Lede
A Korean crime comedy where everyone behaves like a fool, the romance hides behind a school-gate crush, and it still feels more grown-up than Western films full of naked boredom.
Hermit Off Script
The Informant and Why Western Films Still Lag Behind Korea:
This film is exactly my type of chaos: cops looking stupid and childish, gangsters just as dumb, and somehow I still enjoyed the ride more than half the polished trash from the West. The whole squad feels like a bunch of overgrown kids on a field trip, rescued over and over by one woman who stops them from drowning in their own embarrassment. There is a shadow of feeling between the leads, this almost-romance that keeps hovering, but like in so many Korean films and dramas, it never crosses that line into an actual kiss. Meanwhile, a Western version of this story would have had them half-naked by the first act and then run out of things to say. I am not asking for a porn set, just a kiss that admits the feelings exist. What I loved was that little flashback choice: just a simple line saying ‘a few years ago’ instead of some grainy black-and-white art-school nonsense. Clean, confident, not trying too hard. So yes, the cops are idiots, the crooks are clowns, nobody kisses, and still Korean cinema manages to deliver more heart than a lot of Western films that throw sex at the screen and forget the soul.
The Informant (2025) 정보원 Movie Trailer | EONTALK
The Informant (2025): Roast movie synopsis
A washed-up detective who used to be sharp now stumbles through life like his badge is heavier than his brain. His informant is a greedy little survivalist who skims from the wrong smuggling ring, so the universe politely sets everything on fire. Cops blunder, gangsters trip over their own threats, and one competent woman quietly saves the whole circus while the two male leads argue with fate and each other. There is a clear spark between the protagonists, but instead of the usual Western routine of kiss, clothes, silence, you get loaded glances, awkward distance, and actual tension. It is a crime comedy where everyone behaves like an idiot, nothing is particularly sexy, and somehow it still has more heart than half the slick Western thrillers that mistake skin for soul.
Cast and credits
Director: Kim Seok (sometimes romanised Kim Suk).
Writers: Kim Seok, story and screenplay.
Main cast:
- Heo Sung-tae as Oh Nam-hyuk, the demoted ace detective stumbling through a second chance.
- Jo Bok-rae (Cho Bok-rae) as Jo Tae-bong, the informant who skimmed too hard and now runs for his life.
- Seo Min-ju (Seo Min-joo) as Lee So-yeong, the only consistently competent detective in the room.
- Cha Soon-bae plays a key supporting role, anchoring the cop side of the plot.
Composer: Score not heavily pushed in English promo, sits in the lively action-comedy register without trying to dominate the film.
Production company/studio: Marketed internationally through Studio Genie as a commercial Korean action comedy, with festival support from NYAFF and screenings via Film at Lincoln Center and the London Korean Film Festival.
Runtime: 103 to 104 minutes.
Release year and platform: Completed 2024, world premiere at New York Asian Film Festival 2025, Korean theatrical release set for December 2025, with festival and arthouse runs abroad.
What does not make sense
- A demoted ace detective who is written like a man who left his last brain cell in the staff room, but still solves the mess by accident.
- Gangsters who are meant to be scary but talk and move like background noise in their own smuggling operation.
- A 100-plus minute crime comedy that treats one kiss like a war crime, while smuggling and beatdowns are fine for Friday night.
- Western films throwing sex and kisses in every direction, yet somehow feeling less adult than these shy, almost-teenage Korean leads.
- A tiny on-screen caption reading a few years ago that looks more confident than half the big-budget flashback filters in Hollywood.
Sense check / The numbers
- The Informant (original title: 정보원) is an action-comedy crime film directed by Kim Seok, with a runtime of about 103-104 minutes, depending on the listing.
- The film was completed in 2024 and premiered at the New York Asian Film Festival on 11 July 2025, before a wider release.
- Korean commercial listings list an expected domestic release date of 3 December 2025, with a 104-minute running time and a clear pitch as a comedy-action title.
- This is Heo Sung-tae’s first proper lead role on the big screen after about 14 years in the industry, a shift from terrifying thug in Squid Game to exhausted, funny idiot in uniform.
The sketch
Scene 1: The Korean briefing
Panel description: A cluttered Seoul police briefing room. Male detectives fling papers and argue over snacks. One woman detective calmly points at a neat plan on the board.
Dialogue:
Cop 1: “Who messed up the operation this time?”
Cop 2: “Same as always. All of us.”
Woman detective: “Relax. I will fix it. Again.”
Scene 2: The Western rewrite
Panel description: A glossy Hollywood set. A director holds The Informant script. Two actors already lie on a bed under mood lighting.
Dialogue:
Director: “So in this version, you meet, then you kiss, then you have loud sex.”
Actor: “Why?”
Director: “Because feelings are expensive.”
Scene 3: The rooftop almost-kiss
Panel description: Nam-hyuk and So-yeong on a rooftop at night, city lights behind them. They stand close. A tiny caption near the top reads: A few years ago.
Dialogue:
Nam-hyuk: “If this were a Western film, we would be naked by now.”
So-yeong: “Be grateful we still have dignity.”
What to watch, not the show
- Western habit of using sex scenes as a shortcut for character work, then wondering why nobody cares.
- Korean mainstream cinema that keeps romance physically shy but invests in timing, rhythm, and tiny looks that actually move people.
- Rating systems and cultural expectations that allow violence and crime to escalate, while a single kiss feels like a policy decision.
- Festival circuits are hungry for Korean genre films that blend silliness with craft while Western studios still remake each other’s trailers.
- The quiet confidence of a director who trusts one caption a few years ago more than a pile of fake scratches and sepia filters.
The Hermit take
I will take dumb Korean cops with honest hearts over well-lit Western sex with empty eyes any day. When a shy almost-kiss carries more weight than a choreographed bed scene, you know which cinema is actually growing up.
Keep or toss
Keep the idiot cops, the greedy informant, the one woman who saves the entire station, the shy almost-romance, and that clean little time jump card.
Toss the Western idea that maturity means more skin, and keep betting on films that know how to hold a feeling even when lips never meet.
Sources
- Studio Genie sales page and synopsis –
https://sales.studiogenie.co.kr/contents/contents.php?catcode=10000000&page=1&prdcode=2308160004&ptype=view - London Korean Film Festival listing –
https://www.koreanfilm.co.uk/events/the-informant/ - Film at Lincoln Center festival entry –
https://www.filmlinc.org/films/informant/ - Asian Film Festivals article on NYAFF opening film –
https://asianfilmfestivals.com/2025/07/08/new-york-asian-film-festival-opening-film-2025/ - Korea.net piece on NYAFF and Korean presence –
https://honoraryreporters.korea.net/board/detail.do?articlecate=1&board_no=30502&tpln=1 - Rotten Tomatoes basic film page –
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_informant_2025 - Times of India coverage of Heo Sung-tae s first lead role –
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/web-series/news/korean/heo-sung-tae-squid-game-star-lands-first-lead-role-in-the-informant/articleshow/125542340.cms - IMDb The Informant (2025) –
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt33472422/ - NYAFF film listing and premiere details – https://www.nyaff.org/nyaff25/films/the-informant
- IMDb Pro and main page for runtime, genre, and credits – https://pro.imdb.com/title/tt33472422/cast
- HanCinema listing for genre and cast – https://www.hancinema.net/korean_movie_The_Informant-cast.html
- TenAsia feature on plot and character setup – https://www.tenasia.com/movie/2025112820634
- Far East Films trailer article overview – https://www.fareastfilms.com/?news_post_type=trailer-the-informant
- Letterboxd entry with synopsis and reactions – https://letterboxd.com/film/the-informant-2025-1/
- List of South Korean films of 2025 for release date and credits – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_South_Korean_films_of_2025
- Heo Sung-tae first lead role coverage – https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/web-series/news/korean/heo-sung-tae-squid-game-star-lands-first-lead-role-in-the-informant/articleshow/125542340.cms
- Chosun and other coverage on awards and pre-sales – https://www.chosun.com/english/kpop-culture-en/2025/11/28/MM3WN3J5FZBDRHIF5OFOENLOUU/
