Devils

A great Korean debut! The protagonist turns into a villain! An unknown director has taken the popular Korean theme of serial killers and cleverly devised an original story, exactly with what the viewer expects from a similarly themed film. It's been a while since a grittier crime thriller came out of Korea, but this one is definitely worth your attention. The story follows a determined detective who has lost his brother and is on the hunt for a ring of serial killers who are cutting people to pieces. When he finally comes face to face with one of them, it ends in an accident and upon waking up in the hospital he discovers that their bodies have been switched! An awesome spin to the Serial Killer theme (we've had it in comedy and horror, but not in gritty thriller) and it works great. The film makes the most of the plot and I was a bit worried how they would explain this at all (without being Sci-Fi), so hats off to the Koreans for once again going at it very intelligently and the twist is definitely a blast. The traditionally good visuals are a given, both leads give great performances (one is from the recent Project Wolf Hunting and the other from Deliver us from Devil), the is appropriate (I could have definitely gone a little harder, but it didn't bother me that much), the film moves along quickly, and the shocking finale is also interesting and definitely unexpected. The Koreans are good in this kind of films and I enjoyed it. 8/10 (26.10.2023)

A very interesting, unconventional and original Korean flick! A detective and a murderer chase each other through the forest and mysteriously swap identities, i.e. the detective in the body of the murderer and the murderer in the body of the detective. And the fun can begin. Apart from decent violence and fine gore scenes, there's a very imaginative theme that gradually unravels against the backdrop of a detective chasing criminals who serially kill and dismember people, so the premise is pretty good. In fact, I'd say that up until the reveal of the twist (in the last 30 minutes), it's a very engaging and gripping thing that it’s impossible not to root for, but while half the audience gets the twist and gets sucked in even more, the film lost me a bit there, and while it was pretty wow on its own, what came after was more of a finish with a very badly cut and rushed conclusion. Anyway, I guess everyone has to make up their own minds about it, as aside from that, it's definitely something worth watching, where I actually didn't mind the Koreans and the the film simply oozes with originality. (20.12.2023)

My recent dive into Asian cinema has been quite the journey, prompting me to wonder, "Where will it end?" It's hard to say, especially when gems like Kim's film catch my eye and keep me thoroughly entertained. Why rush back to the familiar territory of European or American cinema filled with political correctness? The Koreans here played with my expectations, and I fell for their tricks hook, line, and sinker. Initially, I was grumbling about the apparent lameness of a Korean take on Face/Off after twenty-six years, but the creators swiftly proved me wrong, humbling my overconfidence and leaving me pondering the value of humility. However, let's not overlook the fact that the script stumbled over its own rules at times. Despite this flaw, it was an entertaining (albeit far-fetched) piece that kept me engaged throughout. None of the Korean actors overacted wildly, making for a comfortably enjoyable experience. / Lesson learned: Where physical force fails, chemistry takes over. 4*- (11.05.2024)