Customer Reviews

I Saw the Devil [Blu-ray] [Import]

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I first saw 'I Saw the Devil' at TIFF '10 and was blown away. As a huge fan of 'A Bittersweet Life', Kim Jee-Woon's previous collaboration with Lee Byung-Hun, and actor Min-sik Choi, I was very excited to see this film. We were warned prior to the screening that this film is brutal and that was no lie. There is some graphic violence in this film. Totally cringe-worthy things are depicted. But unlike modern horror films and torture-porn, all of the violence serves a purpose. It's a revenge tale, an action film, and the story of losing one's self in vengeance. The acting is stupendous, featuring stand-out performances from the two leads. I loved this film so much. I laughed, I squirmed, I lost myself in the story. Definitely pick this Blu-ray up. It may be lacking the wealth of bonus features we're used to but the quality of the filmmaking makes up for it.

When i first started reading some of the review's for this movie i did'nt know what to make of the movie so i went ahead and bought it even though i don't let most review's influence me in making my puchase so when i finished watching it i was blown away by the sher terror of this guy that the killer is not gonna get away with killing his girlfriend the way he beat the crap out of him then lets him go then beat him again but in the mean time he the killer is Reeking havoc on other people. but this is a really good reveng movie hands down..I Saw the Devil [Blu-ray]

definatly at the top of my favorite films of 2011 list thus far. Right up there with hobo with a shotgun. This film however takes a more mature, intelligent aproach to making a gory film. Dont take that wrong however there is much more to this movie than blood and guts. Its basically a cat and mouse game between a sadistic serial killer and the widow of one of his victims. The cat however isnt the serial killer. You get to cheer for the good guy the whole time and although his mistakes are apparent you dont really think that the consequences would end up being so ruthless. Lots of emotions are pulled and its a thrill ride the whole way through. This is definatly the work of an experienced director and i'd recommend this movie to almost anyone. Also watch for an awesomely awkward scene between the serial killer and a cannibal.

North American fans of Korean cinema will no doubt compare this movie to Oldboy for a couple reasons: #1, it's a film about revenge, made in Korea (their directors seem to know what they're doing when it comes to this sub-genre of thrillers) and #2, it stars Min-sik Choi, who was the main protagonist (or antagonist depending on how you want to look at it) of Oldboy. However, that's where the similarities end.

Minor Spoilers ahead: "I Saw the Devil" is about a man (Kim Soo-hyeon) whose fiance is murdered by a serial killer. The next 2 hours are spent with him hunting and attacking (over and over, in very creative and gruesome ways) the man who killed his fiance, Kyung-chul (played by the masterful Min-sik Choi). There's no real twist (like the big one in Oldboy that causes everyone I've ever known that watched it to say "holy ****!"), you're not trying to figure anything out, this is the plot and it's laid out for you very early on, though there are times throughout the film where you wonder who will wind up winning out in end as each man gains and loses the upper hand several times (and there is a clear winner).

Critics of the film feel that the movie is excessive in the violence, and they feel the choices made by the characters are quite questionable (especially at the end), but essentially it delivers a similar message that other Korean revenge films have: Revenge isn't satisfying. If you're a fan of blood and creative violence in cinema however, you'll like this, but it will make even the most hardened of gore fans squirm (the Achilles tendon scene, the knife in the hand scene, the cab fight, etc). This is Korean cinema at its least subtle... violent with a touch of very dark humour, just the way I like it.

I was very disappointed in this product. I ordered and returned 2 copies of it because it would freeze in the first minute. I tried it on multiple bluray players. I really wanted it to work. Great movie. Unfortunately, bad bluray.