Juyuso seubgyuksageun (Attack the Gas Station) (1999)

82% of users liked it
(4,799 ratings)

Kim Sang-jin directs this riotous send-up of Korea's rigidly hierarchical society. A quartet of nihilistic losers including an alienated athlete, a longhaired burnout, a spaced-out artist, and a muscle-bound meathead take to knocking over 24-hour gas stations. Their initial success eventually leads… More Kim Sang-jin directs this riotous send-up of Korea's rigidly hierarchical society. A quartet of nihilistic losers including an alienated athlete, a longhaired burnout, a spaced-out artist, and a muscle-bound meathead take to knocking over 24-hour gas stations. Their initial success eventually leads to trouble when they decide to hold up the same gas station again "just for fun." Unfortunately, the store manager had his wife take much of the day's earnings home with her just prior to the robbery. Stumped as what to do next, the four take the staff hostage and start to taunt the middle-aged manager (his underlings soon join in). They ridicule potential customers and order Chinese food until the film's delirious final showdown between the four protagonists, the cops, a local clan of gangsters, and irate delivery boys. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 49 min.
Directed By: Kim Sang-jin, Sang-Jin Kim
Genres: Art House & International, Comedy

In Theaters: Mar 30, 2001 Wide
On DVD: Jun 25, 2002

Critic Reviews

Kevin N. Laforest, Montreal Film Journal
Overwhelmingly stylish, original and irreverent.

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Featured Audience Ratings

Arash X

Silly absurdist fun & I like silly absurdist fun, the first half is somehow monotonous & irritating but after that it gets better, One thing that I liked about this was that it hadn't a forced morale or stupid sentimental cliches althought it was getting close to have… More
Silly absurdist fun & I like silly absurdist fun, the first half is somehow monotonous & irritating but after that it gets better, One thing that I liked about this was that it hadn't a forced morale or stupid sentimental cliches althought it was getting close to have some near the end
Tsubaki S

Simple but fun comedy, very much teen-oriented, and still more funny, and less idiotic, than your average teen comedy from Hollywood (and plenty from asia too) Thanks in a big part to a well selected cast of actual young actors that do a solid job. Good to see that the film… More
Simple but fun comedy, very much teen-oriented, and still more funny, and less idiotic, than your average teen comedy from Hollywood (and plenty from asia too) Thanks in a big part to a well selected cast of actual young actors that do a solid job. Good to see that the film doesn't force any "learn a lesson" morale over the characters or any other cliche bullshit.
El Hombre I

Four anarchistic youths take control of a gas station and hold the owner and its' employees hostage until the gang makes enough money from unsuspecting customers. Sound ridiculous? How about when another gang shows up and are taken hostage? Then begins the grand finale:… More
Four anarchistic youths take control of a gas station and hold the owner and its' employees hostage until the gang makes enough money from unsuspecting customers. Sound ridiculous? How about when another gang shows up and are taken hostage? Then begins the grand finale: a standoff between a Yakuza gang, a group of young punks and a load of motorcycling pizza delivery boys and finally, the law. The point is, this is a fun film. Nice rounded characters in a simple plot filmed in a kinetic style that most viewers might find themselves carried by its' momentum. <a href="http://s273.photobucket.com/albums/jj203/goji9000/?action=view¤t=Attack.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj203/goji9000/Attack.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
Justin Y

I don't know anyway that anybody wouldn't want to look into this film after hearing the title. That is the first successful element of this film. Its Attack the Gas Station for heavens sake. After viewing this movie it is really easy to see why this… More
I don't know anyway that anybody wouldn't want to look into this film after hearing the title. That is the first successful element of this film. Its Attack the Gas Station for heavens sake. After viewing this movie it is really easy to see why this movie would have a cult following. People will love it, or people will really hate it.The story in this thing is completely ridiculous and nothing to be taken seriously. In a nutshell you have 4 young adults that rob a small gas station, not once, but twice. This takes place in the first 5 minutes of the film. After this the film stays at the gas station till the very end, with only a very few scenes elsewhere. Yep, this is one of those movies where the entire film takes place at a single set and is set in only a few hours time. An example of another movie like this is Phone Booth. But, unlike Phone Booth and most other movies of this nature the director finds a way to drag it out for more than 80 minutes. This film actually runs at just under 2 hours. So you would expect it to be boring right? Well, some people will say yes, while others will say no. I say NO.The events that take place throughout this film are pretty unrealistic and stupid, but somehow and someway you HAVE to keep watching. You will always be wondering what happens next. What also makes this movie a little interesting is that as the movie goes on certain incidents somehow bring flashbacks to each of the 4 robbers, actually trying to make you feel sorry for them.I've heard this movie being classified as a "dark comedy" and that sounds right. This movie is filled with swearing and violence. It isn't all that gory though. Only a few bloody faces here and there. This is one of those films that you are actually laughing at the violence.Anyway, if you watch a lot of Korean movies you may recognize the actors playing the 4 main characters. I myself haven't seen that much so I only recognized one of them. Ji-tae Yu of Oldboy fame. The acting isn't anything special, but it is what you would expect for a movie of this caliber.You will NEVER find a movie like this in Hollywood and you probably never will unless we get another ever-so-popular American remake. Even then it will not turn out like the original. I just can't see a movie being done like this in Hollywood. I don't know who to really recommend this movie to except for those that are in the mood for a weird, but ORIGINAL movie.
Christopher B

Finally got around to seeing this and I gots ta say, it does live up to the hype. I liked how they kept our young villains villainous, for the most part. The flashbacks explained the assholes a lot, but they were still not made out to be tragic the way a Hollywood film would portray… More
Finally got around to seeing this and I gots ta say, it does live up to the hype. I liked how they kept our young villains villainous, for the most part. The flashbacks explained the assholes a lot, but they were still not made out to be tragic the way a Hollywood film would portray them. A lot of fun for a movie that mostly takes place in a gas station.
Anthony V

Pretty damn funny.
MJS M

Certainly different, but I'm not really sure what the point was. Fun for about 45 minutes but overstayed its welcome. Had its moments though.