Yoo Ha finds his niche in gangster/action films and clearly knows his forte. A Dirty Carnival has elements of competition, survival and trust. In the game of survival, competition is tough and you cannot trust anyone. That's Carnival's message. When push comes to shove, people are pitted to confront their inner darkness—which eventually eats them up and destroys them. In a way, Carnival explores this deterioration through Kim Byung-do's (wonderfully played by Jo In-Sung) life as a low-ranking gangster. The dynamics of friendship, family and love for someone like him, in that profession is explored mirroring who those deemed "deviant" by society go through. A family you have to support but is also a weakness to your job, a long-time crush who fears you because of your job and a friendship you want to trust...but for a job like this, can you really? Carnival does well in showing parallels of the old and the new—that perhaps, human desire is eventually just never similar. Especially in this profession. A realistic ending. Brutal fight scenes (I find myself looking away sometimes) and a heartfelt story.