Yeom-lyeok (2018) Reviews

• Simple, yet, witty.

  shuyaakitatsuya2018-04-29

  This is my very first review, so let me introduce myself. I am half Korean, half Japanese, raised in an English speaking country of all places. I'm a self proclaimed movie maniac who enjoys movies as they are. Alright, let's move on. When I heard about this movie and saw the trailer, this reminded me titles like Hancock and Inuyashiki. Perhaps some of you reading this may thought of that too. Are they similar? I'd say yes, but it takes a surprising fresh take. The premise of the film is quite ridiculous and the film well knowingly understands it's own ridiculousness. But that is the very charm of the film, it doesn't try to hide it. It's very down-to-the-earth witty in it's own terms. The story is quite simple and cliche, in terms of International standards, heck even in Korea cinema, it's been done before, minus the hero elements. But it's the simplicity of using social issues in Korea that creates the working story. If you have watched the film ''Holiday'', you'd find some similarities that point towards power abuse in the growing economic power in Asia, where weak minorities are given no slack and are simply pushed around like slaves. It's something that as a Korean viewer can easily relate to, which makes the simple story very human. Unlike films like Avengers or Hancock, where the issues are caused by ''inhuman'' plots. Not to take jabs at those movie though, I loved the latest film. Despite the somewhat dark undertone, it doesn't focus on that as some sort of political statement, but rather a crude satire. The film really doesn't hold back on it's comedy aspects, which a lot of Korean movies are known for. If you enjoy the subtle humor in Korean films, you'll enjoy this one too. I personally laughed quite a bit. The characters also felt very human, except for one... very quirky business woman. Acting was quite good too and the relationship between the father and daughter was also very well portrayed. Under circumstances, the father left when the heroine was very young and when he did happen to return, there was nothing but awkward tension. It was quite realistic. Though there wasn't much progression in character development between the two, but the story of the film only takes place in a matter of days, so it actually makes sense. Wouldn't expect something like that to be resolved in such a short time. The characters showed doubt, despite everything happening, but slowly tried to understand each other. Though to note that this is no typical Superhero movie. I'd say that this takes one step less than Hancock did (who eventually did ''charity'' work). The main character is an ordinary middle-aged man, who sucks at is own job and steals toiletries. And despite his newfound powers, he did nothing in sort of using it for good. I'd say he caused more damage than good. Even when it appears he is trying to save ''people'', he is only there to save his daughter. He probably wouldn't have done anything with his powers if his daughter wasn't in any danger. This doesn't really change throughout the whole movie. But that goes back to the previously mentioned point about the film being ''human''. The motives are very simple, everyone is kinda moving for a single cause, or simply for their own gains. I think that this is a unique charm in Korean cinema and it works really well in this film as well. As for the villains... well they are quite simply... silly. Over the top acting, slap stick material goofs. Another charm of Korean films. Some people may find uninteresting, but if you love funny villains, this ones great in that front. Also the very unique business woman, only a minor character, but a highlight. A very sane, but a very insane sociopath. Sort of like a female Tony Stark, if only Stark was a villain. Overall this was a very enjoyable movie with no downtime. It got straight to the point and didn't really waste that much time. Except it doesn't really get much done by the end of the film? The story is just so simple that it's just a point of time in life, you win some and lose some, then move on. There are no winners, there are no losers. In that premise, it's quite like ''Fly Daddy Fly'', another Korean cinema classic. If you have some free time and have a Netflix sub, I recommend this a definite watch. I give this a solid 7.5/10. Sorry if this ''review'' of mine is a complete mess, it is my first one... anyways enjoy!

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• What a good superhero movie should be about, rather than on CGI and other superficial excesses.

  Hellmant2018-05-31

  'PSYCHOKINESIS': Four Stars (Out of Five) A South Korean superhero movie about a father that discovers he has superpowers, who then tries to use those powers to rescue his daughter. It stars Ryu Seung-ryong, Shim Eun-kyung, Park Jung-min, Kim Min-jae and Jung Yu-mi. The film was written and directed by Yeon Sang-ho (who also performed both duties on the 2016 critically acclaimed 'zombies on a train' flick 'TRAIN TO BUSAN'), and it was released by Netflix through it's streaming site. I really enjoyed it. The story is about a bank security guard, named Shin Seok-heon (Seung-ryong), who has a troubled relationship with his estranged daughter, Shin Roo-mi (Eun-kyung). He drinks some contaminated water from a mountain spring, and gains super telekinetic powers. He tries to use these powers to help his daughter, who is constantly being harassed by a corrupt construction company. Seok-heon becomes a reluctant superhero in the process. The film is the first ever South Korean superhero movie, and it's definitely a refreshing change from the American ones (like the new 'AVENGERS'). This film has so much character, and genuine heart and emotion. It's pretty simple in it's action scenes, and villainous threat, which is what's so cool about it as well. The film concentrates on what a good superhero movie should be about, rather than on CGI and other superficial excesses. I really found it to be quite entertaining and effective.

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• Unsophisticated and enjoyable.

  S_Soma2018-04-26

  Opening Scenes Summary: PSYCHOKINESIS (a South Korean movie I watched with English subtitles) opens with a local television station doing a human interest piece featuring a young woman running a small but very successful fried chicken restaurant (Korean-style fried chicken). That night, however, a score of men wearing construction hardhats break their way in to the closed restaurant and proceed to thoroughly trash it. The young woman struggles valiantly to stop them to no avail. While the battle is ongoing, the young woman's mother drives up in a van and tries to help fend off the attackers but only succeeds in getting herself fatally injured, dying soon thereafter in surgery at the hospital. (For a description of what this battle was all about, please read the last paragraph of this review.) Suddenly, in a following scene, we see a meteor streaking across the sky, a little boom, and then we see a little meteorite in its little crater. Something all sparkly-glowy comes flowing out of the meteorite, across the forest floor and into the water supply where it's immediately drunk by a late-middle-aged man as it comes out of the pipe at little drinking station in a forested hiking area. This late-middle-aged man is our hero. Next we see our hero at his day job: a low ranking "security guard" (but mostly little more than a greeter) at a bank. He's definitely not the sharpest knife in the drawer, is prone to stealing office supplies for his own use, and leads one of his coworkers down that same primrose path and gets her into serious trouble. Getting drunk that evening out of a sense of guilt, we see the first expression of his meteorite-induced psychokinetic powers as he drunkenly knocks around the outdoor tables that he's drinking at. Soon, our hero gets a call from his daughter informing him that his ex-wife, her mother, has been killed. We eventually learn that the original divorce came about as an expression of practicality because our hero got himself badly into debt and wanted to disassociate his wife and daughter with the results of his bad choices. His daughter, however, the fried chicken girl, has never forgiven him for leaving them. Review: Somewhat typical of a lot of South Korean adventure or fantasy movies, PSYCHOKINESIS is a combination of slapstick comedy intermingled with drama and somewhat over-the-top violence. As such, it's a fairly good representative movie reflecting South Korean tastes and sensibilities. Lots of yelling, lots of exaggerated takes and double takes and a big, pull-out-all-the-stops, battle scene just before the end. Throughout, major plot points are often left unexplained; the viewer is expected to simply accept them and move on. The overall level of sophistication is roughly that of, say, SON OF FLUBBER circa 1963. (It should be noted, however, that I caught at least one instance of the F-bomb.) None of this is to suggest that this is a bad movie or that you shouldn't give it a go. But do keep in mind that it's flavor is specifically spiced for its target audience (South Korea) and American audiences might have to adjust their tastebuds a little to enjoy it. While I do get a little tired of all the yelling, I personally rather liked it. Lots of traditional family values, a family mending what fences they can, a dad learning that trying harder is almost always the best approach, a daughter learning that dad wasn't, perhaps, quite the giant jerk she thought he was, a morality comment that superheroes have to do time if they break the law, and so on. Simple, exceedingly unsophisticated, and generally doesn't try to jam some liberal/progressive message wrapped in a movie down the viewer's throat. As a concluding observation, it should be noted that the core plot line centers around some of the social turmoil that has accompanied South Korean redevelopment conflicts in recent years. Like many industrialized nations, some of the poorer cross-sections of society end up renting both residences and commercial property in rundown neighborhoods in which to live and have their businesses. As property values skyrocket, it is often financially rewarding for property owners to repurpose/redevelop depressed areas. This has led to actual battles fought in the streets with police forces attempting to forcibly remove renters/squatters. Many of the individual scenes depicted in the final showdown battle comes straight from newspaper accounts of actual events.

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• I had expected The Father to marry Director Hong lol~

  wuhugm2018-05-08

  Quite entertaining movie. The telekinesis' visual is on the same level as Chronicle so that's quite good. Characters behave realistically, except Director Hong, she's insane, and that's amazing lol~ Plot is not bad though the resolution feels incomplete. My only problem is it seems another power was developed beside telekinesis there.

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• Psychokinesis: When Korea goes Hollywood

  Platypuschow2019-03-20

  Forget DC, put aside Marvel, there is a new superhero in town and he's absolutely fantastic. Now I had high hopes going in as I have a great history with Korean cinema, in fact the last movie I gave 10/10 was Korean (Train to Busan 2016) but I didn't actually expect Psychokinesis to be quite this good. It tells the story of an absent bum father who returns after his ex-wife passes away. He tries to get back into his daughters life but meets understandable resistance, that is until he develops super powers and realizes he can use them to help her. Now let's be clear this is a comedy more than anything, comedy with serious undertones, a decent budget and honestly could be considered family friendly. There is no swearing, the violence is at A-Team level (You know where explosions happen and people go flying but nobody gets hurt), and it's goofy in that really endearing kind of way. A truly heart warming feel good film I applaud everyone involved. Though there were some aspects of the end I didn't entirely appreciate and would have written differently I can't say they take much away from the film. This is so very very enjoyable, I laughed, I cheered, I welled up a little bit and walked away very satisfied. The Good: Feel good movie Seung-ryong Ryu and Eun-kyung Shim The Bad: Feels a tad incomplete Bit too goofy a couple of times The word gosh (Translated) must have been used 100+ times

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