Mong-ta-joo

One thing that surprise me about movies coming out of South Korea is the huge amount of revenge movies there are. It's not a handful of movies, there are dozens of movies. I think maybe half the South Korean movies I have seen have some sort of revenge theme.

This movie is riveting and like a murder mystery it sets all the pieces in places so that can pick them up and examine them.

Even then though, when you think you know what's going on there's a dawning realization that you've been wrong as the plot comes to fruition and the real truth comes to light.

It's a great movie with a magic ending and well worth the watch.

So, here we go: another great thriller coming (not surprisingly) for South Korea. Wonderfully written and well directed by Jeong, Montage is hands-down one of the best South Korean movies of 2013 (on par with features like Miracle in Cell No. 7, The Berlin File, New World etc.).

Montage presents a well-rounded script that triggers a mesmerizing narrative mechanism, full of almost unbearable suspense (especially in the last half-hour). We are in the presence of an excellent movie that will leave you on the edge of your seat and will definitely immerse you in its narrative till the very end (and the totally unpredictable final plot twist of a long series of them)

The effectiveness of the plot is due to its clever way of twisting viewers' expectations by playing with the "montage of the timeline", that always comes back and forth between the present and the past... I cannot say more to avoid spoil anything to you.

I'll just say that you should not let yourself be lead astray by the seemingly conventional beginning 'cause as it goes on the movie becomes more and more interesting and gripping and starts to pack some real plot twists that'll almost ever leave you astonished. Montage is the work of a clever screenwriter that knows how to masterfully play with a lot of genre tropes just to, as I already said, deceive the viewer.

And, even though its main purpose may very well be pure entertainment, it anyways somehow manages to convey some interesting points of social critique in the way it portraits the lengths we are disposed to go (or, sometimes, forced to go) as to try to survive in a ruthless world where, when there is a crisis, the ones paying the highest toll are always the weakest and the poorest. And, apart from direction and screenwriting, Montage is also well-served by a gloomy cinematography and a perfect acting ensemble.

So, to sum it all up: if you're in for a masterful thriller that will leave you constantly guessing and will amaze you over and over till a final plot twist that it's totally unexpected well, hurry up and give Montage a try.

This is my first review after rating thousands of movies. I'm very found of Korean movies after watching Oldboy several years ago. However, this is not a mainstream Korean movie, at least not in countries like Greece. Mont-ta-joo is a surprise for me since it is not as popular as other Korean movies (oldboy, memories of a murder, madeo etc.) but it is a great movie!

The plot of the movie is ingenious with several upsets and with great acting (and not overacting). During the whole movie I could not take my eyes from the TV, trying to realize who could the kidnapper be. This is not just another kidnapping movie; it presents the drama of the victim and her agony, while it reveals slowly evidence about the conclusion of the case keeping tension at high levels during the whole movie. It also presents the investigators of the case as real people making mistakes and being affected by the victims.

If you have seen a lot of kidnapping movies (The Man from Nowhere, Mercy, Taken), Montage is just about the same.

BUT, the story is well-presented and answers all the questions. It kind of refreshing to have such a clear ending.

The story tells us how a mother of a lost child is dealing with her lost and never lose hope to look for justice. And also the detective who's having a hard time accepting the fact that the criminal slipped of his hand.

Eom Jeong-hwa and Kim Sang-kyung performance were unquestionably good. Eom had played the same role before and so did Kim.

Overall, I give a 9 because it's been a while since I saw a kidnapping movie and I'm glad that it doesn't make me stop midway and start thinking "Where have I seen this before?".

Totally worth your time.

I am so happy that I watched this movie ...

Not only just the great story, great acting, and great directing. This movie somehow move you at some point. I was blown away by how this story well written and put some message in it. At the end I was shed a tears and share deep feeling with main character when she hugged the tree and call her daughter's name as well as when the kidnapper told his story. I mean WOW ... some movie like this is very rare ... so you should see it for yourself.

I praised the writer ... director and actors ... to bring the gems into cinema. BRAVO