The Customer Is Always Right (DVD) (DTS) (Korea Version) DVD Region 3

Character actor Sung Ji Ru makes his leading man debut as Ahn Chang Jin, a surgically precise barber obsessed with his own professionalism. His barbershop is a post-modern sight for the eyes - monochrome decor, sparkling clean, and uncomfortably sterile - and Ahn looks suspiciously sinister with his snow white getup, square hair, and doofy, unreadable face. At any given time, he looks like he might be an undertaker, dentist, mad scientist, or thirtysomething Korean incarnation of Brain (er, the mouse) who subjects his customers to spiels about haircutting. Despite his complete lack of appeal, Ahn's managed to catch himself a hot young thing for a wife (Sung Hyun Ah), but keeping her in rein is another matter.

Ahn himself isn't as spick-and-span as he appears, and the skeletons in his closet come back to haunt him when a middle-aged man (Myung Kye Nan in superstar shades, chewing film and dryly lampooning himself) shows up to blackmail him repeatedly. Growing desperate, Ahn hires a smarmy private detective (Lee Seon Gyun, chewing gum and particularly suited for the role with his baritone voice) to get the dirt on Myung, starting off a new cycle of revelations, repercussions, and blood splatters.

The Customer is Always Right makes clear its noir nods, and largely succeeds with visual flourish. The frivolously enigmatic dialogue, mysterious plot, unexpected twists, private detective and female siren characters, and chaotically lazy mood are charming in their own right, but what seals the deal is the eye-catching visuals. The monochrome barbershop is the pinnacle of the film's overall aesthetic which extends to the cinematography, costume, set design, and art direction. Black and white with shocks of red is a recurring color theme throughout the film: Sung Hyun Ah's red heels walking across the checkered floor, blood splattering on white cloth, crimson red against sterile white. The color treatment looks stunning onscreen, as do the flashy camerawork and regular jumps into black and white that further set the mood and look of the film.

The Customer is Always Right could basically pass just on style points alone, but its bold visuals is backed by unique storytelling, offbeat pacing, and subtle black humor that all come together at the end. Deliberately confounding and disorienting, the film does keep the audience at arm's length for much of its duration but, rest assured, the view is good from all angles.