The Devil (2023)

A solid, worth-your-time watch if you really love horror and mystery

Although this was more of a mystery-thriller than a horror for me, nevertheless there was a time when I felt like there was someone watching me beyond a door at night while I was in the middle of watching this series. I loved the overall idea, the premise, the twist and the ending. I also liked that the police were involved as well, and there was a nice overlap of natural and supernatural. I could not stop clicking on the next episode, one after the other.
The only complain I have about the drama is the motive behind the actual spirit's hatred/resentment. That could have been more fleshed out. But overall, I really enjoyed this.

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Promising premise but drag midway too much

San Young ended up being possessed by a juvenile ghost when she touched a cursed inheritance. This ghost takes control of her body, acts beyond her consciousness, and separates from her body to commit murders. A folklore professor Hae Sang, who is able to see ghosts met her and try to get rid of this ghost.

Revenant is a supernatural thriller drama with a promising premise set up strongly in the first 4 episodes. Besides our male and female lead investigating these based on the folklore pov, the two police officers investigating them through logic pov. I like how both of them were coming to the same conclusions despite working in very different ways, but I wish that they interacted a little bit more.

Production-wise, the camera angles, lighting, and the sets are creepy yet intriguing. Kim Tae Ri's portrayal of San Young is perfect; whiplashing between her character and being possessed. The folklore aspect are described with clear rules and they follow these rules. It’s very important to the story so I appreciate the writers for that.

But the plot is super slow after 6 episodes. It’s like watching the same episodes, and our protagonists are mostly bark but not bite. Each case did give clues, but they were repetitive and the lessons about folklore is a bit preachy.
They conveniently wrap up well, but left some loose ends.

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Thank God I didn't drop it

So when I first watched it on its release day on Disney+, honestly, I dropped it just after 10 mins or so. I thought the story was a bit stupid with weak suspense. But, I watched it again, after the season ended. So can tell I had no interest in it. But God knows what really happened and I started the show once again from the beginning. And omg, I couldn't believe myself. I have this rule called "never watch what u dropped" and most of the time I follow it but this show made me break that rule cuz I loved it.
The suspense, thriller, story and ending was fabulous.
They did a good job in hiding the main culprit till the very end. The mystery plot was well constructed. Scary parts r minimal with hardly anything scaring u but still the ghost plot was well written.
I m so glad that I watched this show again.

Overall, a must watch show

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If you´re ready for what lies beyond the obvious & don´t mind a gloomy scenario, go for it

For those who don't blench from paranormal dimensions, "Revenant" is certainly a must-see KDrama. Pretty much everything is done right here. "Revenant" is a crime thriller that transcends time and space, embracing a world that is more than meets the eye and the rational mind. “Revenant” also belongs to the genre of supernatural, even horror-mystery productions. However, to reduce it to that would not do justice to this KDrama.

Demons, ghosts of the deceased, people who can see such entities, and people possessed by these entities are all traditionally deeply rooted in South Korean culture. Folk religion and shamanism are still present today – sometimes more, sometimes less, sometimes not at all relevant to the individual, yet nevertheless present. "Revenant" is deeply rooted within this national culture, with Shamanistic rituals being explicitly involved here. In the mass consciousness, the supernatural world has retained a firm place over the millennia. "Revenant" specifically refers to that, (unfortunately without going into detail regarding its backgrounds.) In that sense, "Revenant" is not an unusual SBS-KDrama production for the South Korean audience. At the same time via Disney+ Streaming-Platform this series is exporting a piece of its rich national culture across the border, too - superficial as it as such may remain.

In "Revenant" Kim Tae-ri and Oh Jung-se, however, show high-end performance. Actually overall, this KDrama is in general characterized by its great casting. The acting alone makes it worth seeing. The story is unpredictable and complex, so are the relationships. Additionally, it draws from the long tradition of South Korean folk beliefs, ingeniously mixing it with a modern, rather scientific, investigative approach.

Be prepared for a suspenseful plot. The attraction of "Revenant" lies in the dramaturgically intelligent and fascinatingly presented interweaving of crime thriller and multidimensionality of being. It is obscure, too. In “Revenant” people are possessed by ghosts of the deceased, who are acting in an almost criminal manner. With conventional police investigation, murder executed by such astral beings, who materialize their intentions through their mental occupation of human bodies, are difficult to uncover.

Should you watch it? If your are ready for what lies beyond the obvious, yes. If you don´t mind a gloomy scenario, yes. It is different from your ordinary KDrama, though.





PS:
For me, however, "Revenant" is not just another highlight in a KDrama tradition that is rather fearless regarding the paranormal. The production is also one of a noticeable number of KDramas, that transcend time and space as well as this world and the afterlife, which are increasingly flooding the screens. (Especially in 2023 with i.e. "Island", "My Perfect Stranger", "See you in my 19th Life", "Heartbeat", "Durian's Affair", "Miraculous Brother" … and the year is not over yet). Ghosts, demons, reincarnations, time travel, you name it – the worlds overlap and mix, with time and space having become relative. The curtains between different dimensions are increasingly lifted. The paranormal is becoming more and more normal in the worldwide mass consciousness. Multidimensionality is a topic that people obviously increasingly like to deal with. It isn´t necessarily horrifying anymore. Not in South Korea, nor elsewhere on this planet.

In general, I find that quite inspiring, since dealing with multidimensional spaces, times and beings, has a potential to opening up new perspectives towards life. (Even if it may not all be logically satisfying yet.) It is offering a potential towards a more conscious appreciation of what makes us being human, too.



PPS:
One appealing, even salutary message that "Revenant" (somewhere along the line) would have to offer: the 'evil' intentions of the astral beings can only be as evil as the human 'hosts' allow. At some point the human has to give his or her 'Ok'. If a person has no resentment or greed and is at peace with the world, then there is not much harm wandering ghosts or astral beings in the near-earth realms can do. That would be good news, wouldn´t it... yet… compared to ghosts, eventually human beings can easily be the more frightening creatures here...

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perfect all the way to the last episode.

i can not recommend this show ENOUGH. it was absolutely perfect, i enjoyed every second of this. if you're thinking of watching a show that contains elements of mystery, horror, thriller and pure emotion i need you to watch this immediately! the characters are so well structured and i was on my toes every episode, if you've not watched this now then i have no idea what you are doing?!

the first episode is quite slow but a nice warm up for the introduction for the rest of the episodes, then they follow in such a smooth way. i am so amazed by all the actors in this show, kim taeri is known for her performance especially in emotional scenes but this particular show has shown more scenes of her true excellence of acting. absolutely outstanding.

emotional. heart-wrenching. breath-taking. suspenseful. horrific. and an absolute 10/10 show. this is the kdrama of the year for me.

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The Guest's laid-back younger sibling

The Guest and Revenant do not configure or understand "horror" as an impulse that turns us away from encounters. Elements of "horror" such as dread and the sense of the uncanny add to their artistry and interest. They are an expansion of possibilities that give us insight into certain experiences without having to go through them ourselves

Their "spirits" serve as instruments of metaphor and morality. They offer the best window they know on the questions of how we perceive things and how we do or do not behave on the basis of our perceptions

"There are so many evil people in this world already" (The Guest, episode 3, 10:00)

"Who's worse? A spirit or a human who caused all of this to happen?" (The Guest, episode 5, 6:15)

"Humans are scarier than spirits" (Revenant, episode 2, 14:48)

"The spirit told me that I was satisfying my own desires. This is the real me" (Revenant, episode 6, 1:01:10)

Much like The Guest, Revenant takes seriously the darkness within ourselves; a darkness that cannot be overcome with technological wizardry

The two metaphorically embody the dangers of recklessness and greed, transforming the source of fear from a distant other to something familiar in ourselves. The revulsion we feel at "horror" is a revulsion at ourselves. The terror of the possessed is supplanted by the delight of the "spirits," which can be shared by the audience. Of course, some sensitivity to the emotions of the "spirits" is obligatory

Why is Revenant The Guest's laid-back younger sibling? Because The Guest is a better, more mature story than Revenant

It is The Guest's close affinity with fear that accounts in part for its uniqueness. It evokes deeper, more personal fears in the starkest terms. Unlike Revenant, no so-called "romance" complicates it

Gendered norms and fetishized interactions between men and women are a stable ideology and field of identification for society. The stability is intentionally and heroically disrupted by The Guest

Rather than reiterate cultural conservatism, The Guest points to the wreck the gendered norms have become

To undermine any conservative sense of reassurance, the home of a priest was a conduit; one that was permeable to the outside. It was no longer isolated; it was invaded by a "spirit"

It is from this fuzziness that we see the fragility of the constructions of public and private spaces, of sexuality, of home and family, of society as a whole

We are still likely to experience anxiety and fright in Revenant. All-pervasive, able to amuse and delight, the "spirit" of Revenant is a territory for the grotesque and the sublime. I bid her Happy Haunting

Sincerely, someone who doesn't believe in "spirits"

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NOT A SINGLE EPISODE BORES ME. BEST KDRAMA OF THE YEAR

I'm completely obsessed with this drama! I know the drama is good when I binge-watch several episodes in one day!!!

This is the kind of drama I've been missing. It has old detective/investigation vibes in kdrama. The characters are all good at capturing our attention, and the plot thickens from the first episode you watch.

I really recommend this kdrama if you enjoy watching classic detective dramas. It's not a normal investigation, but trust me, it has that vibe. Kim Tae Ri and Oh Jung Se never disappoint, they are fantastic actors. This drama is not just about ghosts, jumpscares, no! It has a good lesson.

Update: I just finished watching this and highly suggest it to everyone. This kdrama is really well-balanced; it can be quite chilling, and then it can get extremely emotional. I burst into tears while watching the final episode because im so happy with the plot and the ending :') This kdrama is the best kdrama i have watched this year. Packed with emotions, lessons, and actions. Kim Tae Ri should be given a Daesang award for her outstanding performance in this drama. Not a single episode is dull.

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Não abre a porta!

Impressionante! Fazia tempo que eu estava querendo ver um thriller de qualidade, e esse realmente alcançou minhas expectativas. Apesar de serem dramas bem diferentes, me lembrou um pouco de The Priest, um dos meus dramas favoritos, deve ser por isso que amei tanto Revenant!
Logicamente, devo ressaltar a atuação perfeita do elenco, já era de se esperar atuações incríveis vindo de Kim Tae Ri e Oh Jung Se, fiquei maravilhada! Amei o desenvolvimento de todos os personagens, o detetive Lee Hong Sae conquistou meu coração. A trama muito bem elaborada, as peças se juntando a cada episódio, fazendo tudo ficar cada vez mais interessante. Sentirei saudades!

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Good but somthing missing kind of over rating

I love to watch this kind of stories.. normally i find horror dramas from my drama list or mistakenly find them.. but this is not like that i found that from fb and lot of ppl talking about it and make mems and stories from it. They talk about how scared them while watching this.. but i did not found this that scarry and i feel kind of boring.. i fell sleep few times while watching this.. writer try to made exitment like they firsly think ghost mokdan but itz not etc etc.... but i feel like itz just so so.. when i watchd it calmly i feel and i know what will going to hpnd and when ghost going to apear etc etc... so for me it kind of boring... ghost is not scarrier but FL did her best and she is really tallented actress.. and yes i did not get or feeling angry with ghost even bit she is just poorlittle girl who did not get attention or anything.. she just try to live itz not her fault.. and in last scene they should have add happy ghosts without just talking about how happy ghost are..

As for acting all r good..

Overall even itz not too much exiting and scarry you can manage.. even itz over rating drama it still watchable..

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Grabe can't stop watching!

I liked the story, hindi siya boring every episode talaga ma e excite ka.
buti nlng finished na ung drama before ko siya pinanuod kundi mag aantay pa ako sa mga susunod na episodes.

Ang galing ng script writer nito kasi hindi ka talaga ma bo bored habang pinapanuod mo. Been watching kdramas for over 6 years na, and napaka seldom ko magbigay ng review tlga unless natuwa ako sa story.

Yung feeling niya habang pinanonood ko is maihahalintulad ko sa The Guest. ganun ung pagka suspense thriller niya.
maganda din ang ending. watch nyo guys, hindi sayang sa oras :)


highly recommended. 5 star

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