H (2002) User Reviews (23)

Copycat...

[JoeytheBrit · 5/10 · 20 September 2005]

H is another of those moody Korean movies that moves at a deliberately slow pace. This measured approach to story-telling can sometimes add to the atmosphere of a strong well-told tale but, in this instance, it simply draws attention to numerous deficiencies in both plot and characterisation.

A couple of mismatched cops investigate a complex case involving a serial killer who targets pregnant women or women connected with abortions in some way. The murders are copies of those carried out by a man ten months earlier who gave himself up and now awaits execution. The cops initially suspect the original killer has hired someone to carry out the killings but, when they have caught the person they believe to be the murderer and the killings continue, a much less straightforward answer becomes apparent.

The Koreans seem to have a thing for slow and thoughtful movies, and there's nothing wrong with that if the storyline is strong, but this film borrows from too many other films – most notably Silence of the Lambs and Seven – to bolster a fairly thin yet paradoxically complicated plot. Strong on visuals – especially some extreme gore – there are a number of effective and well-staged scenes in H but it relies too much on a brooding heroine who betrays no emotion, and an excitable hero who would quite frankly be a liability in any police investigation. In fact the pair of them overlook obvious lines of investigation and generally stumble upon clues through luck or by drawing obscure – but accurate – conclusions from the vaguest of clues. Seung-woo Cheu makes a curiously uncharismatic villain in a role clearly modelled on Hannibal Lecter, and spouts enigmatic mumbo-jumbo about blue skies and an abyss that probably made no sense before its meaning was mangled by the translators responsible for some truly excruciating subtitles. And for all the moody atmospherics from first-time writer/director Jong-hyuk Lee, the film is almost completely devoid of any tension or suspense.

There are many exciting and inventive films coming out of South Korea these days, but unfortunately H isn't one of them. Of course that doesn't mean we won't be seeing an American remake within a year or two

Way too far fetched

[phd_travel · 6/10 · 13 July 2020]

It seems pretty straightforward involving gruesome crime thriller. A serial killer in prison but copy cat killings are taking place. As the title suggests hypnosis is involved. The twist is too far fetched. As if hypnosis could be so effective. And what about the killing at the end? Crazy. Just left a nonsensical feel. The actors are good both the killer and the cop intense and believable.

One of the most awesome WTF endings ever

[MBunge · 5/10 · 3 September 2010]

This South Korean film is a fairly involving variation on The Silence of the Lambs, right up until it destroys itself with an ending that American cinema outgrew 50 years ago.

Detectives Kim and Kang (Jung-ah Yum and Jin-hee Ji) are called in to investigate a series of brutal murders. The vicious slayings of women appear to recreate the crimes of a serial killer name Shin Hyun (Seun-woo Cho) that was apprehended less than a year ago. Kim and Kang suspect that Shin has something to do with these new murders, but as the bodies pile up, the mystery becomes less how is Shin causing these deaths and more why. Complicating matters are the growing frustration of the emotional Kang and the fact that Kim's fiancée and fellow detective killed himself when he failed to stop Shin Hyun's original death spree. They eventually find their answers, though not through any brilliant investigative work, and then we get the really bad ending that more an act of self-immolation than resolution.

The most interesting thing about H is that the plot is very much like an American crime drama in most respects, but the emotional resonance and cultural touchstones of the story are completely different. There are a lot of moments in this film where I can tell that the story is trying to say something but I just don't get it. I don't have the Korean common knowledge or insight to appreciate exactly what's supposed to be meaningful in a certain scene or action or line of dialog. But instead of being a problem, that gives a very conventional story an alien and exotic feel. The mystery about Shin Hyun isn't that intriguing, but there's a mystery about the mystery which draws you into the film.

Unfortunately, it all leads up to an ending that will likely leave your mouth agape in amazement. Not the good kind, though, where you're left thinking "Wow! I never saw that coming!" This would be the bad kind of amazement, where you're left staring at the screen thinking "You have got to be bleeping kidding me!" I don't want to give it away because maybe other people would have a different reaction to it. However, it is not an exaggeration to say that any serious American film of the last half-century that tried to use this ending would have been laughed out of the theater.

This movie also deals with an issue that's the subject of quite a lot of political argument and moral controversy in America. But it leaves you unclear on how Korean culture views the issue. I n some aspects of the story it addresses the subject in a very non-judgmental way, but in others it seems to accept a very moralistic view of the issue. Again, I don't want to give it away, but you have strongly held views of this matter you'll probably have a strong reaction to the way H utilizes it in its story.

There's a lot to appreciate about this movie and I enjoyed it, but then there's that sublimely terrible ending. If I knew that you'd like the ending for some inexplicable reason, I'd absolutely recommend you watch H. But if you don't like the ending, as most intelligent people would not, you would likely view watching H as a waste of your time. So, if you see this movie on the shelf of your video store…flip a coin. Maybe you'll get lucky.

When you face the abyss, don't forget that you are facing yourself.

[lastliberal-853-253708 · 7/10 · 26 February 2011]

Korean thrillers are always fascinating, and this one more so than others I have seen.

A serial killer Shin Hyun (Seung-woo Cho ) confesses to murdering six women, is imprisoned, and the killings go on. They grab suspect after suspect, and the killings go on. Even Shin Hyun's psychiatrist was a suspect.

Naturally, we get mismatched partners, as often happens in police thriller. Detectives Kim Mi Yun (Jung-ah Yum) and Kang Tae Hyun (Jin-hee Ji) are as different as night and day, but they have to make it work.

If you are a fan of se7en or The Silence of the Lambs, then this is the film for you. There are good surprises, and it will baffle you until the very end.

The abyss

[Scarecrow-88 · 7/10 · 31 December 2006]

Copycat killings of a psychopath on death row named Shin Hyun(Seung-woo Cho, creepy in a chilling role)emerge as bodies of slashed pregnant women are found with their embryos forcefully extracted. Detective Kim(Jung-ah Yum)takes a special interest in this case because her fiancé committed suicide after accidentally letting Shin go before he murdered six women in a row. Interesting enough is Shin turned himself in. Wet-behind-the-ears Detective Kang(Jin-hee Ji, very good)becomes embroiled with the case desperately craving to catch those responsible for the murders, but his visits with Shin will alter his life forever. When interviewing Shin for answers as to whom might be responsible for copycatting his handiwork, he speaks in riddles never quite making himself clear. During the film, the detectives realize that Shin's therapist, Dr. Chu(Sun-kyung Kim), may have important information regarding Shin and if he is actually masterminding the killings behind bars.

If you are willing to accept certain unusual aspects that lead to killing innocent young women such as the possible angle dealing with hypnosis presented here, it might be much more compelling. The major tie in the film is the links to abortions carried out by several victims of Shin. Shin's past relationship with his mother is also a major source to the killings as well. Perhaps too slick for it's own good, this offering from Tartan Extreme is stylishly directed and quite well-acted. It could be seen as a bit contrived, but I found it fascinating from start to finish.

I wanted to like it.

[veganflimgeek · 4/10 · 11 April 2004]

H

I am a huge fan of the Korean serial killer drama Tell me something. So when the review on the box of this movie said `tell me something esque' I thought I would give it a shot. My history with Korean films are hit or miss. This is a miss. I will say this the plot twist is something you would never see in American film. Of course you would also never see it in reality either.

The film is paced so boring. Maybe the moody feeling just doesn't translate but I think the film was going for the SEVEN moody feeling. The camera work was somewhat interesting. The gore was there. The acting was so so. In the end I kinda had to force myself to finish it.

I would say if you have a choice get `tell me something' instead.

I wanted to like this movie..... but people actually fall asleep watching this movie

[nobull408 · 2/10 · 3 March 2006]

When I found this at the video store I thought this looked & sounded amazing. Oh what a disappointment. The film starts off, with a young girl's body being found in a garbage heap along with her newborn baby. From there, you are lead on a journey that looks promising but fails miserably. The Hannibal-Esq character is unconvincing & has no emotion. He spouts Nietzche/ German-Esq philosophy, meaning he speaks in hidden meanings. The film take forever to get "started" and by the time the all too expected plot twist happen, you don't care about any of the characters & just want the movie to end.

*SPOILER You find in the end, that the Hannibal-Esq character has used hypnosis to force people to copycat his killings. Even thought, it makes no sense. Yeah, don't bother.

'H' stands for horrible

[resvon · 3/10 · 1 February 2006]

I could go on about the slow pace, bad acting, moodiness, implausibility, contrived and generally ridiculous plot line but suffice to say that I wish it was me getting a bullet in my head at the end of the movie.

The movie was dreadful. I'd recommend almost any other Korean movie over this. The sheer number of times I found myself scoffing at the actions of the characters, the plot "twists" or the character "dialogue" were too numerous to count.

Any deeper reading about the supposed message of the movie only serves to obscure the fact that this was one horrible flick.

The only positive comment I can make (as someone on the message boards noted) was some of the very interesting artwork; I quite liked it.

A Short, but Positive Review

[delfette · 9/10 · 20 February 2007]

The brilliance of this film does not lie in its basic thriller plot nor its characters (The characters are not terribly interesting, but the film does not dwell long on their personal lives; The serial-killer plot, while over-used, is paced enough to keep interest.)

Truly, the one reason to watch this film is for the fact that everything--- every action, every line spoken--- leads up to the conclusion. This movie is so perfectly woven that there is not a hair, so to speak, out of place! How few movies are like this one!

Basically, if you want a good story, read a book. If you want a well done film, watch "H".

Bearable, but really boring

[IMDBer100575 · 5/10 · 26 October 2009]

I watched this movie on a whim. I had nothing better to do and there was nothing else to watch, so I decided to watch this Korean police-drama.

I'm not up to speed with foreign actors so I don't know any of the actors in this movie; however, I'll say that they did a fine job. Being that I don't speak Korean, I don't know for sure if they put in the proper stresses on words for anger, sadness, etc...but from what I can see in their motions and body language, the acting was quite superb.

Usually, if the acting is good, the atmosphere is good too. This movie definitely had good atmosphere. I could sense that it's a dreary world being a cop. The prison scenes were excellently set up. The death scenes were well created and looked pretty realistic. The music definitely complemented the scenes...great job on atmosphere!! The plot was simple: there's a killer out there, let's catch him. This genre is as old as Nancy Reagan's wrinkled up forehead and it's always fun to see how movie-makers try to make it exciting. In this case, it was the good ol' scalpel. The murder / death scenes were okay but nothing really original or memorable. The two main cops were standard cops, nothing outstanding or incredible. They hint that the lady cop lost her fiancé but they didn't develop that storyline too much. Just two cops trying to catch a killer. Blah...

This movie did not make me feel many emotions. I got bored and almost fell asleep at a few points. I give this movie a 5-star rating because it has good acting and good atmosphere. It wasn't a total waste of my time. It's just that it's a disappointingly boring movie.

If there's nothing else on TV and this is the only movie left at your local Red Box, check it out. It's not too bad but you'd probably end up dozing off. Perhaps, go check out another Red Box to see if it has more selection?

Twists for Twistiness' Sake

[wavetwister04 · 5/10 · 9 June 2008]

On the whole, I enjoyed this film. It starts out with a series of nice, gruesome post-mortem and death scenes, and carries the creepy ambiance most of the way through. Unfortunately, as the twists begin to unravel, so does the quality of the film.

For the sake of those who haven't seen the film, I won't spoil any of the myriad twists, but I will say that you better pay very close attention to this film or you'll miss some illuminating plot points, as I did.

Unfortunately, this has to do with the number of suspects/characters in the film, and the difficulty an American viewer will have keeping all the names separate. Characters are often referred to by name without being on screen (as is the nature of a police thriller), and I found myself, more often than not, seeing said names and thinking, "wait, which one is he?" Still, I doubt I'd have had the problem if the characters in question were more than just your standard serial murder movie cutouts. I watch a lot of Korean cinema, and this is the first time I've ever had this problem.

This speaks to the general quality of the film which, while engaging, is certainly not going to stun most viewers with its artistry. The acting is passable (at best), the writing is sparse and convoluted (though not devoid of entertainment value, to be sure), and the editing is flat-out terrible. That's not something that usually stands out for me in a film, but in this case it was a flagrant issue with the film. You'll find yourselves following the characters to a raid on a suspect's house only to forget why this guy was a suspect in the first place, and random cuts to side characters doing sweet F.A. don't do much to ease the difficulty of following the bouncing (murder)ball.

There are two kinds of "end of the movie twists" out there. There's the "Oh my god, I didn't see that coming, but I should've" twists, and then there are the "uh...what?" twists. Sadly, the final revelation of this film is one of the latter. I've seen debate on the message boards regarding the supposed "final, final twist," but I have to say that it's a pretty loose interpretation to call the final moments of the film yet another twist. It's more of a "book-end," and effective as such.

Where this film fails most is in the expectations it builds. It's an excellent concept for a serial murderer flick, and they spend a lot of time building an interesting emotional landscape that's inevitably forsaken for gimmicky plot devices that, while not wholly unbelievable (though highly improbable), are pretty much just plain silly. Had they stuck with the emotional and psychological themes and forsaken the twists, this would be an excellent film.

As it stands, it is not excellent, but it's certainly not terrible. If you're a fan of Asian thrillers, you could do worse than this one.

-J

Unmemorable, derivative, boring

[Vartiainen · 4/10 · 4 January 2018]

A bit less than a year ago a serial killer turned himself in. He had targeted mostly pregnant women and the police had no clue as to his whereabouts. But now he's in custody. The only problem being that a copycat killer has emerged. So detectives Kim (Yum Jung-ah) and Kang (Ji Jin-hee) are put on the case.

Korean films don't seem to believe in happy mediums. Either they're full-out acid trips of surrealism, or they're the greyest, most depressing dramafests you've ever seen. H falls into latter category. Granted, the actual killings are horrifically brutal and graphic in a way you just don't see in mainstream Western cinema, but aside from that the film is almost banal.

When it's not blatantly ripping off The Silence of the Lambs, that is. I mean, you have psychotic madball killer in prison, who's interrogated to help catch another criminal, while at the same time he's analyzing his interrogators. Subtle this movie is not. Throw in some Se7en as well for the events of the final third and you have yourself an unoriginal movie.

Though, it is shot nicely, the characters can be interesting and the gore is sure to be pleasing to those that gravitate towards that kind of thing. Not a complete loss, but not worth recommending either.

H is for Ho-hum.

[BA_Harrison · 5/10 · 6 December 2014]

Ten months after the imprisonment of serial killer Shin Hyun (Seung-woo Cho), who gave himself up to the police after brutally murdering six women, a copycat murderer begins to replicate his grisly crimes. Detectives Kim Mi Yun (Jung-ah Yum) and Kang Tae Hyun (Jin-hee Ji) are assigned to the case, and after interviewing Shin Hyun, begin to suspect that he has somehow masterminded the killings from behind bars.

Directed by Jong-hyuk Lee, Korean thriller H is, rather ironically, something of a copycat itself, being a little bit Silence of the Lambs and a little bit Seven, but nowhere near as good as either film: the plot is a little too convoluted and confusing at times, the pacing way too slow, and the inevitable twist nowhere near clever (or believable) enough. In an effort to make his film as stylish as those he is trying to emulate, director Lee throws in endless rain-drenched scenes and moody shots of his cops smoking, but even though his film looks good throughout, it fails thanks to its leaden storytelling, a lack of tension and originality, and an ending that beggars belief.

A suspenseful thriller with hints of "Seven" and "Silence of the Lambs"

[Pedro-37 · 8/10 · 20 April 2003]

"H" tells the story of two cops who encounter a series of gruesome murders. The victims were pregnant women - which leads the duo to a young killer who awaits his death penalty. Is another killer copying his crimes? Did the guy order someone to to it?

There are many clues that connect the film to "Silence of the Lambs" (imprisoned killer, cops hoping for help from the killer), but as the story progresses, there are more connections to "Seven": It's gritty, it has a serial killer who has some John-Doe-mannerisms. The female cop is the Morgan Freeman character, the impulsive male cop is Brad Pitt. Even the ending (no spoiler!) fits this line of thinking because of what happens to the "Pitt"-cop. This is vague enough so it won't spoil anything for you.

Because this ending is not what you might expect. The final reel of the film leaves the path of its American predecessors and follows an Asian film I'll mention below. Before that, I'll conclude that "H" is a suspenseful, gory, gritty, well acted thriller which is strongly directed by newcomer Jong-hyuk Lee. It steals a lot from other movies but better well stolen than badly invented.

My rating: 8/10

And now some spoiler: The film in the end resembles the Japanese thriller "The Hypnosist" - this also explains that the "H" of the title doesn't stand for heroin or something else you might have expected, but for hypnosis. The end credits even see the "H" move to the left and reveal the "full title". It's a nice twist for a nice film. But again: This ain't new, "The Hypnosist" or Kiyoshi Kurosawas "Cure" come to mind.

"Echoes of the Abyss": utterly reprehensible, offensive storyline, hunt for serial killer, been seen all before, waste of time.

[Bofsensai · 2/10 · 28 May 2021]

An reprehensible and - if you are honest, utterly disgusting, offensive - storyline* to drive an 'ohh, I didn't see that coming' closing twist of, if not straight plagiarism, then, a variation, version of 'The Silence of the Lambs' ilk: at minimum, done / seen it all before.

However, in the usual what can I get out of this otherwise waste of time, could be in contrast to how women are considered and treated to drive this thoroughly nasty, offensive plotline* to its main character dynamics, you do then get an against (Korean especially) type, moody, laconic, strong - (she clocks the hero full square on the jaw at one stage!) - female partner cop (Jung-ah Yum at detective (no less) 'Kim Mi Yun'); Plus you can have 'fun' wondering at what passes for surely completely absurd, preposterous 'policing investigation procedures' in Korea! (e.g. In suspect in pursuit car chases and, especially so, how to interview so notoriously nasty / dangerous, he's up for execution, incarcerated convicted murderer interviews!)

In what is otherwise (have I said, got across?) an appallingly sickening serial killer reasoning*, the sheer revoltingness of it all was barely marginally leavened by it amused me that in at least two incidences, the 'investigating' hero cop (Jim-he Ji as partner, but new to the job, cop, Kang-Tae Hyun) surveying the crime scenes before him, in one case looks all about him for a good few seconds before noticing TWO women's bodies - one directly in front of him on a table! And then, at which he then goes on to most professionally cop-like manically destroy the crime scene evidence! - and in another suspect location swoop, at first completely overlooks a suspicious red pool on the floor so much that he steps in it!

Oh, and - (perhaps) - the - ONLY - 'best' bit is the 'gory' / madman artworks shown at the latterly discovered baddy's lair (pity can't locate specific 'artist' credit for that alone - but, possibly a Chi-woo Lee as 'set designer'?) - although even there i.e., yup, not only variation on afore-referenced (inspiration?) film's butterfly collection, but in any case, many other film plots nowadays, too.

Basically, this is a useless film, trumped up as redeemable by a worthwhile 'oh I didn't see that coming' shocking surprise ending, predicated on one the worst misogynistic premises* it's ever been my misfortune to have to sit through and pretend somewhere in this, somehow, some way, is even remotely considered 'entertainment'.

Abysmal.

* so, quite frankly, no kudos, but rather utter shame on scriptwriter Jong-hyeok Lee!

On which; my titling comes from a quote given by the baddy: which to me, far more represents what this film suggests ...

Terrible

[terramax02 · 3/10 · 26 April 2006]

I love Korean and other Asian films, and I watch a lot of them. But this is one that I wish I hadn't bothered with.

As per usual, the visuals in this film are fantastic, and the editing tries to be as distorting and uncomfortable as that in 'A Tale of Two Sisters' and other successful types. However, the failure of this film remains in some of the most overreacted acting and clichéd story plot elements that quite shamelessly steals from thrillers such as 'Silence of the Lambs'.

The male lead is so desperate for an Oscar he shakes in anger or fear in almost every scene that involves conversations - most particularly the interrogation scenes involving an older case killer (Hannible Lector wannabe) who is more homosexual-coming-onto-a-straight-man scary instead of him being a psychological mind F-ing threat.

The female lead is also too detached most of the time and the film gives very little back story to sympathise for and nothing lovable about her to convince us to root for her.

Further more, the music and sound effects make some of the most dire and unoriginal attempts to make things more sinister. Whenever the filmmakers want you shaken or disturbed they'll add in those sharp violin or metal scrape sounds to bring out emotion to the audience, but only making scenes seem more cheesy, camp or like a parody of the genre as well as being placed so predictably I could hear them in my head seconds before they happened.

There are television murder mystery thrillers with more maturity and involvement in this. I seriously suggest looking somewhere else.

H is for Half baked

[ejwells-2 · 5/10 · 9 January 2007]

The fact of the matter is this. Just because a film is released under the Tartan Asia Extreme banner, that's no guarantee that it'll be "extreme," or even particularly good. Mind you, I've seen far worse films than H. It's better than America's similarly themed "Copycat," for instance. Then again, what isn't? H is a decent nod to superior serial killer films (Manhunter/Red Dragon, Se7en, to name a couple), but is essentially just a popcorn film. I usually take a chance on anything that flies the Tartan Asia Extreme banner, and I don't regret seeing this film, it's just that it needs to be said that not all films made in Asia are masterpieces.

H is a psychological masterpiece from Asia.

[racecaraddict2400 · 9/10 · 19 April 2005]

H by Jong-hyuk Lee is an amazing thriller with a plot twist at the end that will make you cringe. The film is definitely riffing off the American psychological cop drama, namely Seven and the Silence of the Lambs. That's what makes this film great. It takes those films, and takes it a step further. First, the film is shot beautifully. Second, the story follows three detectives who are tracking the crimes of a murderer who kills pregnant women and slashes their stomachs. Some of the murder scenes are totally gory. The three detectives are rather atypical personalities but it works well for the story….

The woman is short haired and is quiet, calm, and always smoking cigarettes. She's tough like Clarice Starling in Silence of the Lambs. She is the one who counters the main character who is more like Brad Pitt in Seven. He's the fast talking guy, he's often late to the crime scenes because he's just not on top of things. And the third guy is the fat klutz who always trips over things and he's the comic relief.

As the film progresses, we discover that the murders of the pregnant women are done in the exact same way as murders done years ago by a murderer who was put in jail by these same detectives six months ago. The fast talking cop becomes the Clarice Starling as he goes to interview this Hannibal Lechter type character. Through these interviews, he tries to track down the new killer who is copying the murderer's past deeds.

Ultimately the twist ending is really intense, and you probably wont guess what it is….it's a lot cooler than putting the cop's wife's head in a box like in Seven. This movie is really creepy and the performances are great. It's definitely worth watching.

A rich film describing a core male dilemma

[svenbremberg · 8/10 · 23 October 2004]

The frame is a thriller with victims and chasers. Yet, the content is richer. The description of females vs. males is especially intriguing. The main female characters Detective Kim Mi Yun and Dr. Chu Kyung-sook are both more intelligent than their male counterparts and they both stay cool while the males are either easily aroused or do not understand. It is true that all the victims are females. Yet, the killings are connected with the reproductive capacity of the females that the males do not possess and can not control. A main motive is the pregnant women's ability to kill their (male) foetuses. The most influential male character, Shin Hyun, murderer now in a prison, has a non sexual foetus like aura. The killings are carried out as revenge on the women for this ability, obviously and totally in vain. Thus, the film describes a core dilemma true for all males. However, I am not aware of a comparable open description in European literature of film. Yet, I have seen it in Japanese films (e.g. Shindo's Onibaba). – A most interesting film.

An excellent and haunting movie

[kluseba · 9/10 · 4 March 2011]

This movie is another very atmospheric film noir from Asia that surprises with a weird main idea and a haunting conclusion while the acting is very emotional and gives a really authentic touch to the characters. Especially the main villain is completely unpredictable and scary by looking so innocent and acting very intelligent.

The movie is quite heavy and surely not a pleasure to watch for everyone. The opening scene shows us a dead young woman with her unborn baby brutally ripped out of her body at a garbage incinerator. This is only the beginning of a series of six murders that seem to copy a crazy killer that committed exactly the same crimes a few years ago and went to the police station with his final victim in a big bag to get arrested. Now, a female police officer that has lost her husband that committed suicide as he didn't get over the brutality of the first killer and a young and very emotional police officer with a weird wife suffering amnesia have to solve the case and get drowned into a haunting downward spiral of mystery, brutality and insanity that lead toward a surprising ending.

Once again, the Asian cinema creates a unique dark psycho thriller that you won't easily forget and that convinces with an interesting intrigue, very brutal murderers and a brilliant villain. It seems that the Japanese and Koreans never do a bad movie in the whole genre and that we can only distinguish between good and intriguing movies (seven points), very good movies (eight points), excellent and haunting movies (nine points) and masterpieces for the eternity (ten points). This movie is an excellent and haunting trip and comes close to perfection with the only negative point that the main idea is nothing really innovating and new if you know the extreme Asian cinema as much as I do.

Highly original thriller

[Bataeu · 10/10 · 6 March 2006]

I bought this film expecting an Asian rip off of Se7en, but was confronted with something better- a disturbing film with a gruesome plot. Someone is killing single mothers- pre birth.

In the opening scene of the movie you've got a dead woman found in a trash heap with her baby literally torn out of her. If that's not gruesome enough, I don't know what is.

The film has one of the best twists in a long time, and totally puts a spin on the serial killer genre of films.

The most disturbing scene would have to be the scene on the bus. I won't go into detail, you'll have to watch it for yourself.

Overall I give the film 10/10. Great story, brilliant twist, very disturbing.

A Grade 'A' movie in any language

[selket73 · 9/10 · 13 April 2008]

This movie rated high for me because it has all of the great detective movie qualities. An evil killer played by Cho Seung-woo and two detectives (Yeom Jeong-a and Jee Jin-hee) who are on the tail of his copycat killer. Much like the American styled Lethal Weapon, there is comedy thrown in with this very serious story. Jee Jin-hee's character is similar to the character played by Mel Gibson in that he is emotionally charged, sarcastically humorous with his tough guy antics, and ruggedly good looking. Yeom Jeong-a plays the very serious and emotionally guarded female detective trying to do her job in a male dominated career and with the loss of her lover still tearing at her heart strings. As these two detectives get closer to the copycat they also find a friendship growing between them. Both have tragic tales to tell and when they do it becomes apparent that these killings are close to home for both of them. Cho-Seung-woo plays evil in a very calm creepiness. He is much like the American Hannibal Lecter. As much as you want to dislike his character for his crimes, it's easy to become entranced by his charisma. Another character that seems to be the off beat detective that everyone enjoys to have around is Detective Park (Ji-ru Sung). He plays the true comedian in the bunch. He is the one most likely to fall down on the job, and boy, does he ever! Detective Park is the only one who seems to understand both Detective Kang and Detective Kim. This movie not only has realistic gory scenes, but a great musical score that sets the tone for this intriguing thriller. Being a fan of horror and mystery, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie so much I had to buy it!

6.6

[Mainhoonfilmpremi · 7 September 2022]

It was a decent movie. It handled the subject matter well and it was quite gritty. The biggest drawback for me is that i didn't connect emotionally with any characters and wasn't fully invested in the story. So the movie became a little dull for me at times.

Starring yum jung ah, Ji Jin-hee and Cho Seung-woo. Directed by Lee Jong-hyeok. This is a korean movie. The movie was released in 2002. It was remade in telugu as amaravathi.

How do you write an review of 600 characters unless you are a paid critic. It is impossible for an average movie fan. Remove this dumb 600 character limit for reviews on imdb. Imdb do something!