Most heist movies follow a predictable rhythm. You’ve got the cool leader, the tech genius, the muscle, and a vault that looks impossible to crack until it isn't. But the Going by the Book movie—the 2007 South Korean gem Ba-reun-sae-ng-hwal—flips that entire script on its head by making the "villain" a guy who is literally just too good at his job.
It’s hilarious. It’s frustrating. It’s a biting critique of bureaucracy.
If you haven't seen it, the premise sounds like a simple comedy setup. A newly appointed police chief, played by Son Byong-ho, wants to pull a PR stunt to calm public fears about a string of robberies. He decides to stage a realistic bank robbery drill. He needs someone to play the robber. He picks Jung Do-man, a low-level traffic cop played by the brilliant Jung Jae-young. Do-man is the kind of guy who gives the governor a speeding ticket because, well, the governor was speeding. He is incapable of "half-assing" anything.
When he's told to play a robber, he doesn't just put on a mask and wait to be tackled. He studies. He plans. He treats the drill like a life-or-death mission. What follows is a slow-motion train wreck for the police force as one man's commitment to the rules—the "book"—destroys their carefully planned photo op.
The Perfectionist as an Accidental Antagonist
Jung Do-man is the heart of the Going by the Book movie, and he’s one of the most relatable yet maddening characters in cinema. He isn't a criminal mastermind. He’s just a civil servant.
The humor comes from the friction between his rigid honesty and a world that runs on "good enough." The police chief expects a performance. He wants a "pretend" robbery where the "pretend" cops win and everyone goes for drinks afterward. Do-man, however, realizes that if he doesn't try his hardest to win, the drill is a failure.
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Think about that for a second.
Most of us navigate our jobs by reading the room. We know when the boss says they want "total honesty" they actually want "polite agreement." Do-man doesn't have that filter. He takes the instructions literally. When the drill starts, he manages to "kill" the responding officers by sticking stickers on them that say "DEAD."
It sounds ridiculous. It is ridiculous. But the film plays it with a stone-cold poker face. Watching a group of high-ranking detectives forced to sit on the floor because a traffic cop "shot" them with a finger-gun and a post-it note is peak comedy. It exposes the fragility of ego. The detectives are furious because they're being embarrassed by a subordinate who is simply following the rules they themselves wrote.
Why This Isn't Just Another Remake
A lot of people don't realize that the Going by the Book movie is actually based on a Japanese film and novel by Kunihiko Tsutsui called Shatsu no Gokko. There was also a Japanese version titled The Game of Duty.
However, the 2007 Korean version directed by Ra Hee-chan is the one that really stuck the landing. Why? Because South Korean cinema has this specific knack for blending extreme tonal shifts. One minute you’re laughing at a guy trying to figure out how to "rape" a hostage during a drill without actually touching her (he settles on making her do push-ups until she's exhausted, which is a weirdly brilliant comedic choice), and the next, you're feeling the genuine tension of a standoff.
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The cinematography isn't flashy. It doesn't need to be. The claustrophobia of the bank branch does the heavy lifting. As the hours tick by, the "drill" becomes more real than reality. The "hostages"—actual bank employees—start to develop a weird sort of Stockholm Syndrome, not because they like Do-man, but because they respect his work ethic. They start getting annoyed at the police outside for being incompetent.
It's a masterclass in character-driven narrative.
The Satire of the "Manual" Life
We live in a world governed by SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures). We have manuals for everything. But the Going by the Book movie asks: what happens when the manual is actually followed to the letter?
Usually, we use the "book" as a shield. We follow it when it's convenient and ignore it when it gets in the way of our lunch break. Do-man represents the ultimate threat to a lazy system: a man with no ego and total compliance.
The police chief is the true villain here, though he doesn't see himself that way. He represents the performative nature of authority. He doesn't want the police to be better; he wants them to look better. When Do-man starts winning, the chief starts breaking his own rules to "fix" the outcome.
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It’s a perfect metaphor for any corporate or political structure. When the "unscripted" truth becomes embarrassing, those in power simply change the script. Except Do-man won't let them. He’s like a computer program that has encountered a logic error and refuses to shut down until the task is complete.
Why You Should Watch It Right Now
Honestly, most modern comedies feel like they're trying too hard. They rely on pop culture references or screaming. The Going by the Book movie relies on the absurdity of human behavior.
It’s about 102 minutes long. It moves fast. Jung Jae-young’s performance is legendary because he never winks at the camera. He plays Do-man with the seriousness of a man performing heart surgery. That’s where the gold is. If he played it like he knew it was funny, the whole thing would fall apart.
What to Look Out For:
- The "Death" Stickers: Pay attention to how the characters react when they are declared "dead." Some take it as a joke, but as the movie progresses, the psychological weight of being "out" of the game actually starts to affect them.
- The Media Commentary: The film nails the way news outlets cover these events. They want drama. They want a story. When the drill doesn't provide a clean "hero" narrative, they don't know what to do with themselves.
- The Ending: No spoilers, but the way the drill finally concludes is both satisfying and incredibly cynical. It perfectly encapsulates the film's message about the rewards—or lack thereof—for being an honest man in a dishonest system.
Practical Takeaways for Film Buffs
If you’re looking to dive into the Going by the Book movie, don't go in expecting a high-octane action flick like Heat. It’s a dry comedy.
- Check the Translation: If you're watching with subtitles, try to find a version that captures the linguistic nuances of Korean honorifics. A lot of the humor comes from Do-man using extremely polite, formal language while essentially holding his superiors hostage.
- Double Feature Suggestion: Pair this with Extreme Job (2019). Both movies deal with the bumbling nature of police work in Korea but from very different angles.
- Source Material: If you can find a translation of Kunihiko Tsutsui’s original story, it’s worth a read to see how the cultural context changed from Japan to Korea.
The movie reminds us that the "manual" is only as good as the people who use it. In the hands of a man like Jung Do-man, a simple drill becomes a revolution. In the hands of his superiors, it’s just another day of pretending to work.
To get the most out of your viewing experience, pay close attention to the background characters—the bank tellers and the regular citizens caught in the middle. Their transition from annoyed bystanders to active participants in Do-man’s "crime" is where the film’s most subtle social commentary lies. They realize that, for the first time in their lives, the person in charge is actually following the rules. And there is a strange, terrifying comfort in that.
Go find a copy. It’s one of those rare films that makes you laugh and then makes you look at your own job and wonder: "Am I doing this by the book, or am I just pretending?"
Next Steps for Viewers
- Locate a Streaming Source: Currently, availability fluctuates, but it often appears on Asian-centric streaming platforms like Viki or specialized channels on Amazon Prime.
- Research Jung Jae-young: If you enjoy his deadpan style, check out Castaway on the Moon. He has a specific talent for playing isolated, obsessive characters that find dignity in the strangest places.
- Analyze the Satire: After watching, compare the police chief's actions to real-world "security theater" you see at airports or corporate offices. The parallels are uncomfortably accurate.