Diving into Korean Cinema
by hgaardvik | created - 6 months ago | updated - 2 weeks ago | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. New World (2013)
Not Rated | 135 min | Action, Crime, Drama
An undercover cop finds it difficult to play both a cop and a goon.
Director: Park Hoon-jung | Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Choi Min-sik, Hwang Jung-min, Park Sung-woong
Votes: 26,380 | Gross: $0.46M
2. The Outlaws (2017)
Not Rated | 121 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
Based on real events, this crime action film depicts a Seoul detective's attempts to keep peace while two Chinese-Korean gangs battle over turf in the neighborhood.
Director: Yunsung Kang | Stars: Ma Dong-seok, Yoon Kyesang, Jo Jae-yoon, Choi Gwi-hwa
Votes: 12,656
3. The Good the Bad the Weird (2008)
R | 130 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
The story of two outlaws and a bounty hunter in 1940s Manchuria and their rivalry to possess a treasure map while being pursued by the Japanese army and Chinese bandits.
Director: Jee-woon Kim | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Lee Byung-hun, Jung Woo-sung, Yun Je-mun
Votes: 37,944 | Gross: $0.13M
4. The Roundup (2022)
106 min | Action, Adventure, Crime
Followed by Ma Seok-do, who heads to a foreign country to extradite a suspect. However, he discovers additional murder cases and learns about a killer who had committed crimes against tourists for many years.
Director: Lee Sang-yong | Stars: Ma Dong-seok, Son Suk-ku, Choi Gwi-hwa, Park Ji-hwan
Votes: 10,872 | Gross: $0.81M
5. The Gangster, the Cop, the Devil (2019)
Not Rated | 109 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A crime boss teams up with a cop to track down a serial killer.
Director: Lee Won-tae | Stars: Ma Dong-seok, Jeon Bae-soo, Kim Mu-yeol, Kim Sungkyu
Votes: 22,730 | Gross: $0.22M
6. Midnight Runners (2017)
Not Rated | 109 min | Action, Comedy, Crime
Two friends who are students at Korean National Police University, find themselves in an endless race against time after they witness a kidnapping and decide to use their knowledge.
Director: Joo-hwan Kim | Stars: Park Seo-joon, Kang Ha-neul, Park Ha-seon, Sung Dong-il
Votes: 9,624
7. The Yellow Sea (2010)
R | 136 min | Action, Crime, Drama
When the attempt to kill a professor goes wrong, a series of violent events are triggered which force a taxi driver to run for his life.
Director: Na Hong-jin | Stars: Lee Yoo-mi, Ha Jung-woo, Lee Hee-joon, Kim Yoon-seok
Votes: 22,962
8. The Wailing (2016)
TV-MA | 156 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
Soon after a stranger arrives in a little village, a mysterious sickness starts spreading. A policeman, drawn into the incident, is forced to solve the mystery in order to save his daughter.
Director: Na Hong-jin | Stars: Jun Kunimura, Hwang Jung-min, Kwak Do-won, Chun Woo-hee
Votes: 82,101
9. Veteran (2015)
Not Rated | 123 min | Action, Comedy, Crime
A honest cop seeks justice for a common man against all odds. A rich boy seeks revenge on the cop.
Director: Ryu Seung-wan | Stars: Hwang Jung-min, Yoo Ah-in, Yoo Hae-jin, Oh Dal-su
Votes: 7,773 | Gross: $1.20M
10. The Handmaiden (2016)
Not Rated | 145 min | Drama, Romance, Thriller
A woman is hired as a handmaiden to a Japanese heiress, but secretly she is involved in a plot to defraud her.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Kim Min-hee, Ha Jung-woo, Cho Jin-woong, Moon So-ri
Votes: 172,927 | Gross: $2.01M
11. Oldboy (2003)
R | 120 min | Action, Drama, Mystery
After being kidnapped and imprisoned for fifteen years, Oh Dae-Su is released, only to find that he must track down his captor in five days.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Choi Min-sik, Yoo Ji-tae, Kang Hye-jeong, Kim Byeong-Ok
Votes: 636,320 | Gross: $0.71M
12. The Host (2006)
R | 120 min | Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi
A monster emerges from Seoul's Han River and begins attacking people. One victim's loving family does what it can to rescue her from its clutches.
Director: Bong Joon Ho | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Byun Hee-Bong, Park Hae-il, Bae Doona
Votes: 132,814 | Gross: $2.20M
13. Parasite (2019)
R | 132 min | Drama, Thriller
Greed and class discrimination threaten the newly-formed symbiotic relationship between the wealthy Park family and the destitute Kim clan.
Director: Bong Joon Ho | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Lee Sun-kyun, Cho Yeo-jeong, Choi Woo-sik
Votes: 960,668 | Gross: $53.37M
14. Memories of Murder (2003)
Not Rated | 132 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
In a small Korean province in 1986, two detectives struggle with the case of multiple young women being found raped and murdered by an unknown culprit.
Director: Bong Joon Ho | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Kim Sang-kyung, Kim Roe-ha, Song Jae-ho
Votes: 216,680 | Gross: $0.01M
15. I Saw the Devil (2010)
Not Rated | 144 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A secret agent exacts revenge on a serial killer through a series of captures and releases.
Director: Jee-woon Kim | Stars: Lee Byung-hun, Choi Min-sik, Jeon Gook-hwan, Chun Ho-jin
Votes: 146,337 | Gross: $0.13M
16. Train to Busan (2016)
Not Rated | 118 min | Action, Horror, Thriller
While a zombie virus breaks out in South Korea, passengers struggle to survive on the train from Seoul to Busan.
Director: Yeon Sang-ho | Stars: Gong Yoo, Jung Yu-mi, Ma Dong-seok, Kim Su-an
Votes: 259,022 | Gross: $2.13M
17. Extreme Job (2019)
Not Rated | 111 min | Action, Comedy, Crime
A police undercover operation takes a delicious, unexpected turn.
Director: Lee Byeong-heon | Stars: Ryu Seung-ryong, Lee Hanee, Jin Seon-kyu, Lee Dong-hwi
Votes: 12,988 | Gross: $1.57M
18. Joint Security Area (2000)
Not Rated | 110 min | Action, Drama, Thriller
After a shooting incident at the North-South Korean border DMZ leaves two North Korean soldiers dead, a neutral Swiss and Swedish team investigates what actually happened.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Lee Yeong-ae, Lee Byung-hun, Song Kang-ho, Kim Tae-woo
Votes: 34,228
19. Lady Vengeance (2005)
R | 115 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
After being wrongfully imprisoned for thirteen years and having her child taken away from her, a woman seeks revenge through increasingly brutal means.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Nam-mi Kang, Jeong-nam Choi, Hye-Sook Go, Bok-hwa Baek
Votes: 86,149 | Gross: $0.21M
20. Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance (2002)
R | 129 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A recently laid off factory worker kidnaps his former boss' friend's daughter, hoping to use the ransom money to pay for his sister's kidney transplant.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Shin Ha-kyun, Bae Doona, Lim Ji-eun
Votes: 75,173 | Gross: $0.05M
21. A Taxi Driver (2017)
Not Rated | 137 min | Action, Drama, History
A widowed father and taxi driver who drives a German reporter from Seoul to Gwangju to cover the 1980 uprising, soon finds himself regretting his decision after being caught in the violence around him.
Director: Hun Jang | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Thomas Kretschmann, Yoo Hae-jin, Ryu Jun-Yeol
Votes: 31,288 | Gross: $1.53M
22. Decision to Leave (2022)
Not Rated | 139 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A detective investigating a man's death in the mountains meets the dead man's mysterious wife in the course of his dogged sleuthing.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Park Hae-il, Tang Wei, Lee Jung-hyun, Go Kyung-pyo
Votes: 55,309
23. Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War (2004)
R | 140 min | Action, Drama, War
When two brothers are forced to fight in the Korean War, the elder decides to take the riskiest missions if it will help shield the younger from battle.
Director: Kang Je-kyu | Stars: Jang Dong-Gun, Won Bin, Eun-ju Lee, Kong Hyeong-jin
Votes: 41,081 | Gross: $1.11M
24. A Tale of Two Sisters (2003)
R | 114 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
After being institutionalized in a mental hospital, Su-mi reunites with her sister, Su-yeon, and they return to live at their country home. But strange events plague the house, leading to surprising revelations and a shocking conclusion.
Director: Jee-woon Kim | Stars: Lim Soo-jung, Yum Jung-ah, Kim Kap-su, Moon Geun-young
Votes: 68,301
25. Burning (2018)
Not Rated | 148 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Jong-su bumps into a girl who used to live in the same neighborhood, who asks him to look after her cat while she's on a trip to Africa. When back, she introduces Ben, a mysterious guy she met there, who confesses his secret hobby.
Director: Lee Chang-dong | Stars: Yoo Ah-in, Steven Yeun, Jeon Jong-seo, Kim Soo-Kyung
Votes: 76,405 | Gross: $0.72M
26. The Man from Nowhere (2010)
R | 119 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A quiet pawnshop keeper with a violent past takes on a drug-and-organ trafficking ring in hope of saving the child who is his only friend.
Director: Lee Jeong-beom | Stars: Won Bin, Kim Sae-ron, Kim Tae-hoon, Kim Hee-won
Votes: 74,886 | Gross: $0.01M
27. Memoir of a Murderer (2017)
Not Rated | 118 min | Action, Crime, Mystery
A former serial killer with Alzheimer's fights to protect his daughter from her psychotic boyfriend.
Director: Won Shin-yeon | Stars: Sol Kyung-gu, Kim Nam-gil, Kim Seol-hyun, Oh Dal-su
Votes: 12,661 | Gross: $0.09M
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