Forgotten

Contrived at times yet narrated with such tenacity that the plot stays compelling throughout, Forgotten comes jam-packed with twists n turns and takes its viewers into unexpected alleys without giving away too much, thus making for a consistently engaging ride which keeps the tension & mystery alive for the most part before losing steam near the end and finishing on a sappy note.

Written & directed by Jang Hang-jun, the first act plays out like a haunted house horror with steady build-up, uneasy vibe & hints of supernatural before elements of mystery & paranoia take over the screen. The tone shifts around the halfway mark and the dots start to connect as new details surface & revelations pour in but the first half is much better & more effective than the next one.

What Jang does well here is keeping us intrigued & invested in where all of it is headed even when the film takes some wild detours. The twists however are a tad too many, which in turn hurt its credibility to an extent. Still, the characters are well-defined and the entire cast does a fabulous job in bringing their scripted roles to life. The ending is tragic & heartbreaking but also lacks that gut-punching quality.

Overall, Forgotten is competently crafted & confidently directed, and makes for a thoroughly gripping psychological horror. The narrative flow & momentum is disrupted by the exposition laden second half but the way its events unfold, the interest in the outcome is never lost. It may not end as strongly as it started but it is a solid example of its genre(s), and is yet another fine showcase of South Korea's mastery over twisted stories.

Saw this on netflix. Saw the trailer and immediately watched it. After watching it. Wow. Did not expect this film to be this good. The film is tragic beyond words. It's hard to talk much without spoiling anything. Performances, writing, direction were all great! Definitely a must see!

Netflix has quite some interesting movies/productions and this is one of them. Korean thrillers are quite good most of the time anyway (at least in my book). One may wonder where they come up with that stuff and ideas. But I'm happy they do and I happily watch them too.

Like this one, that keeps you guessing from the start to the finish. Certainly some decisions may feel akward or wrong that characters take, but that is just how things work. Also it will make sense (more or less) in the end. Keep guessing, keep trying to figure out where this goes - it's almost impossible I'd say. Unless you've read a synopsis and even then, it had to be quite thorough ... so I urge go in this without reading too much about it and enjoy the thriller you are being served ... and the enticing story with it ... I don't totally agree with the ending this chooses, but it makes sense with the sensibilities and the mood overall ...

Maybe what you read about the plot is not enough to attract your attention. But as the minutes pass, what seemed to be a drama becomes much more. The plot has twists and we just can't stop watching. I highly recommend it!