Movie Review: Park Seo-Joon Plays A Kickboxing Exorcist In The Divine Fury

Starring Park Seo-Joon, Ahn Sung-Ki, Woo Do-Hwan

Directed by Jason Kim

God works in mysterious ways in the Korean supernatural thriller. So, don’t bother asking why He picks lapsed Catholic Yong-Hu (What’s Wrong with Secretary Kim’s Park Seo-Joon) to fight evil. A MMA champ, Yong-Hu has fallen out with the Big Guy Upstairs over a childhood tragedy.

When he suddenly shows signs of the stigmata — haemorrhaging wounds on the head, wrists and ankles, where Christ was pierced on the cross — on his right hand, he approaches avuncular Vatican priest Ahn (Ahn Sung-Ki, looking like a Faceapped version of Tony Leung Chiu-Wai) for help.

The padre says the gash is a gift, but the atheist thinks the Almighty has made a mistake. They argue a lot but before you know it, they're kicking ass for the Lord as exorcise buddies. Their nemesis is the Dark Bishop (Woo Do-Hwan), a serpent demon who runs a nightclub called Babylon (real subtle), replete with a chic underground sacrificial altar.

All in all, it's entertaining, if a little uneven, hodgepodge of theology drama, kickboxing thrills and demonic scares. ​​​​​​(***)

Photo: Golden Village