A Taxi Driver
May, 1980. Man-seob is a taxi driver in Seoul who lives from hand to mouth, raising his young daughter alone. One day, he hears that there is a foreigner who will pay big money for a drive down to Gwangju city. Not knowing that he’s a German journalist with a hidden agenda, Man-seob takes the job.
Critics Sentiment
Local taxi drivers sacrifice themselves helping Man-seob and Peter escape
Kim Man-seob struggles with debt and raising his daughter
The film transforms from a seemingly generic opening about a struggling taxi driver into a powerful historical drama when Man-seob witnesses the brutal government crackdown.
The film builds steadily from a modest character study into an emotionally devastating historical epic. Reviewers consistently praised the transformation of ordinary people into heroes, with the climactic sacrifice sequence representing the emotional peak. The ending's real-world epilogue provided a bittersweet but deeply satisfying conclusion that resonated strongly with audiences.
Full cast
Showing 20 of 34
Song Kang-ho
Kim Man-seob
Thomas Kretschmann
Jürgen Hinzpeter
Yoo Hai-jin
Hwang Tae-sul
Ryu Jun-yeol
Gu Jae-sik
Park Hyuk-kwon
Reporter Choi
Choi Gwi-hwa
Civvies Leader
Cha Soon-bae
Driver Cha
Shin Dam-su
Driver Sin
Ryu Sung-hyun
Driver Ryoo
Um Tae-goo
Illegal checkpoint Sergeant First Class Park
Min-hee Park
Kwon Joong-ryeong
Lee Jung-eun
Hwang Tae-sool's wife
Eun-mi Yoo
Kim Eun-jeong
Seo Hyun-woo
Security Command
Ko Chang-seok
Sang-gu's Father
Jeon Hye-jin
Sang-gu's Mother
Joey Albright
BBC Reporter David John
Jung Jin-young
Reporter Lee
Ryu Tae-ho
Newspaper Manager
Jeong Seok-yong
Car Center Manager
Crew
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