Connect (커넥트) is a Korean thriller series directed by Takashi Miike and stars Jung Hae-in, Go Kyung-pyo, Kim Hye-joon and Jo Bok-rae, alongside other cast members. The series has 6 episodes, each with a runtime of around 50 minutes.
Disney+ describes the series as:
Dong-soo’s ordinary life is upended when he loses an eye to an organ hunter and gets connected to the vision of a notorious serial killer.
– Connect Review Does Not Contain Spoilers –
There is a lot going on with Connect, Disney+’s newest venture into the Korean drama boom. The series reminded me somewhat of Hannibal, starring Mads Mikkelsen, but the similarities end with the pretty murder-art combinations. The K-drama series is a wild ride from the first minute of the first episode and leaves you scratching your head sooner rather than later.
With multiple things happening together, the series is a thriller that demands a lot of time and patience and much like any other thriller TV show, it keeps you hooked to its twisted premise and odd and uncomfortable visuals.
The thriller goes down a rather deep sci-fi black hole after a while, with multiple people joining in to eat a rather gross cake and multiple things happening together at the same time. It’s a story of finding yourself and togetherness in a world where the norm is to look out for your own self. Thus, even in the bleakness and violence, small moments of happiness shine like a beacon. These moments are few and far between but add some much-needed emotional attachment to the story.
Ok, coming to the thrilling aspects of it – Connect takes its sweet time to get to the point. Sometimes, it drags on and on for too long, making you want to skip ahead. But for the most part, the K-drama is entertaining and twisted enough to have fun with. It never really gets too gory at any point, and the CGI is a bit wonky in places.
Yet, I was really intrigued and wanted to figure out what exactly was going on and get some answers. The shared vision thing is really neat, and it made for some thrilling moments, although, again, if the series had cut down on some scenes, it would’ve made for a tighter watch. Thus, even with its interesting moments, Connect fails to make an impact or leave you reeling.
Also Read: Behind Every Star Episode 10 Recap and Review: Actor v Director and a Shocking Truth
It’s a shame because I was really looking forward to the series. It looks and feels right – like something that is meant to work thanks to its brooding atmosphere and that creepy song. But it loses itself somewhere in its 6 episodes. Eventually, its need to do too many things is what makes it not attention-grabbing throughout.
The last episode is by far the most outlandish and stretched, so much so that it’s a difficult task to sit through it without feeling the weight of it all. It’s uninteresting, especially because you know what’s going to happen, and unfortunately, it ends on a cliffhanger without giving too many answers on top of everything. At times it gave me Stranger Things vibes, and at other times, I just wanted the story to get to the point, which really took away from the watchability of the series.
The series delves into organ trafficking as well, and without getting into it too much, I think it’s an interesting thing that the series adds to a rather macabre tale. It fits right into it, to be honest, considering this is very much a body horror show, and it adds an extra layer of craziness to the storyline. Do we sometimes spend a bit too much behind these thugs? Sure. But I think it did add somewhat of an extra layer of intensity, especially within the dreary walls of a surgery room where only bad things happen.
That being said, Jung Hae-in and Go Kyung-pyo are simply so arresting as their respective characters. The latter, especially, as Oh Jin-seop is really unsettling to watch. His subtle and mild mannerisms go really well against Ha Dong-soo, who is hot-headed and very quick to do things. They are the perfect storm together, and it’s interesting to watch them butt heads. The cinematography is excellent and adds to the threatening aspects of the series. If it wasn’t for these factors, I don’t think Connect would’ve been half as arresting as it is.
Summing Up: Connect
Connect majorly misses the mark and ends up being a been there, done that series. Although I loved the moody atmosphere and interesting story-building, the storytelling never really reaches that edge-of-the-seat thriller aspect leaving you feeling rather dissatisfied in the end.
Connect is streaming on Disney+.
Also Read: I Hate Christmas Review: Another Desperate Search for a Holidate!
I totally agree with this, I noticed a lot of symbolism within the series, but I felt that symbolism was thrown to the gutter when it attempted to bite off more than it could chew in 6 episodes. On top of that, some things were never explained, like weaknesses of connect beings, what some of the characters were (like that masked connect, which never explained anything about how he was mutated like that, why he wore a mask) everything was left to be assumed. Also, I didn’t like the cliffhanger ending, too many questions as is.
I would like to add on, I would have loved to see the reason for Oh’s corpse art. But also why did that specific song cause them to share visions? Was it when there was a certain sound frequencies their eyes conencted? Or something else?