Korean horror movies are characterized by their exploration of psychological and mythological themes that are premised on revenge narratives or culturally relevant folklore. The best Korean horror movies are bloody, violent, and quite extreme with gore, but fear tactics aren’t the focus of filmmaking. Instead, the directors primarily concern themselves with contextualizing the sources of fear and grounding the scary narratives by paying attention to the experiences of flawed humans.
While special and practical effects, as well as jumpscares are employed to create a horrifying atmosphere for most of these films, the fear is made infectious by the incredible performances in Korean horror movies. Due to the focus on the experiences of the people, the movies affect viewers more because they aren’t merely frightened by the terrifying scenes on the screen. They’re indirectly experiencing the horror for themselves, becoming participants in the events of the movies with the characters. That’s what Korean horror movies do differently, and arguably better, than U.S. movies.
10 Whispering Corridors (1998)
Directed by Park Ki-hyung
Equal parts psychological thriller and supernatural horror, Whispering Corridors is a bleak horror film that explores the depressing state of student abuse in a school. Shot in a muted color palette to reflect the dreary mental state of the students, the film creates an eerie atmosphere. The psychological impact of a narrative of abuse and the visual impact of a dark and scary building where a ghost is lurking work together to make viewers uncomfortable and create a thoroughly horrifying experience for them.
The real horror is the clinically depressing circumstances of the students.
Whispering Corridors is titled to convey the atmosphere of the setting. Gossiping students, haunted rooms, and snuffed out passion fight for a space to breathe in a suffocating world where the real horror is the clinically depressing circumstances of the students. The most horrifying aspect of Whispering Corridors is perhaps that the literal ghost is the subject of sympathy, and not nearly as terrifying as some of the main human beings in the film, who’re anything but humane.
9 Sleep (2023)
Directed by Jason Yu
A genre-bending horror movie that balances romantic drama and supernatural horror, Sleep moves at a masterfully controlled gradual pace as it introduces a terrifying premise and follows its impact on the protagonists. A patient ghost story, its focus is on the relationship between the two main characters whose lives get upended by a haunting presence they are unequipped to tackle head-on. The tenderness in the romantic narrative is beautifully balanced with the emotionally scarring impact of the horrifying premise.
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Sleep never loses sight of the end in sight as it builds up the devastation experienced by the central couple. The slow burn becomes a rewarding experience as the viewers’ patience pays off when the scares start gnawing away at what seems to be a comfortable and familiar space for not just the protagonists but the viewers as well. The reason it’s so effective in terrifying viewers is because the horror has emotional context, and the heartbreaking consequences of the apparition’s existence presents a scary prospect to an audience.
8 R-Point (2004)
Directed by Kong Su-chang
A psychological horror movie, R-Point is a slow-burn with a supernatural premise. As a ghost story, it’s most effective in terrifying viewers because, along with the characters, they also wonder if the supernatural presence is responsible for the increasing death toll. Gruesome killings and an air of mistrust create a horrifying atmosphere that R-Point uses to create horror out of the most basal source of terror in human beings – the fear of the unknown.
A gripping premise sets up the scares which being unexpectedly and never stop. The first act of R-Point feels like an action mystery thriller and so, the viewer, while anticipating a depressing reality, is still blindsided when the horror element manifests. In a different context, it could have been a psychological thriller about the bravery of soldiers who put their lives at risk to rescue a battalion everyone assumed was dead, but due to the gloomy atmosphere that reeks of death, it instead becomes scary.
7 Wishing Stairs (2003)
Directed by Yun Jae-yeon
Wishing Stairs is a terrifying supernatural horror film set in a girls’ dormitory. This time, along with commentary about the cycle of abuse in the Korean school system, there’s also a significant amount of mythology used by the storytellers to create a haunting atmosphere. An exploration of the dark side of ambition, Wishing Stairs creates a terrifying atmosphere that is steeped in toxic competitiveness and unfiltered homoeroticism. It uses tropes and visual tricks common to the genre of ghost stories to further the plot, which focuses on how toxicity between students drives them to take extreme measures.
Wishing Stairs
is the third part in the franchise started by
Whispering Corridors
, where most films aren’t connected to each other by plot.
The themes of jealousy and envy plague the interpersonal dynamics that are the real victims in Wishing Stairs. The mythological context interestingly grounds the narrative in the girls’ issues with self-worth and their inability to form a cohesive community. What could be a boon turns into a curse due to the disturbing urge to self-sacrificially excel in their work. The bright color palette creates a conflicting visual viibe, but it reflects the internal strife of the students who struggle with the morality and the consequences of their choices.
6 Phone (2002)
Directed by Ahn Byeong-ki
Using the premise of a vengeful ghost, Phone tells a traditional ghost story that banks on many of the popular visual scare tactics common to the genre of ghost stories. The visual aesthetic is very similar to the Japanese horror cult classic Ringu. Much like in Ringu, a piece of technology becomes the medium for the ghost to haunt an unsuspecting person. While it doesn’t redefine the genre or introduce many refreshing aspects, as a horror movie, it’s effective and has a decent number of scares.
As with many Korean horror films, the focus of Phone lies on the emotional journey of the characters, fleshing out the revenge narrative and exploring how the life of the protagonist starts unraveling when she’s haunted. While Phone is narratively cut-and-dry with its formulaic structure, the film is elevated by an unbelievable performance from child actress Seo-woo Eun, who plays a six year old possessed kid. Her body language and unnerving presence can instill fear in the hearts of viewers.
5 Memento Mori (1999)
Directed by Kim Tae-yong and Min Kyu-dong
A romantic drama with horror themes, Memento Mori is a thematic sequel to Whispering Corridors. It’s tonally much different, with a low body count that won’t appease gore enthusiasts. It instead focuses on the romance narrative, and uses the emotional arcs of the characters to flesh out a horror narrative where a ghost becomes a point of sympathy for viewers.
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Disrupting genre conventions, Memento Mori instills a sense of triumph into the sequences that are supposed to be scary, championing the wronged lesbian’s thirst for vengeance against her bullies and providing a critical exploration of the system that allows homophobia to be normalized and run rampant within school students. The real terror is the unfair victimization of a student who was trying to live her best life. The way queerness is rendered invisible becomes the source of horror. Instead, usual elements of horror like shadows and dark corners become spaces for expressing desire.
4 Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum (2018)
Directed by Jung Bum-shik
Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum follows the crew of a horror web series as they embark on a live broadcast from an abandoned psychiatric hospital. Venturing deeper within the asylum, the team confronts unforeseen horrors within the foreboding ruins of the historic, derelict structure. Released in 2018, this film explores themes of fear and suspense.
- Director
- Jung Bum-shik
- Release Date
- 2018/03/28
- Writers
- Park Sang-min
- Cast
- Wi Ha-joon
- Runtime
- 95 minutes
A single-location found footage horror movie, Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum is chock-full of staple horror elements. From jumpscares to a scary ghost of a girl who appears out of nowhere to terrorize the main characters, it relentlessly throws scary situations and visuals at viewers who can only watch in horror. The characters go through terrifying circumstances, some meeting gruesome deaths that will satisfy any gore aficionado.
One of the scariest supernatural horror moviesGonjiam: Haunted Asylum is premised on the greed for views that define the lives of so many in the age of the Internet. With such an effective emotional hook, it gradually stops barring holds, and by the end, there’s no escape from a rollercoaster of scares. With close-up shots and a haunting score, it’s very effective in scaring viewers who, despite anticipating them the entire time, are never prepared for the masterfully executed jumpscares.
3 Exhuma (2024)
Directed by Jang Jae-hyun
When a renowned shaman (KIM Go-Eun) and her protégé (Lee Do-hyun) are hired by a wealthy, enigmatic family, they begin investigating the cause of a disturbing supernatural illness that affects only the first-born children of each generation. With the help of a knowledgeable mortician (YOO Hai-jin) and the country’s most revered geomancer (CHOI Min-sik), they soon trace the affliction’s origin to a long-hidden family grave located on sacred ground.
- Director
- Jang Jae-hyun
- Release Date
- February 22, 2024
- Studio(s)
- Showbox , Pinetown Productions , and MCMC
- Distributor(s)
- Showbox
- Writers
- Jang Jae-hyun
- Cast
- Choi Min-sik , Kim Go-eun , Yoo Hae-jin , Lee Do-Hyun , and Kim Sun-young
- Runtime
- 134 Minutes
The strength of Exhuma lies in exploring the impact of Japanese occupation on South Koreans. It’s a beautifully composed symphony of mythological exposition, an unearthing of history that the film then goes on to demonstrate one can move forward from, and a very literal haunting presence that has a metaphorical significance. Rooted in the culture of its location, Exhuma has an abundance of pretty cinematography that beautifies the setting and makes the horror even more effective.
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While it’s premised on a simple haunting prompted by a wrongful exhumation, the film moves quickly away from the typical pitfalls of an exorcism-themed narrative to broaden its scope and provide meaningful commentary along with gory horror. The slow-burn makes it a particularly rewarding experience because the engrossing atmosphere is worth investing in. Arguably the best horror movie of 2024, Exhuma creates a truly entertaining and terrifying experience as the film gradually settles into its paranormal narrative.
2 The Wailing (2016)
Directed by Na Hong-jin
The arrival of a mysterious stranger in a quiet village coincides with a wave of vicious murders, causing panic and distrust among the residents. While investigating the suspect, a policeman realizes that his daughter may have been a victim of the attack.
- Director
- Na Hong-jin
- Release Date
- June 3, 2016
- Cast
- Jun Kunimura , Hwang Jung-min , Kwak Do-won
- Runtime
- 2h 36m
While it may seem to be rather long for a horror movie, The WailingI never drags for a moment as it goes about its job of creating a haunting setting with patience. A slow-burn that meanders exactly as much as necessary to make the world feel lived in, The Wailing never loses sight of its end. Using a premise based on a mythological narrative that’s culturally inseparable from the time and place it’s set in, the film explores the role of collective anxiety in creating a circumstance that feels more terrifying than it is.
”
The Wailing is a truly wonderful film, and the Demon does an incredible job of hiding his identity, at times projecting a kind exterior that lends itself to sympathy more than fear.
” –
Madelaine Davis
–
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Featuring an unforgettable child performance, The Wailing, while slow, is never boring. It leaves an indelible mark on a viewer’s mind as it leaves some of the horrifying themes open to interpretation, with every twist in The Wailing making themes and folklore more complicated, but not for the sake of complication. The Wailing may not use a non-linear style of narration, but it definitely explores mythology and its relevance over the ages to almost disrupt the linearity and tell a timeless tale of invoking the devil himself.
1 A Tale of Two Sisters (2003)
Directed by Kim Jee-woon
A Tale of Two Sisters, directed by Jee-woon Kim, follows a recently released mental institution patient and her sister as they return home. They encounter unsettling occurrences involving their stepmother and otherworldly forces, all tied to a troubling family history. Released in 2003, the film is a South Korean psychological horror drama.
- Director
- Jee-woon Kim
- Release Date
- June 13, 2003
- Writers
- Jee-woon Kim
- Cast
- Kap-su Kim , Jung-ah Yum , Su-jeong Lim , Geun-Young Moon , Woo Ki-Hong , Dae-yeon Lee
- Runtime
- 115 Minutes
Arguably the finest Asian horror movie ever made, A Tale of Two Sisters is a truly terrifying exploration of guilt. The gory visuals are obviously a treat for the eyes for a horror movie buff, but the greatest strength of A Tale of Two Sisters lies in its throwing of caution to the wind and creating a genre-bending mystery thriller in the tradition of horror filmmaking. Viewers are faced with an inability to rely on any perspectives offered throughout the film as the boundaries between real and imagined start blurring away into obscurity.
Familial tensions provide the emotional hook for the film.
Despite being dimly lit to create a terrifying setting, A Tale of Two Sisters features a vibrant color palette that provides a perfect contrast for the bloody visuals that are set in the colorful locations. Familial tensions provide the emotional hook for the film, which uses every element of filmmaking to craft a disturbing atmosphere. From eerie sounds with off-screen sources, to the inexplicable opening of doors, the visual and auditory senses become overwhelmed with terror in A Tale of Two Sisters.