An anthology consisting of four short films all starring K-pop star IU, Persona not only showcases her burgeoning acting prowess but also points to the sheer film-making talents of four critically acclaimed directors, in a wholly engaging and memorable manner throughout. [Read More]
Hangul Celluloid Korean film reviews (page 2)
Misbehaviour (여교사, 2017) review: a war of privilege and envy
Part character study of a broken individual; part twisted relationship drama; part visceral revenge thriller, Misbehaviour while not perfect ultimately succeeds in being at times provocatively gripping, at others thought provoking, all the while pointing to the lineage of depictions of overt female sexual pleasure, pain and resultant punishment in Korean cinema as a whole. [Read More]
After My Death (죄많은 소녀, 2017) review: Kim Ui-seok’s masterful, bleak indie debut
While After My Death is both bleak and melancholic from its very outset to its final frame it is grippingly so, its palpable emotional depth ensuring it at no point appears as the debut feature it actually is. A testament to the continuing superlative quality of independent Korean cinema. [Read More]
Door Lock (도어락, 2018) review: female vulnerability and resilience in urban Seoul
With Door Lock, director Lee Kwon presents a tense and creepy fictional horror focusing on the vulnerability of women in Korea at the hands of the opposite sex and though the story’s conclusion will be fairly familiar to fans of horror it nonetheless celebrates female resilience and strength in Korean cinema as a whole. [Read More]
Herstory (허스토리, 2018) review: the courtroom fight for historical justice
While Herstory’s ultimate conclusion may be known to many, with such an important subject that should never be forgotten the journey is equally important, for characters and viewers alike. As such, Herstory is an exemplary realisation of a deeply poignant true-life tale absolutely vital to public awareness of the comfort women’s plight. [Read More]
Innocent Witness (증인, 2019) review: learning to listen
Part courtroom thriller, part relationship drama, Innocent Witness is wholly engaging throughout but it is the palpable, uplifting warmth seen in the depiction of the growing trust between an autistic young girl and an able-bodied man (helped yet further by a superlative performance from actress Kim Hyang-gi) that is the film’s greatest strength. [Read More]
Young-ju (영주, 2018) review: a childhood cut short
Though Young-ju is her debut feature, Cha Sung-duk brings a directorial confidence to this hard-hitting yet gently poignant drama that ensures it wholly succeeds an emotive powerhouse from start to finish, helped yet further by a remarkable, stunningly nuanced performance from actress Kim Hyang-gi. [Read More]
Parasite (기생충, 2019) review: Bong Joon-ho’s masterful satire of class and capitalism
While one would routinely expect a film from a director as well thought of and respected as Bong Joon-ho to be exemplary, Parasite not only virtually redefines that description but also raises the bar for other films and directors to aspire to. In short, miss this wry, insightful and masterful social drama at your peril. [Read More]
Forgotten (기억의밤, 2017) review: psychological thriller marred by clunky exposition
If you were to watch only the first half of Forgotten, you’d likely assume you were mid-way through an intriguing, even gripping, psychological thriller-cum-horror. However, hugely protracted dialogue driven exposition, story contrivances and character arc predictability ultimately detract from this early success in the second half. [Read More]
The Phone (더폰, 2015) review: a tense but derivative time-slip thriller
While The Phone is engaging enough for the most part, its ‘love across time’ elements lack the originality to be seen as much more than derivative, and a glaring contrivance to enable the film’s conclusion to actually take place sadly stands as the narrative’s most memorable element. [Read More]
Sesang (세상, 2019) review: distance, change and unspoken separation
Thematically rich and with narrative subtleties galore, with Sesang director Jules Suo uses what looks set to become her almost trademark long single takes and balance of handheld and static camerawork to frame an accomplished dissection of lives, relationships, hopes and dreams, complete with political undertones. [Read More]
Svaha: The Sixth Finger (사바하, 2019) review: faith, evil and ambiguity in Korean religious horror
Overall, Svaha is an often nicely creepy horror/thriller which successfully raises intelligent, thought-provoking questions about religion as a whole. However, the hugely expositional nature of so much of the narrative doesn’t particularly do the film any favours even if it doesn’t prevent it from being enjoyable and entertaining as a whole… [Read More]
Default (국가부도의날, 2018) review: humanising the IMF crisis
Based on Korea’s economic near-implosion in the late 90s during the East Asian financial crisis, Default deftly uses specific character perspectives to make what is in essence a tale of national finance feel wholly personal and utterly gripping in a human sense as well as historically interesting, as a result. [Read More]
Beautiful Vampire (뷰티풀 뱀파이어, 2018) review: visually dreamy urban fantasy needing more weight
Beautiful Vampire initially appears as quirky, warm-hearted and gently funny fantastical entertainment but while the narrative as it stands would likely work well for a short film experiment/pre-feature, there simply isn’t enough story here to adequately hold a full-duration film, even at just 73 minutes. [Read More]
Seven Years of Night (7년의밤, 2018) review: guilt, inherited sin and uneasy revenge
As a hard-hitting, brutal revenge thriller balanced with emotion and pathos detailing guilt and regret, Seven Years of Night stands up well to scrutiny. However director Choo Chang-min’s decision to repeatedly leave supposedly supernatural elements open to question brings with it a feeling of missed opportunities. [Read More]
The Witch: Part 1 – The Subversion (마녀, 2018) review: slow-burn tension and explosive payoff
The first part of a proposed trilogy of films, The Witch succeeds as not only a character driven drama but also a sci-fi infused high octane action thriller to the extent that viewers can be pretty much guaranteed to await the next instalment in anticipation, in spite of its overuse of dialogue-centred exposition [Read More]