By Joon Soh
Contributing Writer
"
Vampire Cop Ricky", which opens on Friday, is an action comedy about a policeman who turns into a vampire driven by sexual urges and a thirst for blood. The result is, well, pretty much what you'd expect from such a premise.
The film is a star turn for
Kim Soo-ro, an actor who has come a long way since playing bit parts in popular films like "Two Cops" and "
Shiri" in the late 1990s and larger supporting roles later on. Kim's specialty is playing frenetic, slightly psychotic not-so-good guys, and "Vampire Cop" gives him ample room to show off his stuff.
Kim plays Na Do-yol, an obnoxious detective who doesn't mind bending the law for a little cash. Do-yol's extra income comes from his questionable relationship with the owner of an illegal gambling establishment, played with the right amount of sleaze by
Son Byeong-ho.
Do-yol's plush life gets turned upside down when he is bitten by a vampire mosquito from Transylvania. Though the tiny bite isn't enough to make the detective into a full vampire, it does give him certain bloodsucking traits, including an inappropriate desire to lick things at a murder scene.
From the beginning, one gets the feeling that the makers of the film aren't going for highbrow comedy here. And things get even more adolescent after Do-yol realizes he has vampire superpowers when sexually aroused, which leads to a number of gratuitous shots of scantily-clad young women.
But as the saying goes, "With great powers come great responsibilities". And so, Do-yol uses his newfound powers to take on the
Bad Guys, turning "Vampire Cop" from a comedy into a superhero action film midway into the story. At this point, the film seems to want to be a Korean version of "Blade" and "Spider-man", and Kim does his best Bruce Lee impressions _ after, of course, getting charged up ogling women's breasts.
Thrown into the mix are the usual "friends of the superhero" characters, including an older good cop (
Cheon Ho-jin) whom Do-yol relies on and a saintly girlfriend (Jo Yeo-jung), who runs a lingerie shop.
"Vampire Cop", however, is not without its funny moments. And although the mix of humor and action is odd, none of it is really bad, rather, that none of it really gets your blood boiling.
As the brunt of film relies on the antics of its star, fans of
Kim Soo-ro may get their fill. But the rest of us may want to wait for the video.
