeping the money. The film becomes progressively more and more farcical as the characters find different ways of amusing themselves, mostly through the mixed cast of characters that come in through the gas station. However, it's only a matter of time before they start upsetting the wrong people.
During the question and answer session at a screening during the 2000 Vancouver International Film Festival
, director Sang-Jin Kim indicated that the film inspired real-life copycats
in South Korea.
As the film progresses, a mix of characters comes through the door, not all with good intentions, but with ludicrous results. A gang of school bullies comes by the gas station to harass one of the employees for money (they end up being taken hostages, while the bullied employee ends up being forced into a fist fight with one of the bullies...and wins) The police come by demanding free gasoline (the four thugs refuse, as the police clearly aren't doing their job). A customer refuses to pay for a full tank of gas, only asking for half a tank, and is taken hostage. More school bullies come by the gas station, seeking revenge for the first fight, but then they too are taken hostage.
It's not long until they start attracting the wrong kind of attention, which leads to a violent confrontation.
During the credits, four scenes show what the characters do after the events in the film.
in the mid-to-late 1990s, culminating with many Korean car manufacturers laying off thousands of employees. There are many allusions to this throughout the film, mostly when Paint discovers framed pieces of paper with slogans promoting a productive work force (which he subsequently destroys in a fit of rage).
The film also makes a comment on American
economic imperialism during a scene where Ddan Dda-Ra drinks from a can of Pepsi
and a police officer chides him for his choice, chastising him for "giving money to the Yankee
s". The young punk defends his choice, saying that Pepsi is a Korean product, referring to the Pepsi logo's resemblance of the Taeguk
symbol on the South Korean flag
.
Action film
Action film is a film genre where one or more heroes is thrust into a series of challenges that require physical feats, extended fights and frenetic chases...
crime
Crime film
Crime films are films which focus on the lives of criminals. The stylistic approach to a crime film varies from realistic portrayals of real-life criminal figures, to the far-fetched evil doings of imaginary arch-villains. Criminal acts are almost always glorified in these movies.- Plays and films...
comedy film
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
, directed by Kim Sang-Jin and written by Park Jeong-woo. It was released in 1999
1999 in film
The year 1999 in film involved several noteworthy events and has been called "The Year That Changed Movies". Several significant feature films, including Stanley Kubrick's final film Eyes Wide Shut, Pedro Almodóvar's first Oscar-winning film All About My Mother, science fiction The Matrix, Deep...
.
The film tells the story of a quartet of thugs who rob a gas station out of sheer boredom, having robbed it only a few days previous. Unable to get any money from the register, they take everyone hostage and start dispensing gas and keeping the money. The film becomes progressively more and more farcical as the characters find different ways of amusing themselves, mostly through the mixed cast of characters that come in through the gas station. However, it's only a matter of time before they start upsetting the wrong people.
During the question and answer session at a screening during the 2000 Vancouver International Film Festival
Vancouver International Film Festival
The Vancouver International Film Festival is an annual film festival held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada for two weeks in late September and early October...
, director Sang-Jin Kim indicated that the film inspired real-life copycats
Copycat crimes
A copycat crime is a criminal act that is modelled or inspired by a previous crime that has been reported in the media or described in fiction.-Copycat effect:...
in South Korea.
Plot
Having robbed and thoroughly destroyed a gas station in the first five minutes of the film, a group of street toughs with their own gripes against society sit in a convenience store and out of sheer boredom, decide to rob the same gas station (as the title card reads, "Why do they attack the gas station? Just because!"). But, since the manager had the foresight to stash the money away, the four gang members take the manager and the employees hostage and then start dispensing gas to all the customers and keeping the money.As the film progresses, a mix of characters comes through the door, not all with good intentions, but with ludicrous results. A gang of school bullies comes by the gas station to harass one of the employees for money (they end up being taken hostages, while the bullied employee ends up being forced into a fist fight with one of the bullies...and wins) The police come by demanding free gasoline (the four thugs refuse, as the police clearly aren't doing their job). A customer refuses to pay for a full tank of gas, only asking for half a tank, and is taken hostage. More school bullies come by the gas station, seeking revenge for the first fight, but then they too are taken hostage.
It's not long until they start attracting the wrong kind of attention, which leads to a violent confrontation.
During the credits, four scenes show what the characters do after the events in the film.
Cast and characters
- Lee Seong-jaeLee Seong-jaeLee Seong-jae is a South Korean actor.- Biography :A theater and film graduate from Dongguk University, Lee Seong-jae rose to prominence in 1999 in Kim Sang-Jin's comedy film Attack the Gas Station. His portrayal of a dog-hating lecturer who desperately wants to become a professor in Bong...
- No Mark: The leader of the group. He was an aspiring baseball player, but as an orphan, he didn't have the same opportunities as everyone else. - Yu Oh-seongYu Oh-seongYu Oh-seong , also spelled "Yu Oh-Sung", "Yoo Oh-Sung" is a South Korean actor.-Career:Throughout the mid-1990s, Yoo Oh-sung complemented a career in television with minor roles in film. With his success playing a young gangster in the hit movie Beat , Yoo's face became familiar to a new...
- Mu Dae-po (also known as Bulldozer or Mad Dog): The enforcer who carries around a really big stick. He has a big problem with authority, as his run-ins have led to his punishment, regardless of how good his intentions were. - Kang Seong-jin - Ddan Dda-ra (Rockstar): The resident musician. Was a member of a rock band, but was forced out because of a few bad business decisions with the wrong people.
- Yoo Ji-tae - Paint: Was once an aspiring artist, although his father wouldn't have anything to do with it.
- Park Yeong-gyuPark Yeong-gyuPark Yeong-gyu is a South Korean actor. He is best known for his roles in Attack the Gas Station, in which he plays the owner of the titular gas station, and Lightereul Kyeora, in which he plays a corrupt politician....
- Gas station owner - Jeong Joon - Geon-Bbang, a crew of the gas station
- Lee Yo-WonLee Yo-wonLee Yo-won is a South Korean actress. She is best known for her portrayal of Queen Seondeok in the eponymous hit period drama, as well as for her work in Surgeon Bong Dal-hee and Fashion 70's...
- Ggal-chi, a crew of the gas station - Lee Jeong-ho - Meek man
- Kim Soo-Ro - a delivery man
- Lee Won-jong
- Jeong So-yeong
Social commentary
Attack the Gas Station was released around a time of economic turmoil in South KoreaSouth Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
in the mid-to-late 1990s, culminating with many Korean car manufacturers laying off thousands of employees. There are many allusions to this throughout the film, mostly when Paint discovers framed pieces of paper with slogans promoting a productive work force (which he subsequently destroys in a fit of rage).
The film also makes a comment on American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
economic imperialism during a scene where Ddan Dda-Ra drinks from a can of Pepsi
Pepsi
Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink that is produced and manufactured by PepsiCo...
and a police officer chides him for his choice, chastising him for "giving money to the Yankee
Yankee
The term Yankee has several interrelated and often pejorative meanings, usually referring to people originating in the northeastern United States, or still more narrowly New England, where application of the term is largely restricted to descendants of the English settlers of the region.The...
s". The young punk defends his choice, saying that Pepsi is a Korean product, referring to the Pepsi logo's resemblance of the Taeguk
Taeguk
Taegeuk refers to the ultimate reality from which all things and values originate according to oriental philosophy. It is also the symbol that makes up the center of the Korean Flag.-History:...
symbol on the South Korean flag
Flag of South Korea
The flag of South Korea, or Taegeukgi has three parts: a white background; a red and blue taegeuk in the centre; and four black trigrams, one in each corner of the flag...
.
See also
- Cinema of KoreaCinema of KoreaKorean cinema encompasses the motion picture industries of North and South Korea. As with all aspects of Korean life during the past century, the film industry has often been at the mercy of political events, from the late Joseon dynasty to the Korean War to domestic governmental interference...
- Contemporary culture of South KoreaContemporary culture of South KoreaThe contemporary culture of South Korea developed from the traditional culture of Korea, and on its own path away from North Korean culture since the division of Korea in 1948. The industrialization and urbanization of South Korea, especially Seoul, have brought many changes to the way Korean...
- List of Korean language films
- Attack the Gas Station 2
External links
- Film Review at koreanfilm.org