My top Korean movies
by vincent_schraa | created - 21 Jan 2013 | updated - 19 Nov 2015 | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. Oldboy (2003)
R | 120 min | Action, Drama, Mystery
After being kidnapped and imprisoned for fifteen years, Oh Dae-Su is released, only to find that he must track down his captor in five days.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Choi Min-sik, Yoo Ji-tae, Kang Hye-jeong, Kim Byeong-Ok
Votes: 635,393 | Gross: $0.71M
2. Lady Vengeance (2005)
R | 115 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
After being wrongfully imprisoned for thirteen years and having her child taken away from her, a woman seeks revenge through increasingly brutal means.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Nam-mi Kang, Jeong-nam Choi, Hye-Sook Go, Bok-hwa Baek
Votes: 86,072 | Gross: $0.21M
3. Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring (2003)
R | 103 min | Drama, Romance
A boy is raised by a Buddhist monk in an isolated floating temple where the years pass like the seasons.
Director: Kim Ki-duk | Stars: Kim Ki-duk, Oh Yeong-su, Jong-ho Kim, Kim Young-min
Votes: 86,793 | Gross: $2.38M
4. The Chaser (2008)
Not Rated | 125 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A disgraced ex-policeman who runs a small ring of prostitutes finds himself in a race against time when one of his women goes missing.
Director: Na Hong-jin | Stars: Kim Yoon-seok, Ha Jung-woo, Seo Yeong-hie, Kim Yoo-jung
Votes: 72,737
5. Samaritan Girl (2004)
R | 97 min | Drama
Jae-Young is an amateur prostitute who sleeps with men while her best friend Yeo-Jin "manages" her, fixing dates, taking care of the money and making sure the coast is clear. When Jae-Young... See full summary »
Director: Kim Ki-duk | Stars: Lee Eol, Kwak Ji-min, Han Yeo-reum, Hyun-min Kwon
Votes: 14,076
6. Pieta (2012)
Not Rated | 103 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A loan shark is forced to reconsider his violent lifestyle after the arrival of a mysterious woman claiming to be his long-lost mother.
Director: Kim Ki-duk | Stars: Jo Min-soo, Lee Jung-Jin, Woo Ki-hong, Eunjin Kang
Votes: 15,763 | Gross: $0.02M
7. A Tale of Two Sisters (2003)
R | 114 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
After being institutionalized in a mental hospital, Su-mi reunites with her sister, Su-yeon, and they return to live at their country home. But strange events plague the house, leading to surprising revelations and a shocking conclusion.
Director: Jee-woon Kim | Stars: Lim Soo-jung, Yum Jung-ah, Kim Kap-su, Moon Geun-young
Votes: 68,251
8. My Sassy Girl (2001)
Not Rated | 137 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A young man sees a drunk, cute woman standing too close to the tracks at a metro station in Seoul and pulls her back. She ends up getting him into trouble repeatedly after that, starting on the train.
Director: Jae-young Kwak | Stars: Cha Tae-hyun, Jun Ji-hyun, In-mun Kim, Song Wok-suk
Votes: 50,476
9. Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance (2002)
R | 129 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A recently laid off factory worker kidnaps his former boss' friend's daughter, hoping to use the ransom money to pay for his sister's kidney transplant.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Shin Ha-kyun, Bae Doona, Lim Ji-eun
Votes: 75,113 | Gross: $0.05M
10. Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War (2004)
R | 140 min | Action, Drama, War
When two brothers are forced to fight in the Korean War, the elder decides to take the riskiest missions if it will help shield the younger from battle.
Director: Kang Je-kyu | Stars: Jang Dong-Gun, Won Bin, Eun-ju Lee, Kong Hyeong-jin
Votes: 41,068 | Gross: $1.11M
11. Joint Security Area (2000)
Not Rated | 110 min | Action, Drama, Thriller
After a shooting incident at the North-South Korean border DMZ leaves two North Korean soldiers dead, a neutral Swiss and Swedish team investigates what actually happened.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Lee Yeong-ae, Lee Byung-hun, Song Kang-ho, Kim Tae-woo
Votes: 34,185
12. Memories of Murder (2003)
Not Rated | 132 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
In a small Korean province in 1986, two detectives struggle with the case of multiple young women being found raped and murdered by an unknown culprit.
Director: Bong Joon Ho | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Kim Sang-kyung, Kim Roe-ha, Song Jae-ho
Votes: 216,152 | Gross: $0.01M
13. A Moment to Remember (2004)
PG-13 | 117 min | Drama, Romance
A young couple's enduring love is tested when 27-year-old Su-jin is diagnosed with a rare form of Alzheimer's disease.
Directors: Park Kyung-Jin, John H. Lee, Kim Tae-Won | Stars: Jung Woo-sung, Son Ye-jin, Jong-hak Baek, Lee Seon-jin
Votes: 25,557
14. Friend (2001)
Not Rated | 113 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Four childhood friends go their separate ways, two go off to college while the others become rival gangsters.
Director: Kyung-taek Kwak | Stars: Yu Oh-seong, Jang Dong-Gun, Seo Tae-hwa, Un-taek Jeong
Votes: 5,320
15. Masquerade (2012)
Not Rated | 131 min | Drama, History
A look-alike commoner is secretly hired to take the place of a poisoned king to save his country from falling into chaos.
Director: Chang-min Choo | Stars: Lee Byung-hun, Ryu Seung-ryong, Han Hyo-joo, Kim In-kwon
Votes: 7,441 | Gross: $0.92M
16. The President's Last Bang (2005)
102 min | Comedy, Drama, History
A look at the life of President Park Chung-hee and the events leading up to his assassination.
Director: Im Sang-soo | Stars: Han Suk-kyu, Baek Yun-shik, Song Jae-ho, Kim Eung-soo
Votes: 1,568 | Gross: $0.01M
17. The Attorney (2013)
Not Rated | 127 min | Drama
An ambitious tax attorney decides to represent an old friend in court.
Director: Woo-seok Yang | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Kwak Do-won, Im Si-wan, Oh Dal-su
Votes: 7,595 | Gross: $0.56M
18. Time (2006)
Not Rated | 97 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance
To save her relationship, a woman puts herself through extensive plastic surgery.
Director: Kim Ki-duk | Stars: Ha Jung-woo, Park Ji-yeon, Baek Gwang-Doo, Jung Gyu-woon
Votes: 12,876 | Gross: $0.01M
19. A Bittersweet Life (2005)
Not Rated | 119 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Things go wrong for a high ranking mobster when he doesn't follow his boss's orders.
Directors: Jung Doo Hong, Jee-woon Kim | Stars: Lee Byung-hun, Shin Min-a, Kim Yeong-cheol, Hwang Jung-min
Votes: 42,906
20. The Man from Nowhere (2010)
R | 119 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A quiet pawnshop keeper with a violent past takes on a drug-and-organ trafficking ring in hope of saving the child who is his only friend.
Director: Lee Jeong-beom | Stars: Won Bin, Kim Sae-ron, Kim Tae-hoon, Kim Hee-won
Votes: 74,824 | Gross: $0.01M
21. The Bow (2005)
Not Rated | 90 min | Drama, Romance
On a fishing boat at sea, a 60-year old man has been raising a girl since she was a baby. It is agreed that they will get married on her 17th birthday, and she is 16 now. They live a quiet and secluded life, renting the boat to day fishermen and practicing strange divination rites. Their life changes when a teenage student comes aboard...
Director: Kim Ki-duk | Stars: Han Yeo-reum, Ji-Seok Seo, Jeon Gook-hwan, Seong-hwan Jeon
Votes: 11,790
22. The Warrior (2001)
R | 158 min | Action, Drama, History
1375. Nine Koryo warriors, envoys exiled by Imperial China, battle to protect a Chinese Ming Princess from Mongolian troops.
Director: Kim Sung-su | Stars: Jung Woo-sung, Ahn Sung-ki, Ju Jin-mo, Ziyi Zhang
Votes: 11,262
23. Breath (2007)
84 min | Drama
A love story involving a convicted prisoner who "slowly falls for a woman who decorates his prison cell".
Director: Kim Ki-duk | Stars: Chang Chen, Kang In-hyung, Park Ji-ah, Ha Jung-woo
Votes: 5,109
24. Il Mare (2000)
105 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance
In 1999, a voice actor moves from Il Mare, a seaside house, and leaves a Christmas card in its (magical) mailbox. An architecture student receives it in 1997, and a friendship separated by 2 years begins.
Director: Hyun-seung Lee | Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Jun Ji-hyun, Mu-saeng Kim, Jo Seung-yeon
Votes: 9,456
25. Daisy (2006)
Not Rated | 110 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
About a tragic love triangle story involving young painter Hye-young, Interpol detective Jeong Woo, and professional hitman Park Yi.
Director: Andrew Lau | Stars: Jun Ji-hyun, Jung Woo-sung, Lee Sung-jae, Sara Bernardo Aires
Votes: 6,676
26. I Saw the Devil (2010)
Not Rated | 144 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A secret agent exacts revenge on a serial killer through a series of captures and releases.
Director: Jee-woon Kim | Stars: Lee Byung-hun, Choi Min-sik, Jeon Gook-hwan, Chun Ho-jin
Votes: 146,117 | Gross: $0.13M
27. Mother (2009)
R | 129 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A mother desperately searches for the killer who framed her son for a girl's horrific murder.
Director: Bong Joon Ho | Stars: Kim Hye-ja, Won Bin, Jin Goo, Yun Je-mun
Votes: 71,612 | Gross: $0.55M
28. Architecture 101 (2012)
G | 118 min | Drama, Romance
A 20-year-old architecture student, falls in love with a music student. However, he fails to confess his feelings to her, and they grow apart. 15 years later, she reappears before him and asks him to design her house.
Director: Lee Yong-ju | Stars: Uhm Tae-woong, Han Ga-in, Lee Jehoon, Bae Suzy
Votes: 4,101
29. The Isle (2000)
Not Rated | 90 min | Drama, Thriller
Working at a fishing resort in an idyllic location, but surrounded by various facets of human unpleasantness, a young mute woman falls in love with a man on the run from the law for committing murder.
Director: Kim Ki-duk | Stars: Jung Suh, Kim Yu-seok, Cho Jae-hyun, Jang Hang-seon
Votes: 14,712 | Gross: $0.02M
30. 3-Iron (2004)
R | 88 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
A transient young man breaks into empty homes to partake of the vacationing residents' lives for a few days.
Director: Kim Ki-duk | Stars: Lee Seung-yun, Jae Hee, Hyuk-ho Kwon, Joo Jin-mo
Votes: 58,249 | Gross: $0.24M
31. I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK (2006)
Not Rated | 107 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A girl who thinks she is a combat cyborg checks into a mental hospital, where she encounters other psychotics. Eventually, she falls for a man who thinks he can steal people's souls.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Lim Soo-jung, Rain, Park Byeong-eun, Kim Byeong-Ok
Votes: 25,887
32. Love Phobia (2006)
117 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A boy falls for a mysterious girl who keeps disappearing.
Director: Ji-eun Kang | Stars: Cho Seung-woo, Kang Hye-jeong, Ju-yeon Byeon, Jung Jin-young
Votes: 907
33. The Classic (2003)
127 min | Drama, Romance
A college student finds a diary detailing a long-ago love triangle involving her mother, her future father, and his best friend.
Director: Jae-young Kwak | Stars: Son Ye-jin, Zo In-sung, Cho Seung-woo, Lee Ki-woo
Votes: 10,129
34. The Berlin File (2013)
PG-13 | 120 min | Action, Thriller
Jong-seong, a North Korean ghost agent, interrupts an illegal arms sale in Berlin. A notorious North Korean agent tests the loyalties of everyone involved as Jong-Seong prepares to make the ultimate sacrifice.
Director: Ryu Seung-wan | Stars: Ha Jung-woo, Han Suk-kyu, Ryu Seung-beom, Jun Ji-hyun
Votes: 7,630 | Gross: $0.67M
35. The Thieves (2012)
Not Rated | 135 min | Action, Comedy, Crime
After a heist in South Korea, a gang of 5+1 fly to Hong Kong to look into a heist, in a Macau casino, of a $30M diamond, planned by someone unreliable. He brings in HK thieves as well. Can anyone be trusted?
Director: Dong-hoon Choi | Stars: Kim Yoon-seok, Lee Jung-jae, Kim Hye-su, Jun Ji-hyun
Votes: 11,542 | Gross: $0.69M
36. Address Unknown (2001)
R | 117 min | Drama, War
Romances end in blood and the frail hopes of individuals are torn apart in a vile karmic continuity of colonialism, civil war and occupation. After surviving Japanese colonization, Korea ... See full summary »
Director: Kim Ki-duk | Stars: Yang Dong-kun, Min-jung Ban, Kim Young-min, Pang Eun-jin
Votes: 3,881
37. Thirst (2009)
R | 134 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
Through a failed medical experiment, a priest is stricken with vampirism and is forced to abandon his ascetic ways.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Kim Ok-bin, Choi Hee-jin, Seo Dong-soo
Votes: 51,388 | Gross: $0.30M
38. Bad Guy (2001)
Not Rated | 100 min | Drama, Romance
An unfeeling gangster seeks to ruin the life of a young girl who rejected him. He forces her into prostitution and spies on her regularly, then he soon begins to fall for her.
Director: Kim Ki-duk | Stars: Cho Jae-hyun, Won Seo, Kim Yun-tae, Choi Deok-moon
Votes: 10,593
39. Kiss Me, Kill Me (2009)
Not Rated | 103 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
Also called Kiss me, Kill me A contract killer's life gets complicated when he fails to kill his target, a girl who wants to die because of a bad break-up.
Director: Jong Hyeon Yang | Stars: Shin Hyeon-jun, Kang Hye-jeong, Kim Hye-Ok, Park Chul-min
Votes: 739
40. War of the Arrows (2011)
R | 122 min | Action, Adventure
A skilled Korean archer goes up against the mighty force of Manchus with the sole purpose of rescuing his kidnapped sister.
Director: Han-min Kim | Stars: Park Hae-il, Ryu Seung-ryong, Kim Mu-yeol, Moon Chae-won
Votes: 12,798 | Gross: $0.25M
41. The Good the Bad the Weird (2008)
R | 130 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
The story of two outlaws and a bounty hunter in 1940s Manchuria and their rivalry to possess a treasure map while being pursued by the Japanese army and Chinese bandits.
Director: Jee-woon Kim | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Lee Byung-hun, Jung Woo-sung, Yun Je-mun
Votes: 37,927 | Gross: $0.13M
42. Arirang (2011)
100 min | Documentary, Drama
Documentary on director Kim Ki-Duk looking back at his film career.
Director: Kim Ki-duk | Star: Kim Ki-duk
Votes: 1,337
43. Windstruck (2004)
123 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
The heart-warming romance story between Kyungjin and Myungwoo. Even though he has passed away, he will be always with Kyungwoo forever.
Director: Jae-young Kwak | Stars: Jun Ji-hyun, Jang Hyuk, Kim Soo-ro, Lee Ki-woo
Votes: 7,709
44. Helpless (2012)
Not Rated | 117 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
A man searches for his fiancée who vanished without a trace just before their wedding ceremony, only to discover the shocking identity of her.
Director: Young-Joo Byun | Stars: Lee Sun-kyun, Kim Min-hee, Jo Sung-ha, Song Ha-yoon
Votes: 2,528
45. A Million (2009)
114 min | Thriller
Eight young people try to survive a deadly game show for the million-dollar prize.
Director: Min-ho Cho | Stars: Jae-ho Baek, Lee Cheon-hee, Seo-wu Choi, Shin Dong-mi
Votes: 517
46. Where the Truth Lies (2009)
100 min | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
Dramatization of a real homicide which remains unsolved as investigators cannot determine which of two youths is the culprit.
Director: Ki-Seon Hong | Stars: Natallia Bulynia, Lee Eung-jae, Oh Gwang-Rok, Peter Holman
Votes: 546
47. Shin-gi-jeon (2008)
Not Rated | 134 min | Adventure, Drama
An historical, epic tale of Korea's creation of Singijeon, a variation of the Chinese fire arrow.
Director: Yoo-jin Kim | Stars: Jeong Jae-yeong, Han Eun-jeong, Huh Joon-ho, Ahn Sung-ki
Votes: 894
48. Kariseuma talchulgi (2006)
PG-13 | 100 min | Comedy
Han Jung Soo is the typical good guy, with friends and good at school. But due to some misunderstanding others mistake him with the legendary Seven Cutter and his life becomes really hard.
Director: Nam-ki Kwon | Stars: Ahn Jae-mo, Yoon Eun-hye, Myeong-hun Cheon, Park Hyo-joon
Votes: 756
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