Train to Busan Director's Serial Killer K-Drama is Now on Netflix

Summary

• The director of the acclaimed Train to Busan, Yeon Sang-ho, has been working with Netflix for several years now.
• Today, his new creation, The Bequeathed, is available for streaming.
• The series touches on common Korean horror tropes and delivers a chilling crime story.

Train to Busan made quite a splash in 2016. Of course, Korean cinema had already carved out a niche in global pop culture, and the names of filmmakers like Park Chan-wook and Bong Joon-ho were on everyone's lips. But it was Yeon Sang-ho's zombie apocalypse film that drew in those previously uninterested in the South Korean film industry, introducing many to Korean horror films full of morbid allusions to real historical events and poignant social commentary.

Yeon Sang-ho's global fame continues to grow, and his years-long collaboration with Netflix has been especially helpful: early last year, the streaming service released Jung_E, a full-length epic sci-fi action film praised for its emotional script and VFX, and two years before that, his dark fantasy series Hellbound became a huge hit.

Speaking of the director and screenwriter, his talent is especially valuable for his successful ability to adapt stories like Train to Busan and Hellbound, which are based on the webtoons of the same name. Yeon Sang-ho managed to capture the essence of these stories and convey them competently, deepening their emotional meaning through superb direction.

And so today, January 19, his new live-action adaptation, the occult thriller The Bequeathed, became available on Netflix. Let's break down what the show is all about, and whether or not it should be given the attention it deserves.

Netflix's New Webtoon Adaptation

The Bequeathed is a thriller that can be described as both an occult horror and a police procedural. It is based on the popular Kakao Entertainment webtoon of the same name, written by Kang Tae-kyung and illustrated by Jonoon and Leedo, known for the horror webtoon Ornithophobia.

The plot follows Yun Seo-ha (Kim Hyun-joo, a K-drama star who previously starred in Jung_E), a young woman who suddenly learns of the death of her father's younger brother, who she didn't even know was dead. She inherits a plot of land that is being used as a gravesite. But the strangeness doesn't end there, as her half-brother Kim Yeong-ho (Ryu Kyung-soo) suddenly shows up, obsessively and maniacally demanding his share of the family property.

At the same time, a series of mysterious and gruesome murders occur in the village near the house. Detective Choi Seong-Jun (Park Hee-Soon), who is investigating, believes that the case has something to do with Seo-ha.

Together with Yeon Sang-ho, Hwang Eun-young and Min Hong-nam, Yeon's long-time collaborator who was his assistant on Train to Busan, worked on the script of the live-action adaptation. The Bequeathed also marks Min's directorial debut.

The Bequeathed's Eerie Cinematography

For fans of Korean cinema, The Bequeathed's lush visual style will surely recall other famous representatives of the genre, such as Bong Joon-ho's Memories of Murder: The Hwaseong serial murders had such an impact on Korean society that they have become a generational trauma and part of the cultural code, which is why the motif of murders taking place in a remote village is often found in thrillers and horror films.

The similarity to the cinematography of Na Hong-jin, who directed The Wailing, a well-known horror movie with a somewhat similar plot, is also quite striking. By the way, the use of folk shamanic beliefs that suggest the presence of evil spirits and the possibility of exorcising them is also comparable.

It's not a full-blown supernatural horror, but it's an incredibly suspenseful crime thriller that delves into the psychology of the killer and, like Train to Busan, criticizes the modern Korean political system (especially the incompetence of the police) in a way that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Moreover, the story doesn't end with the series, as the second part of the webtoon will be released today.