Hwayi: A Monster Boy (2013)

In a loss of a better expression, this movie is literally a piece of a mindfuck. When five psychopaths kidnap a young child only to raise him so he grows up and become their successor, then obviously the child is going to grow up very twisted and confused about his own identity. The only thing stopping me from rating this masterpiece a 10 is the fact that it's so gory, and that usually doesn't leave me for days.

What grips me the most about this story is that it teaches you that irrespective of the twisted circumstances you were brought up with, you as a human being still has all the innate capacity to break free from all the psychopathic tendencies, and redeem yourself. Of course, drops of blood will be shed because the boy eventually needed to break away from the controlling hands of his fathers, but these were reasoned and properly calculated instead of a path to become as dark and twisted as the real villains.

I cannot express how much in awe I was watching the young version of Yeo Jin Goo in this. I haven't seen him in much else, but I really believe that no other performance of him to-date has topped this one so far. It's an amazing treat to witness him portray the many expressions of a young teenage boy so desperate, angered and heartbroken in many sequences. I believe that you will truly understand why so many senior actors respect him so much if you watch how he performs this role so flawlessly at 16 y/o.

A true must-watch for all K-movie lovers!

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I usually do not like these types of films, but I have to say I was very pleased with it. I didn't for once thought of pausing to 'take a walk'. That was how I was glued.
This film have everything from action to gruesomeness, suspense to thriller and even family love. No romance, unless you count jealousy as a form of romance.
The tale is about a 2yr boy who was kidnapped, his life 14 years later and then the results of what the kidnappers have sowed.
What I mostly like is how everything comes together in the end, the tale behind the tale - Jealousy.
How important it is to leave your past in the past and not allowing it to haunt you, as that monster may become you once it's no more visible.

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INTENSE!!!

I have no words to truly describe this work as I was left speechless after all that intensity.

Nonetheless, now that I’ve been given the time to make sense of everything that had happened...THIS MOVIE GAVE ME COGNITIVE DISSONANCE AND I’M LOVING IT. Amazing plot! Intense scenes! My heart keeps on jumping out of my chest with the blazing intensity!!!!

The plot was amazing, it left me clutching my heart not knowing what to feel. Human nature and relationships...what could be more confusing than this? Yet this movie made so much practical use of this confusion which made the whole experience of cognitive dissonance paired with that level of action/gore scenes a mind-boggling and heart-stopping one. This movie was DARK. It shows you the dark side of humanity that we would do everything within our power to look away from. This movie clasps your face, looks you in your eyes, and make you not look away at the capacity of human darkness. Yet, it also seemed lacking in that part mostly because of how they didn’t show much of Hwayi’s relationship with the other characters, which brings me to my next point...

The only reason I didn’t give this a 10 was because I would’ve liked more story about how he grew up with his “5 dads” as this would’ve made the plot richer, and the story behind his “stepmom” and how she became a captive of that house of criminals just because I want to know the whole story and not just fragments of what they’ve shown. Also, I keep on wanting to know if Hwayi intentionally killed that 1st dad or was it accidentally, I think that was an important part of Hwayi’s determination and actions after but they didn’t address that: only that he didn’t answer when it was mentioned but that could be interpreted based on how the viewers want and no other hints were given to make the answer sure :( these were just minor points and wouldn’t necessarily affect the whole plot which is why it only affected my rating as much.

Honestly, although the plot was amazing, the storyline was not as solid. But the thing is that even that makes sense and that this fits the premise of the plot more. Why? Because it’s a story of 5 criminals with different personalities and specialties, raising a child with a complicated and secret past that only their somewhat “leader” knows. That’s one heck of a rather bumpy ride.

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okay I watch this mainly for yeo jin goo and I know some actors are really good, and I have time so yeah...

The idea was fantastic, the characters seemed genuine. Up until a specific scene inside a warehouse pulls the rug out from under everything that has been built up and spills this into the realm of disposable Korean thrillers, well the ride is entertaining.

The majority of it was tied together with knots, which was fine for the most part but seemed overly complicated toward the end, as if an additional knot had been tied on top of an already perfect knot to create a tangled mess.

Also, I thought that toward the end, the monster aspect wasn't really addressed. They did a nice job of constructing it, but then they just threw it away. What was the purpose then? Additionally, the movie does that thing at the conclusion where people suddenly stop feeling pain. How is he still standing, Idk? I don't care.

Anyways, this time around, the crime family feels much more vulnerable and in danger. I also appreciate the film's really enjoyable action scenes and the fact that Yeo Jin goo's motivation for retaliation feels so deeply personal.

Yes, the acting really caried this movie. and still recommendable to watch.

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Rather thrilling and gripping, yet quite predictable movie. I don’t think they served even one plot line that was not obvious. Even with that, I still enjoyed it quite a lot.

I think the best part of the movie is the lack of realism and sanity? These characters had issues, and I mean serious ones. The whole setup made little sense. They were committing crimes in daylight, often showing their faces, yet no one knew who they were. Sure. Suspension of belief is required to enjoy it.

Another aspect that I greatly enjoyed was the performance. Yeo Jin Goo as Hwa Yi was one of his strongest performances. The amazing on screen transformation that teen went through was just an interesting tale, with quite a satisfying conclusion.

Kim Yoon Seok as Yoon Seok Tae could be described as a cold, tamed madness - rather terrifying character. At the same time, the more I saw of him, the more pathetic he seemed. That said, I am thankful all the bad characters were truly awful, so I could watch without any sense of empathy towards them.

The movie had some unnecessary elements. While I understand why Yoo Kyung was an important person for Hwa Yi’s journey, I believe keeping her more as a symbol of normal life compared to actually getting her to interact with him would be better.

The emotional aspects of the movie depended on the well built relationship between Hwa Yi and the gang members, yet I barely felt anything. There were a few moments that showed him and Yoon Seok Tae have quite a deep, but also complicated bond, but I needed more than two or three scenes of it. Not to mention how all the rest of the characters were painfully one-dimensional.

The visuals were nice. They dive a bit into those gruesome scenes, not shying away from violence. The most powerful scenes though were the few emotional bits delivered by Yeo Jin Goo.

Overall, I would recommend watching for the performances. The cat and mouse chase between Hwa Yi and Yoon Seok Tae was exciting, and the emotional games and manipulation thrilling.

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I got this film recommended by a lot of people so I decided to watch it, but it didn't turn out as great as I had expected. Maybe I just got hyped too much but I wasn't blown away after watching this film. The actors were great and I keep being impressed by Yeo Jingoo's acting which saved the story for me I guess. It was just too much brutal killing and blood for me, despite me being someone who likes gore (most of the time).

The story was quite sad but also very (unnecessarily) violent. As I said, I can enjoy gore or action with a result of violence but this was too much for me most of the time. The film was, if I remember correctly a little over 2 hours long, which I had to watched in parts. Maybe that just took me out of the story but I felt like taking a break after watching 20 to 30 minutes. I still went back every time so the story did get me to wanting to watch more so I could see how the story would end.

All in all an good film, but with a lot of violence. The actors were great just like the way it was filmed. If you like action and are able to handle a lot of violence and blood, I would definitely recommend watching this film.

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Whoa, I expect it to be dark but not this dark. But it took me by surprise, you will feel some emotion which you will think like " wait am' I supposed to be happy, sad, oh snap, or disgusted right now".

The cast was really amazing, especially Yeo Jin Goo. He really played well his role. He really surprised me. It's really hard to find young actors that are really good at playing well their role

If you like movies with action, killing, fighting against what's good or bad. Well, I guess you should give this movie a try. Just see this movie as the Korean version of Hitman. Like a side story. When he was little after becoming a real hitman.

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Ever feel like you're at a loss for words defining a film? Hwayi is that kind of film you feel ten stars and a few common words aren't enough to give you an understanding of what it truly is. Masterpiece. Brutal. Visceral. Painfully honest. Dark in a way that devastates you, sad in a way that scars your very soul. And let's face it, we all hide from the monster and pretend it doesn't exist. But what if the monster you've been running from started controlling you? I'm not even going to get into what scene I liked because you just have to experience it yourself. Just know that you will be put through hell.

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I don't know why I cried so much after the movie was over. The songs played during the credits coupled with the drawings  really hit home for me what happened to him as a whole and all that he lost. His family were terrible people and what they did was a terrible thing but it was so interesting seeing how they all in their own ways and for their own reasons, became a family with him. Watching him become more aware of his morality and taking a stand, it created this dilemma of who he wanted to stay faithful to. Finding out who Hwayi really was just deepened that to another level and broke your heart. I've got to give credit to Yeo Jin Goo, he is an excellent actor. And personally, I was super excited to see that Jo Jin Woong was in this movie. I loved! him in Signal (as we all did of course ????) and he was wonderful in this movie! Without his character, I think I wouldn't have felt as conflicted about the Day Breaker family as I do. I'm really surprised how much I loved this movie. It had just enough depth to make me think but not too much to take away from the action. I'm trying so hard not to spoil anything so this might sound confusing but I couldn't stop thinking about Im Hyoung Taek and his wife, the whole time just imagining all the pain they've gone through as the try to cling to every last shred of hope. Just heartbreaking.

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It took me a long time before I finally watched this movie. I discovered it years ago but only have I decided it is time.
Hwayi tells the story of a boy who stands between his past and his present and finds himself struggling to find who he can trust.

Story- The story is thrilling and keeps you on your toes the whole movie. Hwayi learns the dark secrets of his childhood and has to find out how to deal with them. His life is full of bad things but hidden inside are also some good memories. In general the story is a lot about people and stories having two sides to them. Some people act rough but still care for the others. Don't kid yourself though, this movie is not about the fight between good and evil or about doing the right thing. This story is about being bad for selfish reasons or because you want to protect something precious to you, but there are no good guys in this story, not really. It tells a story of how far revenge can go and whether a person that did something horrible to you can still be loved and called family.

Acting- The cast was amazing. Every single one of them. All of them delivered their characters perfectly and showed us true feelings and gave life to this story full of despair. Big compliments to Yeo Jin Goo. He did an amazing job!

Music- perfect pace, perfect musical background. Quiet when it was necessary, soundtrack when the scene asked for it.

Rewatch- maybe after some time. This story is amazing but also so full of sadness. I don't think I can stomach it so soon again.

Overall- Hwayi offers you a mesmerizing story about a young boy caught between his family who raised him and the real world, where they are the bad guys. The acting is on point and overall this movie deserves being called a masterpiece. It may be hard to stomach but it is a great movie.

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It's 2-hour movie, totally worth it though. I would recommend it to anyone who's interested in mystery, action, drama and psychological genres. Everyone's acting was top notch, I honestly couldn't find any fault in it. Every character in this story was portrayed beautifully, whether it was creepy, vicious or kind. The movie showcases its point in the nature vs nurture debate. One other reason I liked the film was because I could connect with all the main and support characters, it really was a well-written script. Usually, the bad guys are just plain bad guys, but not in this one. Here, we see each person has their own part to play, to further the story, to complete a group's dynamics or to help in another character's development. And I could empathize both with our 'hero' (Hwayi) and with the 'bad guys'.

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At first, I was planning to watch this because of some reasons: 1- Yeo Jin Goo is in the main role, 2-It is a thriller movie but Jin Goo was just 15 in this movie. (I wondered how he is affected from the movie, because he was too young.) And actually I hadn't cared about this movie when I saw it for the first time, thanks to Circle (Jin Goo is in the main role) I got the curiosity to watch this.

Anyways, I watched the trailer yesterday and I even couldn't breathe because of the thrilling and scary aura of it. So I downloaded it yesterday and watched it today. Although the plot's course made me say "OH, GOD, NO!" until the ending, it was a really different story unlike what I used to see in most of movies. The plot was really an original work and I am now applauding whoever this movie's story maker. I even cried in some scenes and couldn't breathe in most of the scenes. I also specify that I am not a person who cries or gets affected because of a movie/drama/book.

I wished there were a novel of this movie... It reminded me the Japanese novel (and also there is a movie of it) that is called "Confessions" somehow. I guess it's because Hwayi is also too young like Shuuya and Naoki, and also he is connected to the crime world just like them, but in a bit different way.

Except these, the characters (especially that crazy detective) were interesting as well. Actors did a really great job, a 15-year-old actor proved his talent in this movie also. The effects and flow of the movie were really impressive, there was nothing that is unnecessary, the makers used the time of the movie so greatly and they didn't make a thing like "waste of time scene", they used every second to satisfy the watchers.

I am not a person who watches or reads a movie/drama/book over and over again if I liked it. However, if I was a person like that, I really would do it. So if you are so, you would watch this movie thousands of times I think.

For the last, you really have to watch this movie, I really recommend it so much!

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