Revelations Review: A Thrilling and Heartbreaking Showcase of Twisted Morality

In this Netflix South Korean mystery thriller film, Pastor Min-chan identifies the perpetrator of his son’s kidnapping thanks to a divine revelation, pushing him to seek retribution. Hot on the tail is Detective Yeon-hui, a woman with her own haunting past. These two people, with their own beliefs and mindsets, clash in this haunting tale of morality and righteousness.

The film has a runtime of 122 minutes and is based on a webtoon of the same name by Yeon Sang-ho and Choi Gyu-seok.

Revelations Review

Yeon Sang-ho’s Revelations starts off on a rather dreary note — it’s constantly raining and Pastor Min-chan’s life and career are going nowhere of note. On the other hand, we have Detective Yeon-hui, whose introduction to us starts with her having a panic attack and then tailing just-released convict Kwon Yang-rae, who is stalking a young girl. It’s all-around a very depressing situation.

Of course, considering the plot, it never gets better. Yang-rae stalks and tortures young women and it’s an endless chain of hurt and heartbreak, leaving us reeling from the first minute. The real thrill, however, starts when Min-chan’s young child is kidnapped and he immediately suspects Yang-rae of committing the crime. It’s a cat-and-mouse chase that makes you question your morality constantly, drowning viewers in an endless sea of choosing whether or not you would choose to walk in Min-chan’s footsteps or take the high road. Is there even a high road in this situation?

Director Yeon’s previous work includes Train to Busan, which is a brilliant piece of filmmaking that still has all of my heart. Of course, Peninsula was a mess of epic proportions, but whatever. This Netflix film follows a similarly dreadful atmosphere and tries to keep the storytelling and pacing tight. It’s a thrilling story of the weight of moral and spiritual decisions while Min-chan desperately tries to hide his sins.

The story hinges on these two characters and their mental states. There is no hint of sunshine anywhere, literally and figuratively. While Min-chan struggles with feeling inadequate in his life, with his marital life in shambles and blood on his hands, Yeon-hui’s troubles are a bit more complex as she struggles with grief over her sister’s untimely death. Shin Hyun-been delivers an utterly raw performance, it’s heartbreaking to watch her in every scene as she brings out her character’s plights with utmost dedication. It’s hard to separate her from her character in the film.

On the other hand, Ryu Jun-yeol portrays a more fidgety individual, reeling from a secret that he is unable to keep but not being able to say either. His character is a very interesting addition — he’s neither black nor white, contrary to what one might imagine from a pastor. He’s also sometimes quite pathetic, something that you wouldn’t expect from such a character. I think that’s what makes the film a bit more muddled than one might expect.

That being said, I think the story focuses more on Min-chan than Yeon-hui although you’d expect it to be a bit more balanced. It also gets a bit all over the place sometimes but I guess it has its enjoyable moments. I think that’s more so because of Ryu Jun-yeol’s portrayal of his character. You can slowly see Min-chan going off the deep end and the mixture of a false sense of superiority with his spirituality makes such an interesting watch. I was a little disappointed that the film doesn’t highlight Yeon-hui as much as one would expect though.

Final Thoughts

What’s the moral standpoint of murdering a serial killer who has a young girl captive? And how far is too far when it comes to seeking vengeance? This new Korean drama on Netflix might just be one of the trending movies this month and it makes absolute sense why — it’s a dark and harrowing portrayal of revenge that makes you question everything over and over again.

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