A man commits a coldhearted killing Yet the backdrop to this bloody ′Forty-step Murder′ is a peaceful scene with a passing girl, A group of detectives hide out to trap the brutal criminal, but his lover′s residence is a rustic apartment in the ghetto. It′s impossible to distinguish the good and the bad in this cat and mouse chase; they are busy just carrying out their duties. Already renowned as a leading stylist in Korean cinema, Lee Myung-Se successfully combines experimentalism with commercialism in his painting-like rendition of elaborate scenes. Despite the commercial failures of his previous films, he persists in perfecting his own cinematic world. Such is the reason why this ′action′ film doesn′t really fit into its genre. We see a lyrical moment set to Bee Gees′ ′Holiday′, and then later a pantomime-like scene in which the actors dance in a silly manner. Elements of this kind make it hard to categorize this film, other than to call it an ′Lee Myung-Se style action film.′ His emphasis of expression over significance is in fact a post-modernistic aspect of his work. By pushing style to the extreme, he brings forth the significance of this insignificant world. Scenes of snow and emotional outbursts are intertwined, as if to express the aim of the director himself in defying our hardened sentimentality. (Lee Sang-Yong)