The Strangers

Frustrating. Too much is left open to interpretation. If ambiguity was the goal, they could have done it more quickly. Personally, I wish I hadn't invested over 2.5 hours to be left with unanswered questions. Some cool moments, but overall, it's not worth watching in my opinion.

This will be the first review i'm writing, Because i'm enthralled by this piece of art. Gokseong is directed by Hong-jin Na who previously have made very fine movies like yellow sea and chaser. But the setting of this movie is different from those movies, It kind of felt like Memories of Murder in darker tone. This is the story of a village, where people are suffering from a mysterious diseases which seems like some kind of virus and this ends up killing them, and in the middle of somewhere a Japanese stranger seems to be involved in this. Now, i'm not going to say more than that about the story , and i suggest you to not watch the trailer which doesn't do justice to the movie and stay away from any possible spoiler. It is one of the best horror movies i have seen in long time, it doesn't have jump scares. But what this movie does, it slowly grows on you, you will be confused, conflicted, disgusted while watching this. Somewhere you will make a choice, a perspective to the way things are going and possibly will be wrong. So i strongly suggest you to watch this movie if possible in a secluded environment and if possible alone. P.S.- It has the what i think is the best exorcism scene shown in any movie.

There were a few twists and tense moments, but it was a long, drawn out movie, with little to sustain it. The scenes with the shaman were the most entertaining, but the last 30 minutes I was yelling "come on already!"

I expected this to be a slow pace,d very atmospheric horror film. Instead, I was surprised by how crazy and intense it is. It never really allows you to completely wrap your head around it because it is constantly pulling the rug from under you. The cast does a great job from verging in both drama, horror, and even comedy, which the film is able to balance with the other genres very well, for the most part. Because of that the film sometimes feels a little messy and a little jumbled in its very ambitious aims, and as a result it suffers. I wouldn't call it a great film, but I do recommend it simply for the sheer effort and ambition on display here. Certainly a horror film to remember.

After catapulting himself into the league of South Korea's brightest up-n-coming filmmakers with his extremely polished & mercilessly violent directional debut and then following it up with another thriller that was more or less a misfire, director Na Hong-jin makes a splendid return to form after six years of inactivity, and delivers a cinema that's drenched in blood, sickness & devilry.

The story of The Wailing unfolds in a small South Korean village where a mysterious illness begins to spread & claim many lives after the arrival of a strange Japanese man in the nearby mountains. Investigating the case is a police officer who becomes all the more involved after his own daughter begins exhibiting similar symptoms and enlists the help of a shaman to solve the mystery before its too late.

Written & directed by Na Hong-jin, The Wailing finds the budding filmmaker stepping into the realms of supernatural horror and features numerous elements that made his first film an instant classic. It is a considerable improvement over Hong-jin's previous film, plus his direction exhibits more confidence & comfort this time. The script is just as impressive although it still could've used a bit more refinement.

The film doesn't hold back on violence & gore and keeps the element of doubt alive until the very end. Also admirable is how successfully it manages to force its viewers to switch their allegiance from time to time and keeps them in the dark throughout its runtime. Humour is brilliantly utilised whenever it's required but the tone is grim for the most part and only intensifies as the plot nears its conclusion.

The technical aspects are finely executed. The rural setting & isolated surroundings provide a big enough canvas for the horror to play out. Camera-work is expertly carried out, filming each n every moment in fine detail. Editing is definitely a highlight, given the unpredictable nature of its plot in addition to unforeseen twists n turns, and despite its 156 minutes runtime, it is never boring and is actually cleverly paced from beginning to end.

Coming to the performances, the entire cast chips in with apt contributions in their given roles and play their part responsibly. Kwak Do-won plays the police officer investigating the mystery illness & killings and although a comic relief at first, he wises up as the plot progresses. Hwang Jung-min is in as a shaman and goes bonkers with his role. But the two most measured inputs comes from Jun Kunimura & Chin Woo-hee who play the Japanese stranger & a mysterious woman respectively.

On an overall scale, The Wailing is a fresh, fascinating & ferocious entry in the world of horror that makes terrific use of its atmosphere & supernatural elements to deliver a thoroughly unsettling & consistently engaging experience. There are, however, times when it may leave you a little lost or unsure of what's happening but the interest is never lost for once and only gains momentum as it heads towards its long-awaited finale. A work of mythic weirdness that's diabolical in every sense of the word, The Wailing comes highly recommended.