Best Korean Movies on Netflix
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Are you a fan of Korean movies? So is Netflix. The streaming service continues to invest heavily in Korean content, having invested $700 million in it before 2021 and another $500 million last year, as South Korea continues to be one of the fastest-growing markets in Asia.
While Netflix is already streaming several Korean movies that were box office successes, it is also building its own original Korean content. So, whether you’re a fan of Asian horror or crime dramas or you want a funny romance, there’s bound to be a Korean flick on Netflix that you'll like. Here are our top picks that we think you will enjoy.
15. The Call
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Year released: 2020
Director: Lee Chung-hyeon
Budget: $1.5 million
* Note: We included budget or box office numbers or both, depending on how readily available that information was to the public.
Who Should Check Out 'The Call'
This is a supernatural thriller based on the 2011 film, "The Caller." It revolves around two women, Young-sook and Seo-yeon, who are living in the same house — but 10 years apart. Using information from the future, Seo-yeon is able to improve her life. When she tries to do the same for Young-sook, things go awry.
If you're into mystery thrillers with jolting twists and turns, this is definitely a Korean Netflix movie you'll want to watch.
14. Okja
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Year released: 2017
Director: Bong Joon Ho
Budget: $50 million
Who Should Check Out 'Okja'
“Okja” is an action-adventure film with a heart and a message. It follows a little girl’s connection to a very unusual creature and her journey to save him from a cruel fate. It’s from Academy Award-winning director Bong Joon-ho, also known for his films “Parasite” and “Snowpiercer.”
It’s an imaginative film with a lot to say, much like Bong’s other works, and it's definitely worth checking out.
13. The Witch: Part 1. The Subversion
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Year released: 2018
Director: Park Hoon-jung
Budget: $5.5 million
Box office: $24.4 million
Who Should Check Out 'The Witch'
If you’re in the mood for a high octane horror/action flick, then strap in for “The Witch Part 1: The Subversion.” This Korean Netflix movie happens to be the first starring role for actress Kim Da-mi, who’d later go on to feature in the popular TV drama, “Itaewon Class.”
In this film, Kim plays Ja-yoon, a young girl who managed to escape a laboratory following a very violent incident. Years later, she’s a normal girl with a loving family and a seemingly bright future ahead. But when her past catches up to her, what follows is both visually stunning and downright suspenseful.
Check out "The Witch" if you want something that’s a cross between “Stranger Things” and “Black Widow.”
12. Forgotten
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Year released: 2017
Director: Hang-jun Jang
Box office: $9.9 million
Who Should Check Out 'Forgotten'
If you’re a fan of psychological thrillers that leave you questioning what’s real and if the people around you are who they say they are, then you’ll love “Forgotten.”
The protagonist in the film goes from witnessing the kidnapping of his older brother to realizing his family is fake and that his perception of time is off. Or is it? “Forgotten” will leave you guessing until the very end, with a twist you won’t see coming.
11. #Alive
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Year released: 2020
Director: Il Cho
Box office: $14.7 million
Who Should Check Out '#Alive'
If you can’t get enough of Korean zombie TV shows and movies and the horrific existential crises they bring, then #ALIVE should definitely be on your list of Neflix films to check out.
What this movie does well is make you feel the fresh, disorienting horror of being caught up in a zombie apocalypse one never saw coming, driven only by the instinct to somehow stay alive.
10. Tune in for Love
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Year released: 2019
Director: Ji-woo Jung
Box office: $8.6 million
Who Should Check Out 'Tune in for Love'
“Tune in for Love” appeals to the hopeless romantic in all of us. The story follows a couple who falls in love in the 1990s and spends decades missing out on being together. It’s a sweet agony mixed with a bit of “will they or won’t they?”
It's definitely ideal for anyone who wants to take a break from the more stressful horror genre of Korean Netflix movies and get swept off their feet instead.
9. The Drug King
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Year released: 2018
Director: Min-ho Woo
Box office: $14.5 million
Who Should Check Out 'The Drug King'
Set in Busan during the 1970s, “The Drug King” stars Song Kang-ho, who previously made waves with his excellent portrayal as the patriarchal con man in “Parasite.” Here, he’s Lee Doo-sam, a petty smuggler who rises to the top of the illegal drug trade. But everything has a price, and the “drug king” will soon realize that he might not be prepared to pay the true cost.
If you love thrilling crime dramas, definitely give “The Drug King” a watch.
8. Psychokinesis
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Year released: 2018
Director: Sang-ho Yeon
Box office: $7 million
Who Should Check Out 'Psychokinesis'
“Psychokinesis” is definitely not your run-of-the-mill superhero movie. If you’re tired of the two-horse race between Marvel and DC and want something less conventional, this movie features a dad with psychic powers trying to help his estranged daughter and their community, who are up against a ruthless mafia gang.
It's a mix of superpowers paired with a story about a father trying to find his way back to being a good person.
7. Pandora
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Year released: 2016
Directors: Jeong-woo and Jong-woo Park
Budget: $477,000
Box office: $32 million
Who Should Check Out 'Pandora'
If you are a fan of intense disaster movies featuring heroic characters fighting the odds to save the day, then you definitely have to watch “Pandora.”
You’ll also get the opportunity to yell at that one character these movies have who refuses to acknowledge the danger until after it’s way too late.
6. Night in Paradise
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Year released: 2020
Director: Park Hoon-jung
Budget: Unknown
Who Should Check Out 'Night in Paradise'
This is a gritty mafia drama about a man who refuses to betray his gang and, ironically, is betrayed when protecting him from their enemies is seen as too high a price to pay.
Any crime film fan will appreciate “Night in Paradise,” which doesn’t hold back in action scenes or the lesson that, for men of a certain lifestyle, no good deed goes unpunished.
5. Time to Hunt
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Year released: 2020
Director: Yoon Sunghyun
Box office: $6,911
Who Should Check Out 'Time to Hunt'
This dystopian thriller feels like the love child of all heist films and “The Purge,” so there’s hardly a dull moment. You’ll be as nervous and clueless as a group of robbers who find themselves being hunted by a mysterious assassin.
Who will be left standing? You’ll have to stream it on Netflix to find out!
4. The 8th Night
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Year released: 2021
Director: Kim Tae-hyung
Budget: Unknown
Who Should Check Out 'The 8th Night'
If you’re a big fan of Korean horror films that are all kinds of #NOPE, then “The 8th Night” should definitely be near the top of your must-watch list. This movie stars Choi Jin-ho as a disgraced professor who, in a bid to prove his discovery is authentic, unwittingly begins the process of unleashing a powerful demon on the world — you know, as you do.
Follow along with the frantic journey to stop a nearly unstoppable evil. And don't worry, we won’t tell anyone if you watch it through your fingers.
3. The Battleship Island
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Year released: 2017
Director: Ryoo Seung-wan
Budget: $21 million
Box office: $47.3 million
Who Should Check Out 'The Battleship Island'
This harrowing period drama tells the story of Korean workers forced to labor on Hashima Island during the cruel Japanese occupation of Korea in World War II.
This movie is based on the true experiences of hundreds of Koreans and is a moving, if tragic, testament to the human spirit and willingness to survive, no matter how bleak the circumstances.
2. Veteran
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Year released: 2014
Director: Ryoo Seung-wan
Budget: $5.1 million
Box office: $92 million
Who Should Check Out Veteran
An excellent, no-nonsense cop versus an upstart, untouchable rich kid who thinks he can do whatever he wants — what could possibly go wrong?
“Veteran” is an absolute must-see for anyone that’s a fan of thrilling cop dramas. Stream it now on Netflix to find out who comes out on top.
1. Miss Granny
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Year released: 2014
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Budget: $3.2 million
Box office: $51.7 million
Who Should Check Out 'Miss Granny'
If you love supernatural comedies, you should definitely stream "Miss Granny." Oh Mal-soon is a 74-year-old widow who suddenly finds herself in her 20s. Unable to explain the change to her family, she goes into hiding.
Though she is able to relive her youth and find love, she ultimately finds that she must choose between staying in this new form and growing old once more to save a loved one. It’s a story that will bring both laughter and tears to viewers.