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The Wailing (2016) – English Review

People are turning crazy in a small village, and a cop tries to find out the reason why they turn into crazy murderers.

This was the third movie that Na Hong-jin made. I especially love his first movie, The Chaser. I also like The Yellow Sea, but I have a feeling that The Wailing and The Yellow Sea will switch places after a rewatch of The Yellow Sea.

I remember watching The Wailing for the first time. When the movie was finished, I have to say I felt disappointed. 

My problem with the The Wailing was that I couldn’t connect with the story and the characters. It didn’t captivate me. But I felt I had to give the movie a second chance to see if it clicked this time.

In the beginning, I thought to myself that my first impression was correct. The first 50 minutes feels like a different movie than the rest of the movie. At the start, the movie tries to be charming, and it offers a lot of dark comedy. I don’t understand why the director did that. The scenes that should build up the atmosphere don’t do that when there’s so much comedy here. I know a lot about South Korean movies, so I felt like I was watching a sort of Memories of Murder clone. 

And after a second viewing, I wish the movie could have had the same atmosphere as in the last hour. There are some impressive scenes in the first hour, and they would have worked so much better if the movie didn’t have elements of humor.

But then something changes, and the movie never looks back. It gets darker and darker. When the end credits appear on the screen, there’s no light left in the world.

I’m not a religious person, so there are things here that I didn’t understand. But here comes the most important thing about The Wailing as a movie experience. The mystery is in the driver’s seat. You don’t know what’s going on. You can never read what the movie will do next. It doesn’t take your hand and hold it. It pushes you away, and when it pulls you in, it pushes you to the left or right. It plays with you, and that makes it an interesting movie experience.

The acting is great. The one actor I had problems with plays the protagonist. His name is Kwak Do-won. He isn’t good in my eyes when he tries to be clumsy and charming. But he changes completely when his daughter gets the so-called sickness. He then turns into a completely different character. But he also changes into a despicable human being who kills a dog. I hope you will burn in hell, man!

The one who steals the show is the Japanese actor, Jun Kunimura. He’s always been great in every movie I’ve seen him in. He shines in this role. His acting is perfect in The Wailing. He confuses you with his acting. And that’s what a great actor should do in a type of movie like this.

The cinematography is world-class, and the score is also great. So you get what you expect in that department.

Is the movie scary? No, it’s not a scary movie. It turns into a dark movie, but it’s first and foremost a mystery movie that visits around three subgenres in the horror genre. 

It’s the story and the way the director executes the storytelling that deserves the gold medal. It’s brilliant! So I don’t understand why I didn’t connect with the storytelling the first time I watched it. 

Early in the movie, there is a scene that I felt was taken from the Kiyoshi Kurosawa movie, Pulse aka Kairo (2001). The scene I’m talking about takes place in the woods when a man spots the Japanese man. Suddenly, the Japanese man is gone. But is he really gone? This scene is just like the forbidden room scene in Kairo aka Pulse. Who doesn’t love that scene?

The Wailing is one of the most interesting horror movies that has been made in my eyes. Is it an infection movie? Is it a zombie movie? Is it a possession movie? Watch it, and you will get the answer. Just enjoy the experience.

Rating: 9/10

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