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While on the surface a film ostensibly focused on a burgeoning supernatural mystery surrounding an ominous yoga studio and the need to uncover it, there’s far more going on in Yun Jae-yeon‘s follow-up to the solid-if-by-the-book “Wishing Stairs”. Still retaining the same sense of atmosphere and theatrics, she adds a fantastic critique of beauty and physical aesthetics in Korean society for her second, and thus far final, directorial effort “Yoga Hakwon.”

Trying to stay competitive at work, TV presenter Hyo-jeong (Kim Yoo-jin) becomes jealous of the attention new co-host Seon-hwa (Lee Yeong-jin) receives from her studio bosses due to her youth and beauty as a former pageant contestant. After talking with boyfriend Dong-hoon (Choi Daniel), Hyo-jung decides to follow a rigorous yoga training class held at Na-ni’s (Cha Soo Yeon) resort with other participants Sung Yeon-joo (Park Han-byeol), Lee Bo-ra (Hwang Seung-eon), Seo In-soon (Jo Eun-ji), and...

Upon its release in 1998, the Korean ghost film “Whispering Corridors” proved to be immensely successful in part with its release at the forefront of the J-Horror Movement. Appearing as a contemporary of celebrated titles “Ringu” and “Ju-On” among numerous others, it helped to spawn a franchise. “Memento Mori” arrived one year later and then this third entry a couple of years later. Helmed by first-time director Yun Jae-yeon and feeling very much like a retread of the material the genre was producing elsewhere around the world, that does strike this one down slightly even with its celebrated positives.

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In a Korean boarding school, lesbian ballet student Kim So-hee (Park Han-byeol) is in deep love with her passive girlfriend and fellow ballet student Yoon Jin-sung (Song Ji-hyo) who won’t return her affection. When an announcement is made about a competition for...

Asian horror films have a long history and cultural significance, originating as a creative outlet to comment on societal issues and traumas. The dominance of Japanese horror in the international market began with the success of Ring in 1998, leading to the popularization of other J-Horror films. Asian horror films can offer unique perspectives and storytelling and have the potential to continue influencing the global horror genre in the future.

As many reach the tail end of their Halloween movie marathons, ticking off one classic horror film after another, you would be pretty hard-pressed to find a list of thirty-one stellar scary movies without at least one title originating from Asia. You might even be able to create a list of thirty-one Asian horror films on its own. From Japan’s House (1977) and Ring (1998) to Korea’s A Tale of Two Sisters (2003) and India’s Tumbbad (2018), horror has long been one...