A small village is the setting for this terrifying horror movie from South Korea. The running time of this podcast review is longer than usual at about 22 minutes.

At well over two hours, it plays with its viewers and weaves clues to a mystery revealed brilliantly in the final scenes.

Not Rated | 2h 36min | Fantasy, Horror, Mystery | 3 June 2016 (USA)
A stranger arrives in a little village and soon after a mysterious sickness starts spreading. A policeman is drawn into the incident and is forced to solve the mystery in order to save his daughter.
Director: Hong-jin Na
Writer: Hong-jin Na
Stars: Jun Kunimura, Jung-min Hwang, Do-won Kwak
Another Korean film from the same year, Train to Busan, offered us a father/daughter relationship that touched our hearts. Both are slightly different in their journeys and plot but it is a powerful force of fatherly love that bonds these men together with their little sweethearts. The evil force that threatens the policeman's daughter here is shifty and hard to understand. It takes the father on a quest of love that promises to harm his physical body and perhaps his soul. Will his daughter be saved? That's the question that keeps coming up.

The policeman is the star of this film. There are a few scenes with his that are definitely Oscar worthy. In a horror film you sometimes need a voice of reason to identify with. But what about when that voice you're following starts losing touch with reality? That can be a scary thing.

Then, there is this evil force. Who is it? A ghost as the shaman says? This film is not just horror but also a mystery to be guessed at which, if you like mysteries as I do, makes it a lot of fun. This mysterious, sleepy horror mystery tale should not be spoiled. If you have not seen it and these themes interest you, I encourage you to watch it. If you have seen it, I think you'll agree it is one of the more powerful horrors of its year (2016). I hope to connect further through a podcast outlining my thoughts on this film. Stay tuned.

10/10