Revenge movies. It’s a genre in which South Korea seems to be specialised. At least that’s my conclusion after having seen several of them. These films are not afraid to show violence in all its gruesome detail and manage to shock and make you feel something while you are watching it. I Saw the Devil takes the revenge idea a bit further than expected as just getting revenge once does not seem to be enough. While you are watching you will feel uncomfortable about this story in which Kim Soo-hyeon (Byung-hun Lee (The Good, The Bad, The Weird)) wants to have revenge on a serial killer, Kyung-Chul (played by Min-sik Choi (Oldboy)), who has murdered his wife.
Kim Soo-hyeon is deeply hurt by the loss of wife. When his father in law, who works for the police show him an overview of possible suspects he decides to find each one of them and make them feel how much pain he is feeling. It quickly becomes clear how much that is.
You are also shown in which way the serial killer, Kyung-Chul, works in meeting his victims, murder them and getting rid of the bodies. It’s this part of the movie which really went a bit beyond something I’m comfortable watching, but it does manage to perfectly illustrate that he is a monster who is able and willing to do anything.
Min-sik Choi plays the role perfectly and makes you believe that he’s a very creepy person that you really would not like to run into.
Byung-hun Lee manages to act just as strongly and the both of them are really a strong match resulting in an interesting tension between the two, comparable to Pacino and De Niro in Heat. The suspense remains during the whole movie, as the cat and mouse game between the two takes a few unexpected turns.
I Saw the Devil is another excellent Korean movie which is worth watching, although there are bits which might be a bit too much for people with a weak stomach. The convincing use of fake blood and specific weapons (the hammer seems to be one of the favorite revenge film weapons) means that it’s not for everyone. If you can stomach it you will be treated to a violent revenge movie which you won’t forget.
Score: 9
In my opinion, I Saw the Devil wasn’t the best thriller or revenge movie from Korea. My problem with this film is the duration. It was at least 30 minutes too long, and the pacing is sluggish at best during the second half.
I’d recommend you to watch ‘The Chaser’, one of my favorite Korean thrillers, if you haven’t seen it yet.
No to me the best one is still Old Boy. I can understand your point about the duration, but I was captivated by it. It could have been tightened up a bit.
I have seen The Chaser recently, but I prefer this one. The Chaser really has a Hollywood feel (I know a remake is going to be made by the The Departed team) and I like the different feel of Korean cinema.
I want very thrilling film
This has a lot of thrills, so if you are looking for that you should see it.
its a awesome movie. Choi Min-sik is boss.
Yes he is!
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