Normally I love Korean thrillers but this dud is the exception. It's a cheapskate production that feels like it takes forever to get going; half the running time is over before anything of note happens. There's the usual background of financial difficulty and the like which informs the proceedings, but not in an interesting way. The unlikeable protagonist is a chap who finds himself with an unexpected talent, and the film then goes on from there. But the kills are unpleasant and repetitive, and the entire film singularly lacks the kind of suspense that it needs to make any kind of impact on the viewer. Instead it feels like an arthouse bore.
Gifted
2014 [KOREAN]
Crime / Drama / Thriller
Plot summary
When a man loses his job, he slowly descends into car theft and serial murder. A dark, unflinching look at the darkness of a soul on the edge.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
June 11, 2018 at 11:15 AM
Director
Top cast
Tech specs
720p.BLU 1080p.BLUMovie Reviews
Arthouse bore
Amaze me, thrill me, make me laugh. No sorry.
Competently made film that is engaging enough. Fairly slow burn as tale unfolded and there was some frustration as I knew where it was going and it was taking too long. And then it didn't go there. Where it then began to go was into a very dark area. The youth and his fiancé and her brother are together one way or another from the beginning but the relationship changes and this gets very dark. Unfortunately the style remains the same, indeed this lacks any sort of style at all. Presumably, intentionally, the director presents everything in a very matter of fact way and so we are confronted directly with the protagonists' actions. There is no filter, no element of artifice or artistry and somehow it does not seem enough. This should probably have developed into a black comedy or been presented a la Tarantino with perhaps style over substance. As it is it is something rather unusual in cinema. It is to be taken at face value and leaves us feeling something is missing. Amaze me, thrill me, make me laugh. No sorry.