Kit (Jang Hyuk)
Epitome of a Wannabe life.

Not exactly bright, yet he takes pride in himself in terms of the leadership he thinks he bears. He gets his butt kicked on a regular basis but does not enjoy the routine whatsoever.

Jungle Juice is reminiscent of high school years where your immature instincts kick in. Therefore, it is easy to relate to Kit.

JANG Hyuk shows a stunning performance by successfully making an image conversion from Volcano High’s cool and charismatic senior to Chungryangri’s absolute low-life Yangachi. Ever since 1999, when ‘Jungle Juice’s rough draft of the script was prepared, JANG Hyuk had extremely high hopes for the feature. He contributed a whole lot to developing Kit’s speech and attitude.

Yangachi: Low-Life Scums
They’re categorized as one of either mob members or thugs. The term signifies a person without any self-respect or moral values. It represents the lowest of all lives in the fast-changing industrial Seoul.

Yangachism is sweeping the South Korean feature film industry. The trend has become more visible through the characters from some of last year’s most widely watched films such as ‘City of the Rising Sun’, ‘Failan’, and ‘No.3’. In the midst of all of Yangachi’s immense popular appeal, we question ourselves of the motive behind the great social demand for the new film concept.

Jungle Juice focuses on the simplicity of Yangachism. The characters have no sense of self, society, or personal growth. Yet, it does help movie-goers relieve of their stressful urban lives’ pains by depicting the characters’ indifferent attitude toward the real world’s causes. Simple Life! Perhaps this is the virtue we look for in life.

What Is Jungle Juice?
* Jungle Juice is a type of hallucinogen that’s made by mixing multiple types of drugs and can also be used to refer to mixed drinks *

Curses, swears, and jokes along with a mix of light headed teens and the red light district’s dreariness that takes place at Chunryangri with its severe violence as well as laughter makes Jungle Juice a distinguishable feature. Such interchange of motion picture traits makes it unique from the traditional drama space. The jokes and the laughter throughout the film negate the sense of bleak mood presented to the audience by violence and tension between some of the mob characters. Kit and Chul-soo’s reckless attempt at stealing the ATM due to their desperate need of money makes possible the seemingly horrid act. When stuck in deadlock, they cope with the situation by way of the unexpected. Such flow of the film makes it rather trippy. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the trip.

Working With Optimism At Its Best
Jungle Juice‘s perspective stays optimistic throughout most of the film. Usually, features that deal with drugs, violence, and gangs remind audiences of darkness, alleys, etc. Nevertheless, Jungle Juice is shot in daytime for 80% of the entire length. Such perspective was raised by the director’s skepticism at people’s generalities regarding the occurrence of crime as a daytime event. The use of daylight symbolizes the director’s optimistic attitude toward the events and characters. Director Cho sees Yanachis, or low-life scums in a new light. He finds energy inside Korea’s absolute low, yet innocent lives.