Review: The Witch Subversion

Starring: Kim Da-mi, Jo Min-su, and Choi Woo-shik
Written and Directed by: ​Park Hoon-jung

I actually saw The Witch Subversion a while ago. It was one of those movies that I saw in the discount bin at Big Lots and decided to check out. Since The Witch 2 recently came out, I figured I would review both of them.

​The Witch is a movie about a little girl who escapes a secret lab where they have been experimenting on children. She ends up at a small farmhouse where they raise her for the next ten years. After her friend convinces her to try out for what I assume to be Korean Idol, the secret lab people track her down to bring her back.

Yeah, the escaped lab experiment thing has been done before. What I like about The Witch is the action scenes. I think Park Hoon-jung did a good job of establishing the relationship between Ja-Yoon and her family. Kim Da-mi comes across as an extremely fragile person which really makes it enjoyable when she hulks out and starts using her powers.

The action scenes are a lot of fun and mix CGI with actual martial arts. When Ja-Yoon finally hulks out, it's so much fun to watch her literally tearing her way through these people.

If I had a complaint about this movie is there is way too much hinting at a larger world. Upon second viewing, it was less obnoxious, but upon first viewing it feels like there are a crap ton of people involved in this experiment, when you realize there are really only like three.

There is a twist to the movie that I had actually forgotten about, but I find so enjoyable when it's revealed.

Overall, I really dig The Witch and if you're fairly new to South Korean cinema, I'd recommend checking it out.