Tazza: The High Rollers (Korean: 타짜; RR: Tajja) is a 2006 South Korean crime film directed by Choi Dong-hoon and based on Huh Young-man and Kim Se-yeong's manhwa of the same name. Produced by Sidus FNH and distributed by CJ Entertainment, the story revolves around a group of gambling drifters involved in the Korean card game Hwatu (Korean: 화투; Hanja: 花鬪; lit. War of Flowers). It was a huge commercial and critical success, becoming one of South Korea's highest-grossing films and winning numerous awards. It was the 2nd best-selling film of 2006 in South Korea, with 6,847,777 admissions nationwide.[4]
Tazza: The High Rollers | |
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Hangul | 타짜 |
Revised Romanization | Tajja |
McCune–Reischauer | T‘acha |
Directed by | Choi Dong-hoon |
Written by | Choi Dong-hoon |
Based on | Tajja by Huh Young-man and Kim Se-yeong |
Produced by | Cha Seung-jae Kim Mi-hee[1] |
Starring | Cho Seung-woo Kim Hye-soo Yoo Hae-jin Baek Yoon-sik |
Cinematography | Choi Young-hwan[1] |
Edited by | Shin Min-kyung[1] |
Music by | Jang Young-gyu[1] |
Production company | Sidus FNH |
Distributed by | CJ Entertainment |
Release date |
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Running time | 139 minutes |
Country | South Korea |
Language | Korean |
Budget | US$5.5 million[2] |
Box office | US$39.2 million[3] |
Goni has lost his entire savings, and money stolen from his family, after being swindled by professional cheat gamblers. In order to regain the money, Goni begins training under one of the best gamblers in the country, Mr. Pyeong. He becomes well-known, wandering about different gambling places throughout the country with Pyeong. Madam Jeong, who runs an illegal gambling operation, begins to show interest in Goni. Goni leaves Pyeong and begins working for Jeong, whom he also has a love tryst with. When Madam Jeong is arrested, Goni meets fellow pro Gwang and the two become partners.
5 Points Pictures gave the film a two-disc DVD release in North America on September 18, 2012.[5] The film is subtitled and includes nearly 3 hours of bonus features, including the making of the film, a comparison between the film and its source manhwa, and gambling tricks explained by a former professional gambler.
A sequel, titled Tazza: The Hidden Card, was directed by Kang Hyeong-cheol and starred Choi Seung-hyun, Shin Se-kyung, Kwak Do-won and Lee Ha-nui, with Yoo Hae-jin and Kim Yoon-seok reprising their roles. It began filming on January 2, 2014, and was released on September 3, 2014.[6]
A second sequel, Tazza: One Eyed Jack, was released in 2019. It was directed by Kwon Oh-kwang and stars Park Jung-min and Ryoo Seung-bum.[7]
Year | Award | Category | Recipients | Result |
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2006 | 2nd University Film Festival of Korea[8] | Best Actor | Cho Seung-woo | Won |
Best Actress | Kim Hye-soo | Won | ||
14th Chunsa Film Art Awards | Best Film | Tazza: The High Rollers | Nominated | |
Best Director | Choi Dong-hoon | Nominated | ||
Best Actor | Cho Seung-woo | Nominated | ||
Best Actress | Kim Hye-soo | Won | ||
Best Supporting Actor | Baek Yoon-sik | Nominated | ||
Yoo Hae-jin | Nominated | |||
Best Editing | Shin Min-kyung | Won | ||
27th Blue Dragon Film Awards[9] | Best Film | Tazza: The High Rollers | Nominated | |
Best Director | Choi Dong-hoon | Nominated | ||
Best Actor | Cho Seung-woo | Nominated | ||
Best Actress | Kim Hye-soo | Won | ||
Best Supporting Actor | Kim Yoon-seok | Nominated | ||
Best Cinematography | Choi Young-hwan | Won | ||
Best Lighting | Kim Sung-kwan | Nominated | ||
Technical Award (Editing) | Shin Min-kyung | Nominated | ||
Popular Star Award | Kim Hye-soo | Won | ||
2007 | 1st Asian Film Awards | Best Actress | Kim Hye-soo | Nominated |
43rd Baeksang Arts Awards | Grand Prize (Daesang) | Tazza: The High Rollers | Won | |
Best Film | Tazza: The High Rollers | Nominated | ||
Best Director | Choi Dong-hoon | Won | ||
Best Actor | Cho Seung-woo | Nominated | ||
Best Actress | Kim Hye-soo | Nominated | ||
8th Newport Beach Film Festival[10] | Best Feature | The High Rollers | Won | |
Best Director | Choi Dong-hoon | Won | ||
Best Actor | Cho Seung-woo | Won | ||
Best Actress | Kim Hye-soo | Won | ||
44th Grand Bell Awards | Best Director | Choi Dong-hoon | Nominated | |
Best Actress | Kim Hye-soo | Nominated | ||
Best Supporting Actor | Kim Yoon-seok | Won | ||
Best Cinematography | Choi Young-hwan | Nominated | ||
Best Editing | Shin Min-kyung | Nominated | ||
Best Lighting | Kim Sung-kwan | Nominated | ||
Best Costumes | Jo Sang-gyeong | Won | ||
8th Busan Film Critics Awards | Best Screenplay | Choi Dong-hoon | Won | |
Best Supporting Actor | Kim Yoon-seok | Won | ||
6th Korean Film Awards | Best Film | Tazza: The High Rollers | Nominated | |
Best Director | Choi Dong-hoon | Nominated | ||
Best Actor | Cho Seung-woo | Nominated | ||
Best Actress | Kim Hye-soo | Nominated | ||
Best Cinematography | Choi Young-hwan | Nominated | ||
Best Editing | Shin Min-kyung | Won | ||
Best Screenplay | Choi Dong-hoon | Won | ||
1st Korea Movie Star Awards | Best Actor | Cho Seung-woo | Won | |
Best Actress | Kim Hye-soo | Won | ||
Best Supporting Actor | Kim Yoon-seok | Won | ||
4th Max Movie Awards | Best Actress | Kim Hye-soo | Nominated | |
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Films written and directed |
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Baeksang Arts Award Grand Prize – Film | |
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* awarded to theatrical play; ** no winner |