The 2010 Tragedy/Thriller I Saw the Devil is all about a clash of wills. This takes place throughout the film. Our protagonist punishes the monster That kills his fiance. But in the end, who is really the monster? This is quite possibly the hardest to watch film I have ever seen.
I Saw the Devil Story
The film opens with a young girl, Joo-yeon, who is traveling by car through a snow covered countryside. Her car tyre goes flat. While she is waiting for the breakdown service to arrive, she calls her fiance Kim Soo-hyeon. (Kim works for the Korean Secret Service. She is talking to Kim when a man comes up. This is Kyung-chul and he offers to change her tyre for her.
Joo-yeon refuses and the man leaves only to return with a hammer to smash her window in with. He strikes her with the hammer and takes her unconscious body away. Kim is understandably upset that his fiancée is in danger. Kyung-chul in the meantime has raped and murdered Joo-yeon. Afterwards he cuts her body up and scatters the pieces around the countryside.
Joo-yeon’s father is a policeman, a squad leader and he is present when the police find Joo-yeon’s head. Kim Soo-yeon uses a suspect list that Joo-yeon’s father has to find the murderer. He vows to get revenge for his fiancée’s death.
The Main Cast
Byung-hun Lee is Kim Soo-hyeon.
Min-sik Choi is Kyung-chul.
Let’s Talk I Saw the Devil
Kim Jee-woon this powerful and disturbing film. I Saw the Devil could be described as a modern morality tale. Kim Soo-hyeon’s cold determination to catch his fiancée’s killer, is disturbing. It has him brutally questioning the suspects to narrow down his search for the killer. When he finally discovers that it is Kyung-chul, he begins a series of violent and gory retribution against him.
Kyung-chul, however, is a different animal from the usual sexual predator. He is actually a predator, full stop. Kim’s brutal torturing of Kyung-chul just makes things worse. Kim finds out, to his horror, that Kyung-chul is a twisted type A personality. A ‘right-man’ who will not stop until he wins or dies.
Kyung-chul finds out who has been tracking him and injuring him repeatedly. He vows his own revenge on Kim Soo-yeon. A deadly cat and mouse game between the two ensues. Kim ends up sinking to the same level of evil as Kyung-chul.
Hard to Watch
The film was excruciating to watch. The rape scenes were uncomfortable and horrible. The scenes of retribution against Min-sik’s character, although oddly satisfying, were equally horrible to watch. We feel the rage that Kim feels and that the actions he takes are justified. We cannot help but be saddened by the toll it takes him and on everyone involved.
The police are frustrated and angry. Kim begins to lose his grip on normalcy and everyone peripherally involved gets caught up in the action. It can be, at times, almost too hard to watch.
The Verdict
This is the latest offering from Jee-woon Kim, one of the best directors in South Korea. If you are a Jee-woon fan you will not want to miss this one. If you are not aware of Jee-woon Kim‘s work, it is a good introduction to his prowess as a director. This is, despite the disturbing subject matter, A solid 4 star effort. It is streaming on several Prime Video subscription channels.
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