The Restless (2006) User Reviews

A Must see for Action/Fantasy Fans

[cermwolf · 7/10 · 5 June 2009]

I have to say that I steer clear of most Korean movie. Thay are 97% of the time drawn out, dull and very boring. That being said, they have a few simply great movies. OldBoy, Musa and Tae Guk Gi. The Restless is advertised as a horror movie and this I do not know why? Hoewever as an action/fantasy/romantic movie it really works. The story is unique, the surprises are many and there are good characters.The character development is not of a Johhny To film and it could use another 20-30 minutes of backstory and character development, it works. Korean movies are a long way from being able to touch HK films, that being said, this is a very nice watch and if you catch it as I did without knowing anything going in, very good. Yes the leading actress is dull, yes the CGI could be better in places but it works and gets a 7-7.7 If you like this also try -Shinobi -Azumi -The Promise -Storm Riders -Zu Warriors

Overall a good watch and worth a tub or popcorn!

The restless

[helmutty · 6/10 · 30 May 2007]

Another fantasy Korean movie with martial arts, now in future, Koreans are making more fantasy and martial arts movies. Now, there are still more romance movies.

Now coming to this movie, I did not know this is a fantasy movie, I thought it is romance. The story is like a romance story with fantasy which is great. Yi Gwak found himself in a place that the dead suppose to go when they die. It is strange as he don't remember dieing until when he asks someone, he checks and discovers that he is not dead yet. It is a puzzle. He then meets a beautiful girl who he falls in love with. From there, battles are slotted in and beautifully forms a romantic fantasy movie. The battles include sword fights which are cool enough with the special effects. There too is enough romance to keep up and action.

Overall, it may be a suitable romantic fantasy movie. It is enough to keep you glued to the screen. The sword fights and special effects are added to make the story going, or not I would feel bored watching romance.

Mediocre fantasy action that tries to copy other bigger movies but fails

[darcy99 · 6/10 · 20 May 2007]

I've been watching a lot of Korean movies as of late, since I find that in general their quality is much higher compared to their Chinese (esp. HK) counterparts.

I was quite disappointed after watching The Restless, a Korean action/fantasy/love story. Story involves a battle between good and evil, characters residing in heaven and hell and somewhere in between. There's also a love story as well which involves multiple characters.

Although the story premise was unique, the execution and acting left much to be desired. Particular poor was that of the main female role of So-hwa, with her intermittent cross-eyed facial expression that really distracted from her portrayal of a higher being. On the other hand, the male main character was quite pleasant on the eye and aside from some annoying hair style was actually quite goo.

The action/fighting sequences were very ordinary (compared to HERO and Matrix, which are my fantasy movie action standards), and the CGI backgrounds used were quite obvious (aside from one initial shot of the midheaven temples). Particularly cheesy was the fight in the woods involving various piercing chains that shot out of the antagonist's body... certainly lacking the graceful flight through the woods that one imagined in Crouching Tiger. Towards the end you'll notice quite a resemblance to the LOTR3 and when Frodo approaches Mt Doom.

Overall a disappointing movie.

Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear...

[hokensongirl · 6/10 · 24 May 2007]

I had been dying to watch this movie so when they pushed the DVD release date from April to May 2007, I wasn't exactly a happy camper. Thank goodness I got a hold of the MV (Wheesung's 'The Cresent Moon') which totally blew my mind but it only made me itch even more for the actual film. So when I finally got my hands on it this past May 18th, I almost had an orgasm when I slid the disc into the player. But little did I know that would be the only excitement. So what happened? How did something with a strong plot (quasi-purgatory/heaven; I mean who isn't curious?!), "stunning" special effects, strong actors and performers(Jun-ho Yeo, Kwang-Il Kim, Woo-Sung Jung) and awesome soundtrack go awry? Well, first of all this should have been at least 165 minutes long instead of compressing everything into 105 minutes. While Yi-Gwak's love for Son-Hwa/Yon-Hwa is "understandable"; the fervor/dedication portrayed by Jung could have been better conveyed if viewers actually saw more of the lovers before she was executed. Then there's the precious stone Son-Hwa kept to save Jungcheon; while a clearer explanation is not necessary, perhaps a longer one would do. Viewers might find themselves wondering in the midst of the Chunyoungdae's hunt for her why they wanted the stone in the first place. Then the ending felt abrupt and mishandled. I don't want to reveal too much but for me it was as though everything was for nothing. I will say however that the visuals in this move are captivating. I will say that most of the cast did a great job. I just wished the movie had made me care more about what would happen to the characters next. Because I didn't.

Fantastic Korean Film

[Sevket_Erhat · 8/10 · 18 May 2007]

I just finished watching The Restless and I must say that I'm stunned by its beauty. If you really want to enjoy this movie please leave all of your expectations somewhere and watch it with a clear mind. You'll see that there is a lot to like in this Korean fantasy flick.

To make the picture more clear I have to make some comparisons. First of all this movie is not better than Shadowless Sword in action or swordplay department. There are some nice CGI filled fight scenes but as I said before there is not as much as action as in Shadowless Sword.

This movie is mostly a romantic fantasy movie with some swordplay thrown in. The sets are awesome and all the effects, costumes everything looks beautiful except two things:

1-The main hero's hair. I really wanted to enter the screen and give him a more charismatic hairstyle

2-Main actress expression. I wonder why she looked so scared like there is a monster or a ghost looking at her. That really ruined most of the film for me.

To sum everything up I have to say few things: 1-There is less fights and action than Shadowless Sword

2-There is more romance and sadness than Bichunmoo

3-Effects are the best I have ever seen in these kind of Korean movies

4-I would recommend you to watch this movie if you liked Shadowless Sword,Bichunmoo and The Legend of the Evil Lake

5-Koreans must make this type of fantasy swordplay movies more often. I really prefer their ones over Chinese fantasy swordplay films

wonderful mix of fantasy and a love-story

[dutchthea · 9/10 · 28 June 2010]

a demon hunter get's poisoned after he saved some villagers ( that's gratitude for ya) and he arrives in 'pre-heaven'. He is however not really dead and soon finds himself fighting demons once more while reuniting with the woman he once loved and lost. But since she's become an archangel she has no memories left. Will he be able to win her heart all over again? Of course I am not going to tell that! This is a very good looking movie, sets and special effects are good. But what's even better are the actors. They really make you feel this story. Especially Woo-sung Jung is convincing in his longing for his long lost love. Highly recommended

Simply put : The best fantasy movie I've seen.

[iwolfi · 9/10 · 29 April 2010]

This is not gonna be a long and well written review, I'm sorry.

But i will tell you why I loved it and why you might love it.

First of, I love these Asian fantasy movies for many reasons. They are mostly set in a world unheard of in other places, and the story something very different than any Hollywood movie.

Before seeing the movie, I actually came across the soundtrack made by Shiro Sagisu. (Who also made the music for Casshern). And I came to the conclusion that it was the best soundtrack made by his hands.

Then came the chance to see the movie. And i hadn't seen much from it before, except a couple of trailers. And with it being in Korean and with no subs i only got the standard plot.

Hero loves woman. Woman is in trouble. Evil man makes threats. Hero saves the day?

But after 20 minutes I was already gladly surprised of the plot. Something "I" had not seen before. And I'm not gonna tell you what it was, since i think the surprise makes the movie even better. The movie is filled with amazing scenery and visuals that couldn't be much better. It's not over packed with fights. But the fights there do count.

There is a bit of "flying/floating" martial arts as in almost every classic Kung fu movie. And even though i don't care much for that, it did seam to fit the movie.

Will it fall in your taste?

Have you seen Casshern or Goemon? If so, and they pleased you. I don't see why you should not at least enjoy it, if not love it as i did. It has very similar elements and feeling to it. (still not as dark as Casshern).

I would have given this movie a 10/10, but went with 9/10 for two reasons. 1. That given it a max will feel a bit to cliché and would make people expect it to be polished with gold. 2. One of the main characters, (The damsel in distress) was kinda annoying at times and looked like she was gonna cry every second. But then again its all about the cruelty and emotion they try to express in these movies.

pewww!. . .

Sorry it got a bit longer than i had planed. Hope you forgive me for the bad grammar and enjoy the movie if you decide to watch it. Have fun.

Great martial arts fantasy

[dbborroughs · 8/10 · 11 November 2008]

Korean martial arts fantasy about a vagabond demon killer, who is actually a wanted royal demon killer, who is drugged by a village and flees before he can get caught and turned over to soldiers for the reward. Falling asleep in what appears to be a temple he crosses over to Mid-Heaven where he arrives just in time to help a higher soul on a special mission who is under attack. The higher soul looks exactly like his lost love, but she doesn't remember anything. The villains are his old friends in the royal demon slayers, now dead and seeking to cross back over into the world of humans.

Trust me its way better then that.

Grand romantic martial arts film is a visual treat. Better yet its really romantic as the notion of "I will remember you forever" is put to the test. And it raises the question of are we our memories, or are they simply the source of all our pain...and joy? There are times when this film just soars with emotion and ideas. Will you love some one forever for real? The film looks great. The world of Mid-Heaven is lush and magically alive. The action sequences, which do rely on CGI and wire work are impressive no matter how you slice them. I particularly liked the battle on the ropes holding up the lanterns which shouldn't work for any number of reasons but manages to actually be something special. Only the final battle to the bad guy a bit too CGI with the vast armies clearly make believe.

I really liked this film a great deal. I don't know if its one of the best (some of the plotting is unclear or takes an odd turn) but for the most part its a solid two hours enjoyment and entertainment.

8 out of 10.

Amazing

[saputriirma · 8/10 · 20 December 2023]

This is not gonna be a long and well written review, I'm sorry.

But i will tell you why I loved it and why you might love it.

First of, I love these Asian fantasy movies for many reasons. They are mostly set in a world unheard of in other places, and the story something very different than any Hollywood movie.

Before seeing the movie, I actually came across the soundtrack made by Shiro Sagisu. (Who also made the music for Casshern). And I came to the conclusion that it was the best soundtrack made by his hands.

Then came the chance to see the movie. And i hadn't seen much from it before, except a couple of trailers. And with it being in Korean and with no subs i only got the standard plot.

Hero loves woman. Woman is in trouble. Evil man makes threats. Hero saves the day?

But after 20 minutes I was already gladly surprised of the plot. Something "I" had not seen before. And I'm not gonna tell you what it was, since i think the surprise makes the movie even better. The movie is filled with amazing scenery and visuals that couldn't be much better. It's not over packed with fights. But the fights there do count.

There is a bit of "flying/floating" martial arts as in almost every classic Kung fu movie. And even though i don't care much for that, it did seam to fit the movie.

Will it fall in your taste?

Have you seen Casshern or Goemon? If so, and they pleased you. I don't see why you should not at least enjoy it, if not love it as i did. It has very similar elements and feeling to it. (still not as dark as Casshern).

I would have given this movie a 10/10, but went with 9/10 for two reasons. 1. That given it a max will feel a bit to cliché and would make people expect it to be polished with gold. 2. One of the main characters, (The damsel in distress) was kinda annoying at times and looked like she was gonna cry every second. But then again its all about the cruelty and emotion they try to express in these movies.

Pewww!. . .

Sorry it got a bit longer than i had planed. Hope you forgive me for the bad grammar and enjoy the movie if you decide to watch it. Have fun.