Review: I Saw the Devil (2010)

Over the years cinema from the East has made its way over to the West, especially cinema from Korea, and my god can the Koreans make a revenge film. I Saw the Devil is a grisly horror/thriller that opens with a young and newly engaged woman named Ju-yeon (Oh San-ha) talking to her love on the phone as she waits for a tow truck to come and save her from her broken down car in the middle of nowhere. As she speaks with her love, a good Samaritan stops and offers to check her tire pressure despite her telling him that she has a flat anyway. Immediately after hanging up the phone, Ju-yeon is attacked and dragged away by the Samaritan who then promptly murders her, chops her up into pieces and scatters her throughout a river running under a bridge. Ju-yeon's lover is a man named Soo-hyun (Lee Byung-hyun), a special agent for the South Korean government, who decides to use all of the powers available to him to search for the killer. After making his way through a small list of suspects he comes across Kyung-chul (expertly portrayed by Choi Min-sik of Oldboy fame), the man responsible for the brutal murder of Ju-yeon. Soo-hyun is not a man in the mood for simple revenge, but instead decides to plan a more elaborate revenge,a slow one that involves Kyung-chul experiencing as much suffering as his victims have, even if it allows Kyung-chul to continue on with his murderous ways. 


In a country that obviously up to its eyeballs in murderers, Kyung-chul seems to stand out. He like variety in his killings, utilizing unique methods of dispatch. Then there is the issue of his personality. He is cranky, irritable, quick to take offence; his hair trigger temper initiating his acts just as much as psychological state. Kyung-chul's personality however is in stark contrast to that of his hunter, Soo-hyun. Soo-hyun is quiet and patient, his emotions and grief are cloaked behind his determination, and he never stops to look at what he is doing. Through this way he is very similar to Kyung-chul and thus it never occurs to him that by hunting a monster, he himself is becoming just as and even more of a monster as his prey. 


Brutally violent, but beautiful to look at, I Saw the Devil is perhaps the best example of "cat and mouse" storytelling I've seen. Most movies that claim to be this type are more like "lion and gazelle". The hero chases the villain until he is caught or killed and then it's roll credits. This film however has a 'hero' who is not simply satisfied with simple revenge. Instead he hunts him down, tortures him a bit, puts a tracking device on him, and then lets him think he's escaped-several times. This is how cats normally deal with their prey. 


Cinematographer Lee Mogae's compositions placed next to the nighttime beauty of the South Korean countryside consistently contrast with the horrific actions that are taking place on the screen. But moving on from just the presentation, what causes I Saw the Devil to change from disgusting horror film to an ultra-violent thriller are those that are left behind in the wake of what has happened, starting with the emotionally destroyed Soo-hyun. Even though he is now in his own personal hell, he is not alone, those being with him are the father and younger sister of Ju-yeon. The course of action that Soo-hyun takes only serves to amplify his sorrow, but considering that the film's characters inhabit a world where the merciless prey upon the innocent, his decisions are understandable.