Since I’m on my school break, aside from keeping up with my reading pile, I decided to also keep up with watching tv series and movies that I’ve had no time to watch because of school. Netflix became my new sanctuary. As for TV series, I just finished watching Santa Clarita Diet (and it’s hilarious! For me it’s the combination of the humor of Modern Family plus the gory-ness of The Walking Dead which are two of my favorite shows so Santa Clarita Diet is indeed a treat for me), started Suits (I’ve watched up to Season 2 many years back and I already forgotten what happened so I decided to start over), also on my list are The End of the F*cking World, Thirteen Reasons Why, Black Mirror, Stranger Things (which I am hoping to finish over the weekend) and Amo (which is the first Filipino show streamed on Netflix and often being referred to as the Philippines’ answer to Narcos with the Story revolving around the Philippine government’s war on drugs). As for the movies, the three movies that stood out for me are The Greatest Showman, Forgotten and The Handmaiden. The last two being Korean movies.

I would like to focus on Forgotten. The film was released in South Korea on November 29, 2017 and was later on released on Netflix where I watched it. I know I should only be reviewing book to movie adaptations considering that this is a book blog but I have to make an exemption with this one. After watching Forgotten, it easily became one of the best movies that I’ve watched in my life.

Before starting the movie, viewers should expect nothing and assume nothing. Prepare for a ton of emotional reveals, domestic drama, paranoia thriller and clever twists and turns. There is no way you can figure how the story will go about immediately.

The book follows the story of Jin-seok (Kang Ha-neul) and his family as they move to a new house. The story then moves to Jin-seok describing his brother Yoo-seok (Kim Mu-yeol) about how he idolizes him because he excels in everything that he does academic or non-academic. What follows is a series of unusual events such as his brother being kidnapped only to return after 19 days without any memory of what happened, hm having scary and realistic dreams, his brother’s suspicious behavior and the noise from the small room upstairs where no one is allowed to enter because the previous owners have not collected their things yet. Then the viewers will be treated to an amazing ride of guessing game as to what is already happening, who’s conspiring with who, what’s the real intention of this character and what’s the actual purpose of that character.

The story as a whole is very twisted. When I thought the story had already shown it’s twist, another twist happens then another revelation is shown. It’s like a story within a story. This movie is so packed up with tension and drama that left me in the edge of my seat throughout the movie. Forgotten also got solid performances from its actors. They all became really true to their characters and effective in portraying their roles. Their performances was flawless for me.

The movie is successful in setting up an eerie tone. The movie is a dense and complex one but the way the storytelling made the story clear and easy to follow. The story is layered but the movie made sure that all the events unfolding are explained. There was no dull moment. The movie made sure that every scene would be engaging. Every scene teased me to continue watching until I reached a point that I had no choice but to continue because I am that intrigued already which eventually lead me awestruck because of an event that I did not expect to happen. The pacing is also good and it went well with the storytelling. It was able to maintain the movies mystery atmosphere.

Overall, this movie is really good in all levels. From the acting department, cinematography, directing to plot. It gave me a good amount of whoa-moments.

Movie Info: When his abducted brother returns seemingly a different man with no memory of the past 19 days, Jin-seok chases after the truth behind the kidnapping. (Netflix)

Rating: 16+
Genres: Crime Movies, Crime Dramas, Dramas, International Movies, Thrillers, Crime Thrillers, Mysteries, Psychological Thrillers
Starring: Ha-neul Kang, Moo-Yul Kim, Young-hee Na
Directed By: Hang-Jun Jang
Written By: Jang Hang-jun
In Theaters: November 29, 2017 (South Korea)
Runtime: 1h 48m
Studio: B.A. Entertainment