Geoul sokeuro (2003)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Sung-ho Kim

Writer:

Sung-ho Kim (writer)

Release Date:

14 August 2003 (South Korea)

Genre:

Crime | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

In the deep night, if you live alone, don't look in the mirror!

Plot:

An ex-cop now working as a security guard in a shopping mall tries to uncover the secret behind a series of mysterious deaths linked to mirrors

Plot Keywords:

Death | Murder | Mirror | Department Store | Security Guard

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Ji-tae Yu	...	Woo Yeong-min
Myeong-min Kim	...	Heo Hyeon-su
Hye-na Kim	...	Lee Ji-hyeon / Lee Jeong-hyeon
Ju-bong Gi	...	Jeong Il-seong
Myoeng-su Kim	...	Choi Sang-gi
Young-jin Lee	...	Choi Mi-jeong
Eun-pyo Jeong	...	Kim, Il-hwan

Also Known As:

Into the Mirror (International: English title)

Runtime:

South Korea:113 min

Country:

South Korea

Language:

Korean

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Certification:

Malaysia:18SG (uncut version) | Malaysia:U (edited version) | Hong Kong:IIB | Argentina:13 | Sweden:15 | Finland:K-15 | Germany:16 | Singapore:PG (edited version) | South Korea:15 | UK:15

Company:

Key Plus Pictures

Movie Connections:

Remade as Mirrors (2008)

Living Inside the Mirror

After the accidental death of his partner Young-ho in a hostage situation, the former detective of the Seoul Special Operations Force Woo Young-min (Ji-tae Yu) feels responsible for the tragedy and quit the police force joining the private security company SecuZone. His uncle and owner of the department store Dreampia, Jeon-il Sung (Ju-bong Gi), hires Woo to be the chief of the security of Dreampia, which was rebuilt after a fire where many employees died and is near the reopening in spite of the protest of the families of the victims that claim their indemnity. When an employee dies after hours in the store, Woo leads an internal investigation, while detective Ha Hyun-Su (Myeong-mim Kim) that blames Woo for the death of his friend Young-ho, and his assistant Park, come to the store to lead an official investigation. When other employees that worked in the same department are mysteriously killed in the store, Woo meets Lee Ji-hyun (Hye-na Kim), the twin sister of Lee Jeong-hyun, that convinces him that her sister has not died in the fire and is trapped in the mirrors, while Ha Hyun-Su believes that Lee Ji-hyun is the serial killer.

"Geoul Sokeuro" is another great South Korean horror movie. With a complex screenplay that discloses an intricate and intriguing supernatural plot, this film is supported by great direction and acting and excellent camera work, using mirrors in many unexpected scenes. The horror is not gore but psychological, and there is an important and complex explanation about the "mirror-world" that is basic to understand the end of the story. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Espelho" ("Mirror")