The Chaser (Hong-jin Na, 2008): South Korea

Reviewed by Simona Rozhko. Viewed at the ArcLight theater, AFI Film Festival.

In Hong-jin Na’s horror piece, The Chaser, I found myself holding my breath and feeling my palms squeeze tightly in the dark setting of the theater at the AFI Film Festival. The moments of suspense are what hold the film remarkably together. It is a film worth dedicating minute after minute to, if you’re ready for a traumatic performance by actors submerged in dark personalities. The best quality of this films shines through as viewers begin to think the end has come, but not only do more problems emerge for the innocent,  but also the antagonist is viewed by authorities as a possible help and not hinderance.

During the screening, held on Sunset Boulevard, I began to get familiar with the motives and personalities of the Korean culture throughout the film. It is obvious both in the director’s place of origin, South Korea, and the actors who are easily identified simply through their names like Yun-Seok Kim, Jung-woo Ha, and In-gi Jung.

Graphic images piece this film together and are what introduce us to some of the main characters. A business belonging to one of the main characters uses women, selling their sexual experiences to strange men for profit. The prostitution and exploitation collides when the boss finds out that some of his girls have gone missing and a leading suspect targets them all. The quest begins when the boss sends out one of his favorites and she ends up at the suspect’s house. She doesn’t return home and the criminal is found to possibly  be guilty as charged. From this point we jump back and forth to find out the true criminal: is it a man who uses women for sex, or a man that seems to be involved in the disappearance of these women? Who is at fault and who can you really trust in this world of terror?

The acting in the film feels like it places you front and center at the crime scene; the settings have a dark and gloomy mise-en-scene, and the performances take a hold of our ultimate fright and confusion as to where the suspects and the innocent are, and who is ultimately at fault.

This film takes me back to films like 2004’s The Grudge, and 2002’s The Ring.  If you liked either of these films, you’ll enjoy The Chaser, with its high intensity at the scenes that peak with energy from traumatizing images and events that you would never want to be relatable to your own real life. It’s worth the 123 minutes and appeals to people who may like cultural horror and dramatic flicks.