Revelations

I really wanted more from this Yeon Sang-ho crime-thriller than what was offered. It has SUCH INTERESTING characters, a series of crimes that connect them, and the "revelations" that happen along the way. This either needed to be a full-blown character study or a seat-edge thriller. But Yeon Sang-ho decides to tread that fine line between both, leading to an okayish conclusion. The lead performances are solid, especially Ryu Jun-yeol who plays a pastor suffering from Apophenia.

The religious angle was always going to be the differentiator here, but I doubt it'll sit well with most viewers seeking a straightforward thriller sans theological references. The production quality is first-rate, and there's a spectacularly tense one-take sequence set in a derelict building. In fact, the film needed more such innovations in the thrills department to keep the plot progression from staggering. The current version is decent (for whatever Netflix offers), but Revelations won't be discussed as much as Train to Busan or some of Yeon-Sang-ho's earlier animated flicks.

A good thriller that had the potential to become big.

The screenplay could have been written in such a manner that the film focuses on the tension and suspense rather than the approach taken in the film.

The film depicts themes like Perception and Apophenia, Religious Zeal vs Trauma, Broken Morality and Belief as a coping mechanism.

The film explores pareidolia where a person perceives divine messages or patterns in randomness indicating Pastor Sung's visions. Sung's self-justified violence in the name of God contrasts with Yeon-hui's vendetta fueled by grief. The film also questions if our actions are our own or are they fueled by faith, prejudice and past trauma. Belief - Each character in the film relies on belief to justify pain. Be it divine, procedural or personal

The acting performances were top-notch. Ryu Jun-yeol, Shin Hyun-been and Shin Min-jae were magnificent.

A 5 min 30 second long take in the climax was an absolute masterclass. Outstanding execution. The emotions expressed in that moment was peak.

Unmoored angles and visual tricks express the psychic states of Sung and Yeon-hui.

Kudos to the cinematographer Byun Bong-Sun. The camera work was gave superb elevation to the film. The visual approach worked so well for me. The editing was outstanding too.

The film was great. It just fell low in its screenplay part a bit. The one-eyed monster reveal was amazing.

A 3.5/5 film.

Again, outstanding cinematography. Magnificent visual technique.

Nice Korean thriller with a submessage: Take responsibility for your own actions and do not hide behind a God or devil.

The movie is not predictable and has some typical Korean-style twists. Starting of as a kidnap story, the movie quickly moves towards a story about guild and religion.

The protagonist is Min-Chan, a pastor who - at first hand - seems to not be capable of killing another human being. After a fatal 'accident' with the main antagonist, a sadistic killer obsessed by 'the one eyed monster', things quickly take a turn and Min-chan comes to believe God has given him a revelation. The third character storyline revolves around a traumatized police officer named Yeon Hui, who has to (literally) face her trauma's in order to get her own revelations, in another way as Min-Chan.

To be honest, I expected more. The plot was quite predictable - not in the sense that you could guess the ending, but rather that you could anticipate how the next scenes would unfold. The character twists weren't particularly fresh or surprising. Actually, there were many moments where the characters' actions felt a bit confusing and forced. Every issue in the movie, from the initial events to the ending, happened and was resolved too quickly.

The acting was decent. Shin Hyun Bin has shown noticeable improvement in her acting compared to her previous works. Ryu Jun-yeol, as always, delivered a solid performance.

Overall, the movie didn't leave much of an impression on me because its main message wasn't deep. If you have time and are curious, you can give it a try. But I know there are many other Korean films out there that are much better and more worth watching.

South Korean director Yeon Sang-ho delivers a gripping and suspenseful experience in the first two-thirds of his latest film. Set against an increasingly tense backdrop, the story builds steadily toward a thrilling showdown in an unfinished house-an eerie, concrete shell that serves as the perfect stage for a psychological and spiritual confrontation.

At the heart of this build-up is the character of the pastor-charismatic, unsettling, and deeply complex. His god-like delusions and moral ambiguity offer rich thematic material, and it's here that the film seems poised to dive into bold, unflinching territory.

And then, inexplicably, it all falls apart.

Instead of deepening the conflict, the film abandons its most compelling character. The pastor vanishes from the narrative, and with him, the entire dramatic weight and thematic sharpness of the film. The focus shifts to a police officer's investigation-a far more conventional and diluted thread that lacks the urgency and existential tension of what came before.

This final third feels like a betrayal-not just to the audience, but to the film's own premise. What was once sharp and provocative becomes bland and toothless. The direction loses its edge, opting for a safer, less confrontational conclusion that undermines everything the first part had set up.

Ultimately, what begins as a promising, intense thriller fizzles out into a hollow resolution. It's a shame to see a film with such daring potential end in such a timid and characterless way. A missed opportunity.