STREAMING (스트리�) 2025)

Genre: Thriller/Mystery
Director: Cho Jang-ho
Cast: Kang Ha-neul, Han Sung Yun, Choo Suk Young
Runtime: 1 hr 31 mins
Rating: NC16 (Mature Content)
Released By: Golden Village 
Official Website: 

Opening Day: 27 March 2025

Synopsis: No.1 subscribed live streamer – ‘IDOL’, specializes in criminal profiling and covering crime-related mystery cases. One day, ‘IDOL’ streams about an unsolved serial murder case and ends up unveiling the truth to some dark secrets through his channel.

Movie Review:

This movie will make fans of South Korean actor Kang Ha-neul love him even more. The last time we saw the 35-year-old star, he was fighting to survive the brutal Squid Game in Season 2 of the hit series. Leaving a strong impression as Player 388, he also wowed audiences with his skills in the traditional Korean game of gonggi, which many of us fondly know as five stones.

Now, in this gripping thriller directed by Cho Jang-ho, Kang sheds his likeable charm to take on the role of a morally ambiguous online streamer who will stop at nothing to solve cold crime cases - all in pursuit of lucrative sponsorship deals.

Swapping his Squid Game signature green jumpsuit for a sharp suit, slicked-back hair, and striking tattoos, Kang transforms into Woo Sang, a popular online personality who uses a streaming platform to chase fame, glory, and profit.

The 91-minute movie first shows you how the platform operates before revealing that a serial killer is on the loose. In each unsolved case, the victims are found dead with a piece of their clothing cut off. Sensing an opportunity, Woo Sang vows to track down the so-called "hemline killer".

Teaming up with fellow streamer Mathilda (Han Sung Yun), he stages a roleplay of how the murders might have happened. But when things spiral out of control, Mathilda is abducted instead. As the mystery deepens, Woo Sang continues his livestreams, desperate to maintain his online popularity while racing to uncover the truth behind the killings.

In an age where we consume content effortlessly on our smartphones, this movie offers a unique experience - inviting you to watch its story unfold through livestreams on the big screen.

Much has been said about our shrinking attention spans when watching videos on social media, but this tightly paced thriller ensures your eyes stay glued to the screen. If you understand Korean, you’ll catch even more nuances, as the rapid-fire speech bubbles contain extra content - just like the flood of netizen comments (some more constructive than others) that appear during a livestream on your phone.

The tension is high throughout the movie, and it ramps up as Woo Sang gets closer to uncovering the killer’s hideout and unmasking his identity. In one particularly gripping moment, the location where Mathilda is hidden gets dramatically revealed through the real-time honk of a vehicle. This is an ingenious use of the cinematic medium that heightens the thrill.

Kang delivers an impressive performance as a high-strung streamer who must constantly keep his energy levels high to engage his viewers. While the story takes a dramatic turn with an exaggerated plot twist, it provides Kang the perfect opportunity to showcase an intense, gripping performance. You can almost feel your heart race as Woo Sang desperately tries to pull himself together. A word of warning—there will be blood.

While the movie may not be as clever as Aneesh Chaganty’s Searching (2018) or Will Merrick and Nick Johnson’s Missing (2023) - two standout screenlife mystery thrillers that take a similar storytelling approach - Kang’s enigmatic and compelling performance makes it well worth your time.

Movie Rating:

(Experience the thrill of livestreams on the big screen and be captivated by Kang Ha-neul's enigmatic and compelling performance)

Review by John Li