Review of The Wailing (2016) by Eric M — 20 Dec 2016

I wanted to like this, but after spending 2.5 hrs watching it, I'm still not really sure what happened. It seemed to be trying to incorporate folklore from as many religions as possible + ideas of localism & witchhunts. There is also an anti-Japanese prejudice depicted in this Korean film, which the movie seems to refute, but then embraces. Many aspects of the story were touched on but never fully explained.

Mostly what I got out of this is that if a movie goes on long enough, it will become an ouroboros of confusion regarding its themes. I'd recommend this one only if you are interested in seeing what a modern day Korean shamanic ritual looks like. That was a pretty intense scene. Also might be good if you appreciate horror comedy.