Fest Track On Sirk TV Film Review: SPECIAL DELIVERY [Fantasia International Film Festival 2022 - Virtual]
The aspect of pursuit and consequence is based in an idea of focus. With “Special Delivery”[Official Selection], this South Korean entry moves without being too sappy and keeping the focus taught. Park So-Dam plays Kang, a special delivery driver with moves and coolness to get her clients where they need to go buoyed in her assignments through her almost father-figure like boss Baek with ease. While the aspect of corrupt cops and stolen money abound, the reason that the film works is because So-Dam is believable and yet plays to the scene with a sense of practicality and yet nonchalance. The chase scenes especially through the back roads of Seoul and then it seems Busan are tight and riveting with the camera focused on her without hesitation even when she falters. But in the balance, the would-be bad guy in Jo (Song Sae-Byoek) is just so menacing and at times charismatic that even the hitman he brings in just floats in congruence throttling the film forward. The aspect of riffing between Baek and Kang gives the stakes meaning because he will protect here and the backstory which is revealed in an almost lifted “True Romance” scene has some great power.
There are a couple weak links in the film but one can't be helped. Hyun-Jun Jung plays the kid Seo-Won who is at the emotional and practical cornerstone of the story. Director Dae-Min Park tries to give the film a spin like “The Professional” but the melodrama the kid brings is both effective at times but also grating at others. That could be reduced in editing but it does effect the film's quality. The other issue is the resolution. The film is effective to its absolute throttle point and could have been left there without any more explanation and garnered a lot more power. “Thor: Love And Thunder” is another film that would have benefited by not having an epilogue in this way. “Special Delivery” is a much better film in comparison and is cool in many ways with a couple flaws but is buoyed by exceptional car driving sequences and a slick performance by Park So Dam. B+
By Tim Wassberg
