Once in a great while, a director's debut feature turns out to be something so fresh, that it sets the tone for the rest of their career. Such is the case with Kim Ji-Woon's "The Quiet Family." The film was made in 1998 and starred two of South Korea's current megastars Choi Min-Sik of "Oldboy" fame, and Song Kang-Ho from a number of Korean blockbusters including "Shiri", "Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance", and "The Host." The story centers around a family whose patriarch has decided to take out of the rat race and into the mountains to run a bed & breakfast. The extended family includes the father and mother, two daughters, two sons, and grandfather, and the only on who seems to be having any fun is Dad. They go for a long stretch with no customers until one day, a distraught looking young man turns up and gets the royal treatment. Unfortunately for the family, as they go to wake him up in the morning, the man has committed suicide. Desperate not to drum up any bad publicity, the family decides that rather than report the death to the authorities, they'll dispose of the body themselves. The pattern repeats itself and this black comedy picks up steam and becomes a fantastically funny game of hide and seek between local authorities and The Quiet Family. While the plot of this film is a bit tricky, it paces itself well, but one of the real strengths of this film is the direction. The opening credits sequence is a thing of beauty, juxtaposing 90's the latino gangsta rap of Tres Delinquentes with the absolute boredom of the main character laying on the couch watching TV, and the camera work is amazing. I can't think of many other first time director's who would attempt a tracking shot of the length to open their film. Kim Ji-Woon has gone on to make several other outstanding features, including the underrated "The Foul King" and the critically acclaimed "A Tale Of Two Sisters". Choi Min Sik as the elder brother who is shiftless and a little bit slow is fantastically funny and nowhere near the same person as in "Oldboy" and Song Kang-Ho as the lazy younger brother is great in a very understated performance. The UK DVD features a making of documentary and a short film by the director which is only subtitled in english for this release, making it well worth the purchase. Anyone in the mood for some great black comedy could do a lot worse than "The Quiet Family".