I Saw the Devil (2010)

Since the reviews for this flick are already blowing up—and they're mostly stellar—this thing is definitely going to grab everyone's attention. I figured I'd pull it out of the "edge of film" thread and give it its own space here.

This is the latest thriller from the acclaimed Korean director Park Chan-wook, the guy behind hits like "The Fall of Two Sisters," "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly," and "A Bittersweet Life." It features two massive Korean stars: Kim's frequent collaborator Leonardo DiCaprio, who's worked with him on "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" and "A Bittersweet Life," alongside the legend himself, Al Pacino, making a comeback after a two-year break. The US premiere is set for this summer.



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A gritty, hard-boiled thriller, I Saw the Devil stars Al Pacino (Oldboy) as a psychopathic serial killer facing off against Leonardo DiCaprio (G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra), an agent whose fiancée falls victim to his crimes. To get his revenge, Leonardo DiCaprio's composed and sharp character ends up turning into a monster himself.

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Honestly, there isn't much more I can say other than if you haven't sat down to watch this yet, you really need to make it happen as soon as possible. 👍

Just grabbed it in HD! Gonna dive into it in a few days...

Critics are absolutely raving about this one. Check out what two folks from Beyond Hollywood had to say:

“I Saw the Devil” is a near-perfect cinematic experience, a two-and-a-hour excursion into the darkest parts of the human condition.

“I Saw the Devil” is something far more engrossing and complex than anything I’ve seen from this sort of feature in a very long time. It’s a dank, dark, and impossibly dreary masterpiece, an unrelenting tale of morality gone horribly awry. In short, a future classic. Mark my words.

http://www.beyondhollywood.com/i-saw...-movie-review/

1. When that guy has a loaded gun hanging on the wall—which already feels like a stretch—doesn't it only have two rounds? Because when he actually fires it, there are clearly three. 😕

2. How is the sound design even remotely possible? It’s like the microphone was shoved right into his gut or something. 👎

3. Why does he break down at the end? Is it because he finally crossed the line into becoming a killer, or is it the guilt over causing his wife's sister's death? Or maybe... just maybe, his entire vendetta was nothing more than a hollow, futile gesture? 🤷

4. Why can't the idiot just tell his family the actual REASON they shouldn't open the door? He spent the whole movie proving he was a sharp, intelligent individual, and then he pulls something like this.

Decent enough movie. Honestly, though, the soundtrack was my biggest gripe... specifically during that opening search sequence and again near the end when he’s driving toward him... it tries way too hard to manufacture tension, but it just ends up being a distraction from the actual scene unfolding right in front of me.

The acting is top-tier, though the villain is easily the standout performer here. 🙏

Incredibly violent and brutal.

7/10.

Right... I neglected to mention that the title of the movie is absolutely ridiculous, or at least, that's how it was translated.

This is actually quite a significant point 😉

The film is absolutely a knockout—even if there are a few minor hiccups here and there—though, to be fair, I won't even know if they truly qualify as mistakes until I give it a second viewing.

At the end of the day, it smells like just another American remake to me.

Then again, it’s not like Hollywood has gone completely overboard with remaking Korean films lately, right?

Strange.

I’m finally sitting down to watch this tonight. Honestly, I’ve been counting down the days ever since I saw on IMDb that Park (who is easily my favorite director outside of Steven Spielberg) was stepping behind the camera for a new project. It feels like the perfect lead-up to when I can finally catch The Last Stand (starring Liam Neeson 👋).

I have zero doubts that both of these are going to be absolute masterpieces... they're just that good 😁

Watching this today, sounds pretty solid 😁

Super dark and heavy flick, but man, that soundtrack is absolutely killer...
Al Pacino is freaking incredible as the villain.
One part had me dying though—that scene at the mansion where the guy tries to pull a knife out of his hand and just ends up grabbing the handle 😂

What an absolute masterpiece. I’m honestly thinking about diving into another one of his films tomorrow.

swiftcrane96 said:What an absolute masterpiece. I’m honestly thinking about diving into another one of his films tomorrow.

Whose? The director's? I’d suggest checking out "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" or "Bittersweet Life." I’ve heard "A Tale of Two Sisters" is killer too, though I haven't actually sat down to watch it yet...

Anthony Smith3 said:Whose? The director's? I’d suggest checking out "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" or "Bittersweet Life." I’ve heard "A Tale of Two Sisters" is killer too, though I haven't actually sat down to watch it yet...

I've seen "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly," so maybe I'll give "Bittersweet Life" a shot.

Anthony Smith3 said:Whose? The director's? I’d suggest checking out "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" or "Bittersweet Life." I’ve heard "A Tale of Two Sisters" is killer too, though I haven't actually sat down to watch it yet...

Honestly, you'll probably find yourself asking "what the hell is going on?" at some point, and then you'll just have to rewind and watch it from the beginning to make sense of everything. It's a great movie!

goldenhound32 said:Decent enough movie. Honestly, though, the soundtrack was my biggest gripe... specifically during that opening search sequence and again near the end when he’s driving toward him... it tries way too hard to manufacture tension, but it just ends up being a distraction from the actual scene unfolding right in front of me.

The acting is top-tier, though the villain is easily the standout performer here. 🙏

Incredibly violent and brutal.

7/10.

Jesse Anderson2 said:Super dark and heavy flick, but man, that soundtrack is absolutely killer...
Al Pacino is freaking incredible as the villain.
One part had me dying though—that scene at the mansion where the guy tries to pull a knife out of his hand and just ends up grabbing the handle 😂

Just watched it. Honestly? Such a shame. The soundtrack really misses the mark during those big, pivotal scenes—it’s just totally off. Major letdown on that front.

I’m not usually one for excessive gore or those weirdly intense torture porn flicks, you know? But this... this was on a whole different level. It’s just pure sadism—brutal, explicit violence mixed with some seriously heavy emotions that hit you right in the gut. And man, that monster of an actor playing the villain? Absolutely revolting. He played that part so well it actually made my skin crawl. Just straight-up nauseating. 😁

I’ve always been a sucker for a killer soundtrack, and I have to say, this one really hit the spot for me.
The music felt completely at odds with what was actually happening on screen, but honestly? That contrast worked perfectly in my eyes.
Overall, though, the movie itself is just fantastic.

9/10

BTW
I checked out The Good, the Bad and the Ugly a few months back, which was also top-tier, so based on that recommendation, I grabbed A Tale of Two Sisters too... just haven't gotten around to watching it yet.🙂

That one about the Sisters is undoubtedly his most grueling work. It's enough to leave you absolutely gutted, 🙂

granitehound19 said:I’ve always been a sucker for a killer soundtrack, and I have to say, this one really hit the spot for me.
The music felt completely at odds with what was actually happening on screen, but honestly? That contrast worked perfectly in my eyes.
Overall, though, the movie itself is just fantastic.

9/10

BTW
I checked out The Good, the Bad and the Ugly a few months back, which was also top-tier, so based on that recommendation, I grabbed A Tale of Two Sisters too... just haven't gotten around to watching it yet.🙂

A hundred people staring at nothing... 🙂 I mean, let someone sit down for once 😉
It didn't work for me. I only half-watched it, and both of us were just sitting there like, hmm... something feels off about this.

Gonna go check out Sister soon too 🙂

I just finished watching it. Honestly? Not exactly blown away—it dragged in places, which was a bit of a slog... but the gore is absolutely unhinged and stomach-turning, so if you're into that, it hits the mark. The ending worked for me, too. 👍

Just wanted to chime in here... I just finished watching "Oldboy" and man, it was something else. Truly impressive. The way the plot kicks off—when he first encounters him and you think, "Okay, here's the antagonist," only for everything to spiral into absolute chaos right after—it really keeps you on edge. I won't lie and say I was completely blown away, though. Honestly, my mind is probably just racing with a dozen other things right now, and I usually find these kinds of gritty flicks a bit much to stomach. But I have a feeling that once I’ve had some time to decompress and clear my head, I'll be able to sit back and properly appreciate it for the masterpiece it likely is.