Sightlines · reception
How I Saw the Devil was received
2010 · Kim Jee-woon · I Saw the Devil on Sightlines
The arc
On release it was so extreme that Korea's ratings board twice slapped it with a 'restricted' rating, and Western critics split between 'masterful' and 'torture porn' — now it's settled comfortably into the canon as one of the defining Korean revenge thrillers of its era.
What’s debated
The forever-debate: is it a genuine moral interrogation of revenge or just gorgeously-shot sadism wearing a message as an alibi?
Its footprint
It's a fixture of every 'most disturbing films' and 'Korean revenge cinema' list ever made, and the rotating single-take taxi scene gets clipped and referenced constantly as a how-did-they-do-that set piece.
Where it stands
A Letterboxd horror-thriller favorite and a rite-of-passage recommendation — the 'if you loved Oldboy, brace yourself' film of the K-revenge canon.
Did you know? The Korea Media Rating Board twice gave it a 'restricted screening' rating — effectively blocking theatrical release — forcing Kim Jee-woon to trim footage before Korean audiences could legally see it in cinemas.