What Is the Story About?
Based on a novel The Killer’s Shopping Mall written by Kang Ji-young, A Shop for Killers follows a young girl who lost both her parents to a brutal shoot-out as she grew up in the hands of her uncle who runs a suspicious shopping mall. Once her uncle passes away under suspicious situations, she discovers the unknown side to her uncle and gets trapped in a cage of vengeance.
Performances?
In the initial episodes, A Shop for Killers only establishes two characters : Jeong Jinman and Jeong Ji-an. Jeong Jinman being the uncle figure to Jeong Ji-an (his niece) who discovers the demise of her uncle, the person who raised her after her parents’ death. Kim Hye-jun does a good show of her no-nonsense attitude and stubborn-ness, coupled with the spunk her uncle cultivated in her.
Lee Dong-wook however is the star of the show despite being in the show on and off, during flashbacks. He exudes the mystery of Jeong Jin-man who runs a threatening shady business and the reluctance of an emotionally unavailable man being dumped with the responsibility of raising a child. His bonding with the child actor Ahn Se-bin who plays Jeong Ji-an is so endearing to watch.
Analysis
Based on the novel The Killer’s Shopping Mall written by author Kang Ji-young, A Shop for Killers follow a man with shady businesses involving spies, killers and gangsters and his niece who is being raised by him after the death of her parents. A Crime-action-drama that hooks the viewer through its drama more than action so far definitely has set the ball rolling for an intriguing K-Drama.
The opening shot of A Shop For Killers has a group of gangsters trying to murder Jeong Ji-an who is trapped in an isolated house with a sniper woman and a boy her age. With nothing revealed, all we know is they are out for her blood. The narrative paces close to why they want her dead meat and it’s all because of her uncle Jinman.
The series takes a very interesting non-linear back and forth story telling technique where Jian remembers her uncle (who is now dead) and how he raised her to be strong, powerful and resilient in his own way once her parents passed away in a brutal shoot-out (again because of Jian’s shady business dealings).
One of the stand-out aspects of ‘A Shop for Killers’ is the rapport the main characters shared. The scenes that involve child Ji-an and Jinman are so endearing and defines the crux of the entire show. As Ji-an discovers who her uncle really was and what were the businesses he ran, she gets instantly targeted by a group of goons who now wants her dead.
As Jian navigates through the challenge of beating the vengeance of Jinman’s killer-clients, she remembers what he taught her during each of the challenges she had to endure in childhood. Will Jian actually miss her uncle? Will she get to know who he really was? Why did Jinman do what he did? Who killed him? How will Jian escape from the ones who want her dead and why? There are so many questions and the series has cleverly engaged the viewers enough to wait for upcoming episodes to find the answers.
To conclude, A Shop For Killers is an engaging Kdrama with enough metal of intrigue and suspense. The actors seem to fit their parts well and the emotional core of the film is interesting enough to ensure action and crime aren’t monotonous. Although it takes a while to hook, once it does it doesn’t drop the beat. Crime K-Drama fanatics definitely have a show to look out for.
Other Artists?
Although the show doesn’t establish many supporting characters so far, Park Ji-bin’s Bae Jeong-min, Ji-an’s school-time classmate seems to have a good role. He plays an engineering student and an ethical hacker who uncovers the real identity of Jeong Jinman and his suspicious shopping mall.
Music and Other Departments?
A Shop for Killers’ music from Choi Dong-hoon is quite cheek and pop, the non linear narrative is quite blended in while Lee Sung-jae and Kim Gi-hyun’s camera-work reminds us of some of the iconic action thriller Hong Kong movies with the neons and greys. The editing is seamless and engages the viewer despite little to minimal revelation of what the story actually is.
Highlights?
– Suspense
– Performances
– Engaging Screenplay
Drawbacks?
– Takes a while to hook
– Non-linear Narrative
Did I Enjoy It?
Yes.
Will You Recommend It?
Yes. K-drama fans who are more into Crime dramas and thrillers can definitely give the show a try.
A Shop For Killers Series Review by Binged Bureau
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