The 21+ Best Korean Mystery Thrillers Of All Time
Memories of Murder (2003)
This crime mystery thriller follows the hunt for a serial killer who rapes and murders his women victims. Local detectives Jo Young-Goo (Kim Roe-Ha) and Park Doo-Man (Song Kang-Ho), and Seo Tae-Yoon (Kim Sang-Kyung), a detective from Seoul, take charge of the investigation.
Two of the detectives do not see eye-to-eye because of their differing practices. Doo-Man uses violence to force a confession out of every small-time crook, while Tae-Yoon meticulously goes over documents related to the case to find clues.
However, with the bodies mounting up, they are forced to cooperate with each other and sets up a trap after Tae-yon notices a pattern among the victims’ profile. Their attempt is futile though when another body turns up dead. The detectives are forced to resort to rude measures to crack the case.
This film uses dark humor to downplay the horror but grips the audience with its provocative storytelling about real murders that occurred in the Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province from 1986 to 1991.
Director: Bong Joon-Ho – Screenplay: Bong Joon-Ho, Shim Sung-Bo, Kim Kwang-Rim – Cast: Song Kang-Ho, Kim Sang-Kyung, Kim Roe-Ha, Song Jae-Ho, Byun Hee-Bong, Ko Seo-Hee, Jeon Mi-Sun, Park Hae-Il, Park No-Shik, Seo Yeong-Hwa, Ryu Tae-Ho, Woo Ko-Na – Run Time: 2h 12m