The Scam

The Scam is a 2009 South Korean crime thriller film, it was the first South Korean film to tackle the stock market. Plot After losing everything, Hyun-soo (Park Yong-ha) spends five years glued to the computer screen as an unshaven, full-time "ant" (individual investor). He eventually reaches the top of the game after a painful diet of instant noodles and sacrificing the cost of three luxury sedans. He vows to quit once and for all when he achieves his goal, a nine-digit savings account that will support his mother and studious younger brother. One day he hits the jackpot, not knowing that there are repercussions to disrupting a stock market scam. He ignites the fury of Hwang Jong-gu (Park Hee-soon), a gangster-turned-financier bidding for entry into the top percentile of the rich and powerful. A fresh mobster persona, Hwang feigns elegance in his initialized Italian shoes, only to resort to kicking people for dramatic effect. He also begins every sentence with an `"OK" even though he cannot tolerate the full English phrasings of his Korean-American partner. Hwang, however, doesn't dwell on past indiscretions. He recognizes Hyun-soo's talents and employs him for the biggest scam yet, also giving him a nice makeover. Hyun-soo joins the other members of Hwang's dream team for the 60 billion won heist: Jo Min-hyeong, an elite stock broker who doubles as the think tank of fraudulent trades (musical star Kim Mu-yeol makes his big screen debut); sexy private banker Yoo Seo-yeon (Kim Min-jung); Park Chang-joo, a second-generation chaebol CEO facing a management crisis (veteran supporting actor Jo Deok-hyun); and Bryan Choi (Kim Jun-seong), a Korean-American fund manager who fakes foreign investment as a "black-haired foreigner."