Korean filmmaker Yeon Sang-ho has traded zombies for psychological horror in his latest Netflix thriller, digging deeper into the darkness of human nature while keeping his signature moral complexity intact.
In Yeon’s latest Netflix thriller “Revelations,” a pastor believes punishing the culprit behind a missing-person case is his divine mission, while a detective haunted by visions of her dead sister pursues her own truth. The film represents a deliberate shift toward more intimate storytelling for the acclaimed director of “Train to Busan” and “Hellbound.”
“With ‘Revelations,’ I wanted to delve deeper into human nature and emotions,” Yeon explains in an interview with Variety. “To really deep-dive into human fragility, I needed an intimate storyline, not a grand-scaled one.”
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The film stars Ryu Jun-yeol (“A Taxi Driver,” “The 8 Show”) as Pastor Sung Min-chan, Shin Hyun-been (“Hospital Playlist,” “Reborn Rich”) as Detective Lee Yeon-hui, and Shin Min-jae (“Parasyte: The Grey”) as Kwon Yang-rae. Oscar-winner Alfonso Cuarón serves as executive producer, having discovered Yeon’s work after watching “King of Pigs” at Cannes.
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Despite the shift to a more contained narrative, Yeon continues exploring the moral complexities that have defined his filmography. “This film centers around the dilemmas of two individuals,” he says. “Min-chan is a character who imposes meaning on random things to justify his greed. He actually drives himself to fanatically believe in what he made up. Yeon-hui is a person who has to face her harrowing trauma and go right to the center of it all. And when she succeeds in doing that, she will find redemption.”
Yeon’s keen interest in human vulnerability remains at the core of his storytelling. “I am very much intrigued by fragilities and vulnerabilities people harbor. I am a vulnerable human being myself, so I see those sides in me, in others and in society in general,” he reflects. “That leads me to deeply ponder on how we can overcome those fragilities.”
The global success of zombie horror “Train to Busan” in 2016 catapulted Yeon onto the international stage, though he maintains his approach hasn’t fundamentally changed. “I realized that issues that are relevant in Korea also ring true for the global audience,” he notes. When developing “Revelations,” Yeon initially considered it “a uniquely local story,” but Cuarón convinced him of its universal appeal.
“I thought we may live in different parts of the world, but we all share the same feelings,” Yeon says. He also appreciates how Netflix’s global distribution model allows audiences worldwide to experience his work simultaneously. “Since ‘Revelations’ is being released globally on Netflix at the same time, viewers around the world can share their thoughts on the film without any delay.”
Yeon continues expanding his distinctive filmography with two upcoming projects. “The Ugly” follows Im Dong-hwan, son of a renowned blind seal engraving artisan, exploring “what it means to overcome and rise above society’s hatred.” Meanwhile, “Gunche” offers a fresh take on the zombie genre by focusing on “the unique characteristics of zombies” rather than apocalyptic origins.
Throughout his career, Yeon has moved seamlessly between animation and live-action, with each medium serving different storytelling purposes. “Animations would be more symbolic and declarative; live-action films would be more realistic,” he explains. Looking ahead, the filmmaker who began his career with independent animation expresses interest in tackling a commercial animation project.
“I’ve started my career with animation and at the time I worked on many independent animations,” Yeon says. “I keep thinking I’d love to try a commercial animation. If I get the chance, I’d love to try a commercial animation project.”
As his projects have grown in scope, Yeon remains focused on the relationship between production elements and a film’s essence. “The easiest way to change the soul of a movie is to change its body —body meaning production,” he observes. “I’m quite intrigued in how a different production would change the soul of a movie.”
With “Revelations,” Yeon Sang-ho continues cementing his reputation as one of Korea’s most thoughtful genre filmmakers, using supernatural elements and psychological horror to examine the complexities of human nature.
“Revelations” is streaming now on Netflix.
