Monstrum

A very strange and average mix of an action historical film, a bloody horror with a killer monster, and a demented comedy. Significant for the overall atmosphere are the main characters - two brothers and the adult daughter of one of them. Both of the men are supposed to be both comedic, clumsy characters and former members of the Royal Guard, professional fighters and martial arts masters, and all of these aspects don’t particularly work well together. With the exception of the not-very-functional humor, the film is mostly an effective and entertaining theft of everything possible with a nice camera, a rich set design and decent tricks. Unfortunately, however, the efforts to have serious dramatic concept and comedic exaggeration are quite at odds with each other. (13.10.2018)

This year's Korea is marked by historical horror movies and after the zombie survival Outbreak, there is another piece where the Joseon Dynasty is terrorized by a monster. It's more of a fantasy thriller with nice visual effects, nice sets and a giant CGI monster that, while not breathtaking, I enjoyed. There's a bit of brutality and the finale is pretty spectacular. I had a good time on the whole, but it may be the weakest effort from Heo Jong-Ho. 60% (04.02.2019)

Monstrum is a very strange genre mash-up by our standards, but it is a typical South Korean product. The film combines (sometimes in a very random way) elements of historical action film, horror fantasy and peculiar comedy, and even though it sounds like an inconsistent mix, it somehow worked for most of the running time. By the end, though, Myung was pretty much getting on my nerves with his constant "Father!", and the final confrontation with was a bit out of place, but the film was mostly entertaining and quite fast-paced. PS: In the end, it seemed to me like a hybrid between Brotherhood of the Wolf and any animal horror film about genetic crossbreeding. (20.12.2020)