JP Nunez
If you’re not familiar with Well Go USA, you need to remedy that. They’re one of the best genre distributors out there, and they especially excel at bringing Korean films to the States. For example, they’ve introduced American audiences to modern classics like Train to Busan and The Wailing, and just last month, they gave us the fantasy gem Dr. Cheon and the Lost Talisman. When I first heard that Well Go USA was going to distribute a new Korean horror movie called Exhuma, I knew I had to check it out. I couldn’t wait to see what unique twists this film would put on the genre, and after finally getting the chance to watch it, I’m happy to report that it does not disappoint.
Exhuma was directed by Jang Jae-Hyun, and it stars Choi Min-Sik, Kim Go-Eun, Yoo Hai-Jin, and Lee Do-Hyun. The film follows a group of four spiritual experts—two shamans, a feng shui master, and a mortician—as they work to rid a wealthy family of a nasty curse. They trace the malediction to the gravesite of one of the family’s ancestors, and they decide that the best course of action is to exhume the body and cremate it. However, as you can probably guess, things don’t go nearly as smoothly as they expected. Before they can finish the job, someone tampers with the coffin and unwittingly sets off a chain of supernatural violence nobody could’ve seen coming.
Admittedly, that plot synopsis might sound a bit vague and even a little generic, but trust me, Exhuma is fantastic. For starters, the acting is top-notch. Everybody in this movie transforms into their character so completely and effortlessly that if I didn’t know any better, I wouldn’t have known that these were just actors playing roles.
Moreover, they also imbue their characters with the kind of charm that makes them an absolute joy to watch no matter what they’re doing. As the credits began to roll, I felt like I could’ve continued watching them for another five hours. Seriously, this is one of the best all-around horror casts I’ve seen in a while, and those great performances ground the story and keep you invested in it from beginning to end.
On top of that, Exhuma also has some awesome horror. The film is saturated with a palpable atmosphere of utter dread, and those moments let us know without a doubt that something terrible is coming. However, for large portions of the movie’s runtime, we’re not sure what it could be, and that uncertainty adds to the eerie effect.
Along similar lines, the scares in this film are also excellent. Unlike many mainstream American horror, Exhuma doesn’t rely on jump scares to frighten us. Instead, the movie is more concerned with creating creepy moments that will get under your skin, and they’re super effective. In particular, there are a number of scenes that involve mirrors, and they’re almost guaranteed to send a chill down your spine.
Last but not least, I want to talk about the story of Exhuma and the unique mythology behind it. I can’t say too much without spoiling the film, but suffice it to say that this is very different from the kind of supernatural horror Western audiences are used to. It’s not just a ghost haunting a house or tormenting an innocent family. There’s a lot more going on here, especially in the second half, and the story takes some unexpected twists and turns that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
This movie isn’t based in Christianity. Instead, it takes its cue from Eastern belief systems, which I appreciate. Don’t get me wrong, as a Christian myself, I love my Christianity-based horror, but I also enjoyed seeing this film’s riveting shamanistic rituals and intriguing feng shui mysteries. There’s a ton of really interesting lore out there that mainstream Western filmmakers have ignored for decades, so it’s refreshing to see something other than the same well-worn genre tropes we’ve been spoon-fed our entire lives.
All that being said, the story is also the one area where I think Exhuma stumbles a little bit. The movie sets up some intriguing mysteries surrounding the gravesite the main characters dig up, and as it slowly reveals its secrets, the whole thing starts to feel a bit overstuffed. There’s just a lot going on here, and it’s tough to take it all in on one viewing. Maybe I’ll get it all straight in my head on subsequent rewatches, but for now, I feel like the story isn’t quite as tight as it should be. To be fair, part of that might be my fault, not the film’s. The mysteries surrounding the man’s grave seem to be connected to parts of Korean history I’m not familiar with, so it might come together more satisfyingly for you if you have a better grasp of Korea’s past than I do.
Either way, Exhuma’s shortcomings in no way derail the entire experience. The good in this movie far outweighs the bad, so while I don’t think it’s quite as good as The Wailing and Train to Busan, it’s definitely a worthy entry in Well Go USA’s catalog of Korean genre releases. It’s one of my favorite films of the year so far, so if you get a chance to see it, I highly recommend that you check it out.
Exhuma hit theaters in LA on March 15, and it’s set to expand throughout North America on March 22.
