Unbowed

(3.5 STARS) A Math Professor and a Crossbow: Suspenseful Korean Courtroom Drama
Being wrongfully fired by his university after spotting a mistake with an entrance exam paper, a math professor Kim Kyung-ho (Ahn Sung-ki) files a lawsuit for reinstatement. When his appeal is dismissed, the professor visits the presiding judge's apartment with a crossbow, confronting him outside the door. Professor Kim is arrested, naturally, but here is a strange thing. The math professor claims he did not shoot an arrow, while he is accused of shooting the judge, who, the prosecutors say, gets injured by the arrow.

Directed by veteran Chung Ji-young ("White Badge"), "Unbowed" moves on a brisk pace, keeping the audiences in suspense. The screenplay has some of the typical courtroom-plot conventions - Kim's lawyer Park Jun (Park Won-sang), who is alcoholic, for instance - but the film manages to keep us interested, thanks to the great performance from the star Ahn Sung-ki playing the dead serious professor with dignity and humor.

The film is based on an incident...





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