War movies aren’t all guns and glory on the battlefield– sometimes, to win the war, one gets pushed to betray each other for the sake of the country, or for one’s survival. This is what happens in Assassination, where a group of resistance fighters have to spy and lie in order to gain enough information to assassinate a high ranking Japanese officer. It’s the sort of wartime espionage thriller that Hollywood started to get sick of, but it’s the kind of plot that works with Korea’s 2010 mystery thriller streak, adding a historical epic touch to the genre that helped make Korean cinema popular. It’s matched with a complex script, stellar action setpieces, and excellent production design.