lyx-1 I have been disappointed by some of the more recent Korean films that promise to lead the audience into deep dark psychological realms but deliver only rather trite and confusing plots even if the cinematography and acting were stunning.After being almost overwhelmed towards the conclusion of this animation, I believe that the spirit of Korean cinematic honesty, confrontation, complex psychegeography lives on in works like King of Pigs.I won't go into the story - the plot is straightforward enough: bullying, high school hell, the sickness of a society based on hierarchy and class, corruption of the system...but the delivery of the narrative gets under your skin in completely original, unexpected ways.The end twist is utter believable, and delivers a double whammy, so stay glued to your seat.I can't understand some of the low ratings, though many might find this very difficult to watch due to the horrors depicted. It wasn't an easy film to sit through, but it is worth every effort to do so.

manuelasaez I see why they chose to tell this tale using animation; some of the stuff that happens to these poor kids is downright foul, and any school that allows these children to experience this type of physical and psychological abuse should be shuttered. The story is heart-breaking, in that you feel for the poor kids, but then you start to realize that society does not make it easy for them, their school doesn't make it easy for them, and they just have to endure. It sucks to watch these kids grow bitter and damaged with each passing minute, and to see their tormentors just laugh off the pain they inflict as "Keeping the students in their place". It's a heart breaking tale of growing up in a society that cares more about keeping their members in line than actually showing affection and love. It is a difficult watch, and one that will not be easily forgotten.

octopusluke Ever since Osamu Tezuka's early 1960s work, Japan has become the controlling monolith of Asian animation. The King of Pigs dares to try and buck the trend. A Cannes Film Festival favourite from new-gun South Korean Yeon Sang-Ho, it's an unflinching take on class hierarchy and savagery in an inner city high school. Dangerous Minds meets Lord of the Flies? There are piggies abound, but the gangster terrains are far from paradisal.After a fifteen year absence, old school friends Hwang and Jong reunite over dinner. But nostalgia isn't on the menu tonight, through lucid flashbacks, the pair discuss their upbringing with utter contempt; both still psychologically troubled by the culture of bullying, whereby the rich designer wearing kids prevail and the lowlives are berated, spat on and beaten to a pulp. Not a moment too soon, their lives are transformed when the ghostly student at the back of the classroom Kim Chul teaches them how to fight back in the most malevolent way possible.Animator/director Yeon presents a truly vile story in the most attractive way possible, with the rusty Seoul backdrop lusciously well drawn and the school boys presented autonomously, yet each have their own striking gaze. Also working as the editor and screenwriter, the vengeance tale is presented in such a raw and aggressive way that the fight sequences are often uncomfortably palpable. A stunning quality for a animation picture to obtain.But this is ultimately The King of Pig's undoing. While some of the hand-drawn animation and raw emotional connect leaves you gawking, the gritty and unsettling portrait of school feudalism is just so severe. Quite rapidly, Yeon shifts from the profound and resonating to the hysterical, particularly a painfully shouty final showdown. It's a great shame. What starts as an entertaining watch culminates in a sensorily attacking one.Read more reviews at www.theframeloop.com

S_Craig_Zahler although this received some good press and was supported by the excellent folks at subway cinema, this movie is heavy-handed, monotonous and badly made junk. i suppose it would be a novelty to somebody who has never seen adult animation, but otherwise don't waste your time. if you want smart and rich adult animation, go watch heavy traffic (bakshi), berserk, shigurui, my neighbors the yamadas, ghost in the shell: innocence or porco rosso.the king of pigs animation combines limited, inconsistent and ugly drawings (like king of the hill and beavis and butt head) with rotoscoping (tracing) and bad computer generated models. i saw this on the big screen and the animation is definitely the worst i've ever seen for a theatrical film-- and i saw cool world when it came out.like many bad korean movies, it is monotonously mean and there are stupid twists that undo the limited amount of characterization the writing provided (see also: the good the bad and the weird, the host, shiru). the characters are dull and one dimensional, the scenes are repetitive, the animation is awful and the overall experience tedious.