Review: Sluggish South Korean crime drama ‘The Negotiation’ fails to create sparks

Marked by its lack of intensity, the South Korean crime drama “The Negotiation” stars Son Ye-Jin as no-nonsense Seoul police inspector Ha Chae-youn, who specializes in defusing hostage situations, and Hyun Bin as charming arms dealer Min Tae-gu. Laden by melodramatic turns and an exposition-heavy last act, the slack programmer never develops into the thriller it aspires to be.

Chae-youn, shaken by a failed intervention that results in a young woman dying in her arms, attempts to resign from the force but is instead summoned to headquarters, where she’s thrust into a video chat with Min. As the Korean military bears down on Min’s compound on an island in the Straits of Malacca where he is allegedly holding captives, Chae-youn is tasked with finding out his demands.

“The Negotiation” unravels from the inside out, lurching from improbable to implausible to just plain ridiculous, and writer-director’s Lee Jong-Suk’s by-the-book filmmaking does little to raise the stakes.

There’s supposed to be sexual tension between Chae-youn and Min, but a decided lack of chemistry is exacerbated by the fact that they are interacting through a variety of monitors. Though both leads are attractive, Son’s straight-arrow negotiator feels stuck in two gears, placid and mildly shocked, while Hyun registers more as a sadistic game-show host than a terrorist, introducing new hostages like so many reluctant contestants, and never at a level to be any fun.

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‘The Negotiation’

In Korean with English subtitles

Not rated

Running time: 1 hour, 54 minutes

Playing: CGV Cinemas Los Angeles; CGV Buena Park 8