`Attack’ Serves Super-Sized Comedy

Imagine good-looking boys reigning at the top of a kingdom called high school: Choose your favorite among lace-clad Little Prince types to tough, sexy guys or clean-cut charmers.

S.M. Pictures of S.M. Entertainment, the production company that pumped out K-pop icons like BoA, H.O.T. and S.E.S., didn't have to look far for casting stars of their first filmmaking venture. Featuring all 13 members of the super-sized boy band Super Junior -- and a panda bear, ``Attack on the Pin-Up Boys'' is, well, super-sized.

With grossly exaggerated yet believable dialogue and flashy after effects (graphic images, like hearts popping out of characters' eyes), ``Attack'' is over the top. Instead of falling into the trap of traditional Korean idol films, this teen movie plunges directly into them -- by fully ``exploiting'' pretty faces, it manages to pull together something surprisingly bemusing.

Local high schools are stirred up in a frenzy as a series of ``terrorist attacks'' targets popular ``pin-up'' boys -- a rather dirty affair involving excrement ``bombs,'' or plastic bags containing bodily waste.

Meanwhile, quiet and studious Ki-beom (Kim Ki-beom) starts investigating the situation, sharing his findings through his personal Web site. Piecing together bits of evidence and hypotheses, he suspects his school is the next target.

But at Neulparan High School, there is not one but three ``pin-up'' boys: handsome student body president Si-won (Choi Si-won), sweet-faced ``bad boy'' dancer Hee-chul (Kim Hee-chul) and tough Judo club leader Kang In (Kim Young-woon, also known as Kang In).

As the anticipated day of the notorious event draws near, the focus shifts from identifying the terrorist to guessing which of these three heartthrobs will be terrorized. Meanwhile, seeing the previous victims benefit from the incident, such as gaining stardom and big time record contracts, the three boys engage in a fierce battle to be dung-slapped.

``Attack'' is a fun poke at the youth culture's idolization of the beautiful. Rather than giving a sour social commentary of superficial obsessions, the film offers a slice of drama, though not too heavily. Stationed at neat rows of desks from sunup to sundown with the sole goal of entering college, weary teenagers needed something to spice up their uneventful lives. The film keeps it light and brisk.

``Attack'' is more along the lines of E.J-yong's sensational teen sex comedy ``Dasepo Naughty Girls'' (2006) rather than previous Korean idol films that flopped at the box office, despite their stars' enormous popularity, namely H.O.T.'s ``Age of Peace'' (2000) and Sechs Kies' ``Seventeen'' (1998).

Consistently outrageous and brashly cartoon-like, the film will mesmerize Super Junior fans and offer good laughs for anyone.

By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter