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Blind (2011)
This movie was amazing! Having watched Midnight, I had more interest in looking for other stories that feature a similar scenario. And lo... this movie came to my attention. And considering the movie also feature Seungho as one of the leads as well as this movie turned out to be Bogum's debut work... well I have to say that my interest was captured.
I have to say that this was the first time I'm seeing Kim Haneul in a crime thriller and I'm really loving it. She really did a great job portraying a blind person who used to be a police cadet. I have to say the same regarding Seungho. While I think I recall somewhere about him feeling that his earlier acting works weren't that much good, I'd like to say that I disagree. I like his character here as Giseob. And I also like the dynamics between Kim Haneul and Seungho as two unlikely witness to a crime in progress who later grew closer in a sibling-like relationship.
There are quite a few things that I really liked about this movie. First thing though, was the fact that Soo-ah had not given up in readmitting herself to police university after being expelled for breaking rules and using handcuffs on her brother (which leads to his death). I like the fact that the people around her (like her head mother, Detective Jo and later even Giseob) were also supportive of her, believing that her disability was not a weakness and that it was those words of encouragement that kept her back on her feet when she almost lost belief in herself. I like how the suspense element and conflict were written in a very realistic and believable way.
The mystery and suspense was quite thrilling as our witnesses and attending police officer join together to identify the serial killer. Any fans of psychological thriller would be able to enjoy this movie. And this movie, like Midnight, also gave us a glimpse of how people with disabilities live their life and deal with the challenges that arise from it. Aside from the crime thriller element, the writing on the characters were done well and allows you to relate with their life stories and plight.
Blind Witness (2019)
Since I was on a roll and found out that Blind had a remake (actually there were two more but I haven't watched the Chinese or the Hindi one), I thought that I might as well watch this remake as well. Since I'm no stranger to seeing remake of Korean movies or dramas into Japanese (and vice versa) I do get curious as to how the remake would turn out. Especially as Japanese remakes do try to give their own spin to the shows they were based on. But since I've already seen the original, it's unavoidable that there will be some comparison to the original.
Like the original movie, Blind Witness also deals with a serial kidnapper who killed unsuspecting women and crossed paths with a blind woman and a young boy who ended up witnessing his deeds. Safe to say on that level, the original and remake share a common trait. But aside from that, this movie was as different to the original as it was similar.
For starters, this remake showed us a bit more of Natsume's former life as she undergoes several trainings as an officer. Unlike Soo-ah who we're already introduced as a police officer in-training, we barely get to see what she's like before aside from a childhood memory and a past recording of her university admission with her family. In contrast, the remake didn't really show much about Daiki before he died aside from Natsume dragging him home from an outing with his friends and the sequence leading up to the accident. The relation between the two were also different. While Soo-ah and Donghyun weren't actual siblings, Natsume and Daiki were. The same can be said for their mother. The accidents that killed the younger brother was also different. The accident in the original was much more traumatic and tragic to Soo-ah but in this remake the accident played out to be much more simplified. In both cases, Soo-ah and Natsume blamed themselves for their brother's death though Soo-ah was expelled from university while Natsume quit.
The circumstances in which the witnesses cross paths with the killer were also different. Unlike Soo-ah, Natsume wasn't targeted by the killer; and instead of a hit-and-run case, the victim was already being kidnapped in the car as Haruma ended up being the who was almost hit by a car. While in the original the police had reacted much quicker after finding out that a missing case coincide with a statement given by Soo-ah, in this remake, the realisation that this is a criminal case happened much more slower due to the different setting in which the missing cases were unknown to the public. Social media also was much more prominent in this remake as the original dealt with a much more conventional method of gathering information as well as conventional media reporting. Unlike the original, Natsume and Haruma did a lot more investigation by themselves instead of aiding/leaving it to the police. And the biggest difference of all would be the kidnapper himself. While the general MO of the killer still remained the same, the identity of the killer was different. The murders were different as well: in the original it was a typical serial kidnapping and murder while in this remake, the murders were actually a copycat murders from another closed case.
Nevertheless, there was still some elements and plot devices that remained the same. Although the order of events and outcomes were written differently, there were still some familiar scenes. Mainly the killer's attempt to kill the secondary witness, the confrontation between the killer and the first investigator, the chase at the subway station and the final confrontations between the killers and the two witnesses.
Regardless, this remake had its own charm too. Though if you have seen the original movie, this remake may feel a bit underwhelming for you. In any case, it's been a long while since I saw any of Mahhi's recent acting works since his Gaim days. so it's a pleasure to see him in this movie.
This movie was amazing! Having watched Midnight, I had more interest in looking for other stories that feature a similar scenario. And lo... this movie came to my attention. And considering the movie also feature Seungho as one of the leads as well as this movie turned out to be Bogum's debut work... well I have to say that my interest was captured.
I have to say that this was the first time I'm seeing Kim Haneul in a crime thriller and I'm really loving it. She really did a great job portraying a blind person who used to be a police cadet. I have to say the same regarding Seungho. While I think I recall somewhere about him feeling that his earlier acting works weren't that much good, I'd like to say that I disagree. I like his character here as Giseob. And I also like the dynamics between Kim Haneul and Seungho as two unlikely witness to a crime in progress who later grew closer in a sibling-like relationship.
There are quite a few things that I really liked about this movie. First thing though, was the fact that Soo-ah had not given up in readmitting herself to police university after being expelled for breaking rules and using handcuffs on her brother (which leads to his death). I like the fact that the people around her (like her head mother, Detective Jo and later even Giseob) were also supportive of her, believing that her disability was not a weakness and that it was those words of encouragement that kept her back on her feet when she almost lost belief in herself. I like how the suspense element and conflict were written in a very realistic and believable way.
The mystery and suspense was quite thrilling as our witnesses and attending police officer join together to identify the serial killer. Any fans of psychological thriller would be able to enjoy this movie. And this movie, like Midnight, also gave us a glimpse of how people with disabilities live their life and deal with the challenges that arise from it. Aside from the crime thriller element, the writing on the characters were done well and allows you to relate with their life stories and plight.
Blind Witness (2019)
Since I was on a roll and found out that Blind had a remake (actually there were two more but I haven't watched the Chinese or the Hindi one), I thought that I might as well watch this remake as well. Since I'm no stranger to seeing remake of Korean movies or dramas into Japanese (and vice versa) I do get curious as to how the remake would turn out. Especially as Japanese remakes do try to give their own spin to the shows they were based on. But since I've already seen the original, it's unavoidable that there will be some comparison to the original.
Like the original movie, Blind Witness also deals with a serial kidnapper who killed unsuspecting women and crossed paths with a blind woman and a young boy who ended up witnessing his deeds. Safe to say on that level, the original and remake share a common trait. But aside from that, this movie was as different to the original as it was similar.
For starters, this remake showed us a bit more of Natsume's former life as she undergoes several trainings as an officer. Unlike Soo-ah who we're already introduced as a police officer in-training, we barely get to see what she's like before aside from a childhood memory and a past recording of her university admission with her family. In contrast, the remake didn't really show much about Daiki before he died aside from Natsume dragging him home from an outing with his friends and the sequence leading up to the accident. The relation between the two were also different. While Soo-ah and Donghyun weren't actual siblings, Natsume and Daiki were. The same can be said for their mother. The accidents that killed the younger brother was also different. The accident in the original was much more traumatic and tragic to Soo-ah but in this remake the accident played out to be much more simplified. In both cases, Soo-ah and Natsume blamed themselves for their brother's death though Soo-ah was expelled from university while Natsume quit.
The circumstances in which the witnesses cross paths with the killer were also different. Unlike Soo-ah, Natsume wasn't targeted by the killer; and instead of a hit-and-run case, the victim was already being kidnapped in the car as Haruma ended up being the who was almost hit by a car. While in the original the police had reacted much quicker after finding out that a missing case coincide with a statement given by Soo-ah, in this remake, the realisation that this is a criminal case happened much more slower due to the different setting in which the missing cases were unknown to the public. Social media also was much more prominent in this remake as the original dealt with a much more conventional method of gathering information as well as conventional media reporting. Unlike the original, Natsume and Haruma did a lot more investigation by themselves instead of aiding/leaving it to the police. And the biggest difference of all would be the kidnapper himself. While the general MO of the killer still remained the same, the identity of the killer was different. The murders were different as well: in the original it was a typical serial kidnapping and murder while in this remake, the murders were actually a copycat murders from another closed case.
Nevertheless, there was still some elements and plot devices that remained the same. Although the order of events and outcomes were written differently, there were still some familiar scenes. Mainly the killer's attempt to kill the secondary witness, the confrontation between the killer and the first investigator, the chase at the subway station and the final confrontations between the killers and the two witnesses.
Regardless, this remake had its own charm too. Though if you have seen the original movie, this remake may feel a bit underwhelming for you. In any case, it's been a long while since I saw any of Mahhi's recent acting works since his Gaim days. so it's a pleasure to see him in this movie.
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