Revelations

FAITH TURNS TO OBSESSION

**UPDATED REVIEW**

Revelations is a gripping thriller that explores faith, guilt, and the consequences of misguided beliefs. The story follows Seong Min-chan, a small-town pastor who becomes convinced that a mysterious new churchgoer, Kwon Yang-rae, is responsible for his son's disappearance. A shocking chain of events unfolds, leading to tragic mistakes and desperate attempts to uncover the truth.

The film expertly builds tension through Min-chan’s escalating obsession. The moment he realizes his mistake, after already pushing Yang-rae down a slope, is particularly harrowing. Yet instead of remorse, another eerie "revelation" drives him forward, solidifying the film’s disturbing take on how people justify their own sins under the guise of righteousness.

Detective Yeon-hui, a woman battling her own demons, is also on Yang-rae’s trail. Haunted by the death of her younger sister, she is relentless in her pursuit of the truth, but her personal grief often clouds her judgment. Her panic attacks and emotional breakdowns add another layer to the film’s psychological intensity, showing that justice, like faith, is often muddied by human frailty. As she pieces together the case, her path inevitably collides with Min-chan’s, leading to a confrontation that forces both of them to confront the true nature of evil.

The film keeps you on edge with its dark atmosphere and intense suspense. As Min-chan struggles with his faith and guilt, the story takes unexpected turns, making you question who the real villain is. The performances are powerful, especially in the emotional and psychological moments. The cinematography also adds to the eerie feeling, using shadows and lightning to create a haunting effect.

But what makes *Revelations* so impactful is its refusal to provide easy answers. By posing the question, "Where does the evil that creates the devil come from?", the film challenges audiences to reflect not only on individual corruption but also on the structural forces that foster it.

The ending is thought-provoking and leaves a strong impact. Revelations is a must-watch for those who enjoy psychological thrillers with deep themes and moral dilemmas. It’s a movie that stays with you long after it ends.

Read More

We are patterns seeking creatures.

And when you mix that with religious fanaticism driven by guilt and fear, you are on a highway to hell.

Revelation for sure falls stronger on psychological thriller than supernatural horror. It’s not the scares, but the mystery that is the focus point of the movie. How far will Min Chan go? What will be his next action? And who will suffer the consequences.

The movie shows how religious belief can literally alter your perception and find patterns in places they don't exist. The way Min Chan saw Jesus literally everywhere from mountains to altars, angels in the sky - all to unconsciously convince himself he is on the right path and everything that happens is the god's will. Just to take the responsibility off of his back.

While I appreciated the fact we witnessed how easy it is to slip into religious fanaticism, I wish the introduction to the main character was a bit more elaborate and detailed. Not everyone spirals so bad when faced with the situation he was facing - what made him go so far? What internal and external factors led to that outcome? It’s something this story did not explore enough.

Surprisingly, what I enjoyed a lot was the fact that Seong Min Chan was actually not the smarter guy, I would even call him dumb. I mean… googling about the potential legal consequences of the crime you just committed is literally helping the police and prosecution with the investigation. And that was just one of many idiotic decisions and actions he made.

Acting wise - great. What else to expect from this cast. Obviously the most spotlight fell on Ryu Jun Yeol and og boy he delivered. The psychological change his character went through from beginning till the end and so well portrayed I wish this was a short drama and not just a movie. On the other hand, some of the supporting actors kind of missed the mark, especially Moon Joo Yeon as Min Chan’s wife.

As much as I liked the production, somehow I wished the “holy images” he saw in random things were just slightly more vague. At the same time, I feel like they kept being more clear the more obsessed and delusional he became. Maybe it was just a visual way to present how much his perception is being affected by his mental state.

Overall, it was a weirdly light watch? Taking into consideration how serious the crimes of the criminal were, how far into delulu Min Chan went, I did not really feel that tense - more on the side of curious and entertained.

Read More

Good Psychological Thriller ! Sad to see low ratings.

Like Actors have fans, some filmmakers also have fans. One of the few Korean filmmakers who have fans, Yeon Sang Ho is one of them. The audience watches his movies and dramas irrespective of actors. He created a benchmark for his works.

Revelations movie 2025 one of his recent works, collaborated with Screen Writer Choi Gyu Seok, both worked for Hellbound drama.

This movie runs on a thin line between the faithfulness of a religion and things, events which happen bound to happen or caused by coincidence. The movie raises thought proving questions about whether events are divinely ordained or simply the result of chances. The psychological story resolves between 3 main characters and embodying justice, fate, morality.

Characters Study.

1) Pastor Min Chan - He believes he is acting on divine revelations and executing divine justice. But his true nature unravels when trying to kill Detective Yeon Hee and doesn't care about the victim girl's life. While he claims to act on divine revelations and his earlier actions might have been marked as righteous punishments ( forgiving his wife's adultery, making lord confession with her, trying to confess his crime with the another pastor, trying to execute the criminal) but when he faced with exposure he resorts to murder for survival. This moment raises a key question - was he truly guided by faith or was he just using religion to justify his own sense of power and control.
This moment also deepens the movie's core theme - how easily faith can be manipulated to serve the personal motives of humans.

2) Detective Yeon Hee, - She stands at the moral crossroads and in two minds between professional duty & personal vengeance making her internal struggle one of the most compelling aspects of the movie. Her journey is not just about chasing the criminal- it's about confronting her moriarty. She has every reason to seek avenge but doing so would mean crossing the same line as those she hunts. At the same time she is faced with the chance to save a life, which contradicts the urge for vengeance burning inside her.

3) Criminal, The Fate --
he carries his traumatic past and eventually starts crimes with his traumatic past. This character embodies both victimhood & villain. His traumatic past shaped his actions and while he carries immense guilt the law takes his side. However, regardless of his traumatic past or anything once he commits a crime, his past can no longer excuse and becomes irrelevant in the eye of society & law. His fate Death - symbolizes the inescapable consequences of crime regardless of past suffering.

The Cinematography & the background music are awesome. Great acting from Shin Hyun Been & Ryu Jun Yeol. I personally like writing that exploring the psychological themes of humans. There's a word in the movie " You see, most tragedies in life are created by humans to justify themselves. Things like the devil and monsters are created by humans to justify themselves." This movie needs more recognition. Forget MDL ratings, just watch the movie and decide for yourself. I say " Sometimes the best way to know if a movie is good is to experience it yourself ".
I'm sure this movie gives you time-worthy entertainment.

Read More

The human obsession of justifying

I've never been that big of a fan of movies in the past. I've always found them to be too short for me to get invested in, unlike dramas. But I'm now noticing that a movie, like this one, seems to have a stronger/more clear message in it. At least for me it did. This movie portrays very well the problem I have with religions. To quote the psychiatrist: "Things like the devil and monsters are created by humans to justify themselves."
When someone else does something bad, they are the devil's spawn, but if you yourself do something bad, that must've been God's will. Of course, complete nonsense.
I was going to give this a 7/10 at first, but that quote alone made me change it to an 8/10. Great movie, incredible acting.

Read More

not really worth it

I thought that the main focus will be to find aeyong (?), the kidnapped girl, but that wasn't the focus at all actually - like expected for the few small clips in the beginning of the girl (before she got kidnapped) and then in the very end, also only a few clips. Also they didn't show at all how or where or when exactly he kidnapped her noir anything else related to the kidnapping. I won't spoiler whether she was alive or not since I didn't put a spoiler tag here on purpose, in case someone wants to watch it exactly because my review is so low rated as in "it can't be that bad, right?" then those people should have the chance to do so without any spoilers. talking about no spoilers, this movie has no spoilers at all, you know from the beginning who the kidnapper is.

I personally had the hopes that they would show us in the first half the "kidnapper" but then in the second half reveal that it's actually someone else but nope.. you just know from the beginning who it is. it's not an evil mastermind either.

I read a few comments before making this review, that many people knew that the pastor will be .. involved into some crimes, so I assume this won't be a spoiler, but just in case;

POSSIBLE SPOILER AHEAD:

the ML has at first a small misunderstanding with the villain, thinking he kidnapped his son, he finds out that's not the case after the villain almost dies. anyway the ML gets the chance to confess to his crime due to meeting with the detectives who ask him about the interaction with the guy. he doesn't admit anything. then he becomes completely delusional because he is offered a better career opportunity (idk how to word it honestly, but still) like he is ready to not only keep quite about what he did but also willing to continue his crime in the name of God, completely loosing his touch to reality. he also finds out that his wife is actively cheating on him, having a whole affair, he forcibly makes her confess it to him and for God to forgive her - but only so he can keep his job opportunity, not out of love lmao.

of course the ML also gers lucky multiple times to not get caught by for example the dashcam, cctv, or literally by a witness - and that multiple times and it's literally just pure luck, not even because he is smart or anything, this is so underwhelming in my opinion.

also notice how, 99% of the time, Koreans use Christian religion for those kind of thriller kdrama? I have watched many already, some better than others, but so far I never came across a kdrama that uses for example Buddhism, Muslims or any other religion, I just wonder why? I'm personally not that much into religion, not an atheist either, but what's the hyper fixing on Christian religion?

SPOILER END

Last thing that I have to say is .. some movies are basically "boring" for a specific amount of time on purpose, so the viewers get the hope that the end will be good, like they are doing it for the grande final, a climatic end - THIS IS NOT THE CASE WITH THIS MOVIE. the end is quite underwhelming as well, just like the overall movie, so if you have hopes that the end will make it worth it - it really doesn't.

I can recommend for example "mouse" with Lee seungi, in case some people who read this haven't watched it yet, it's a dark thriller as well that includes religion basically (but not kidnapping if I remember right, other crimes are happening there tho) and that one has many plot twists.

in the end this is just my personal opinion, as mentioned before anyone can watch it regardless of my review, I doubt this movie will be popular in any means, I just wish I had read such a review before giving it a chance.

Read More

Making the unbelievable believable

Insane suspense and foreshadowing for a crime film that comes with its very own unique twist of beliefs, and that irony thrown onto religious worshippers is just top class technique that makes even the unbelievable believable, as if we are all bound to these complicated crossroads of destiny by default. The cinematography and sound was so well handled, although the pacing of the story might lack a little of those solid punches, but that one-take closing sequence really redeemed its strength for the overall execution of the plot, and the director has successfully done such a divine work once again.

Read More

What is the role of the abnormal? While lacking, certainly thought-provoking

Most of the movie I was in a state of -- Ok, ok, interesting, boring, typical, oh ok, obsession, ok. what is with this pacing. Ah. come again. boring, typical, hm. Then?

As you follow the movie you notice an interesting pattern. All the characters had a specific pattern in their thinking. Tragedy - Unbearable pain - Justification - New behaviour. How do they turn a neutral stimulus into an explanation? Then into conviction, into justification.

The last quarter of the movie, one of the characters said quite a profound thing:

"You think it's all your fault.
He blamed his tragedy on the monster.
The third on, God's revelation.
You blame yourself.
These sound different but they're actually the same.
You all fixated on one thing as the cause of a situation.
Most tragedies are caused by a combination of circumstances we can't control.
Devil, monsters and the like, they are created by people seeking justification."

It kind of shook me because indeed seems plausible.

What if our anxieties are justifications for something?

Overall, a worthwhile psychological breakdown. Last 15 minutes saved this movie. Even though production was lacking, the story was intriguing and thought-provoking.

A recommend.

Read More

SO WHO IS MORE CRAZY, MORE DISTURBED, OUT OF THE THREE? haha

Good Psychological Crime Thriller.
Not bad n yet not so gripping too .
Just mediocre.

When Netflix listed this in "coming soon", I waited to watch this.
Expected a very Gripping Mystery thriller, seeing the MYSTERIOUS VIBE of "COVER PHOTO"
IT DECEIVED ME !! :( 🤭

****
Direction, Pacing n Cinematography are GOOD.

I accept every tradition n can tolerate religious rituals etc, shown in movies, especially in horror thrillers.
But One Minor Complaint here, in direction is, too much of in depth religious prayers are shown.
Maybe those are necessary for the scene or the story demanded but I personally lose interest when rituals or prayers are shown in excess tones.

****
Acting is OK, not so impressive.

In few scenes, Jun Yeol's (pastor Min Chan) expressions are more crazy n scarier than those of the killer 😂
Liked those scenes .

**** STORY:
The Story is Good.
A very simple one - a killer, a kidnapped gal, a pastor trying to punish the killer n a police detective trying to save the gal.

Narrated in a very straight forward manner without much suspense .
It is known who the killer is, from the beginning.
So cannot expect any suspense or mystery about the killer's identity, like in usual crime thrillers.
And so, Crime Thriller Lovers might find this as a not so gripping mystery but just a plain n mediocre thriller without much mystery n suspense :/

The only suspense here is, whether the kidnapped girl is alive or no n that is maintained till the end.

This could be made into an even more interesting thriller with more gripping mystery n suspense elements .
(Or maybe, for this plain story, shouldn't we expect much !? :O)

**** CHARACTERS:
SO WHO IS MORE CRAZY, MORE DISTURBED, OUT OF THE THREE? 😂

The Psychopathic Serial Killer with childhood trauma, triggered n created deadly events
or
(Pastor) Religious Faith turned into Obsession that blinded the logics of reality n blurred the truth (he assumed the gal is not alive, without confirming :| )
or
The Person working for law (lady police detective) seeing illusions of dead sister out of guilt, tempted to take the law into her hands, suppressing that urge to avenge her loved one's death n yet struggling to do the right thing!

This mix of three characters each with some psychological issues, the intertwining of their stories, is WELL WRITTEN .

But could be better, if more suspense or mystery elements are added.

****
Overall, GOOD One Time Watch.
My Rating is 8 / 10

**** Fun Fact:
Like Min Chan, I can see a "FACE" in the COVER PHOTO, between the trees ! :O
Optical illusion!?

Before watching the Movie:
I just saw "a way" between the trees.
But after watching the movie:
I see a face! :o
Am I dreaming 🤭

Read More

Personal Demons

Wow, this is very engaging and atmospheric movie. From the first scene where disturbing drums mix with harmonious church singing to the last scene where ... hm, i can't reveal the ending but I can say that it left me with a strong impression. The three main protagonists share the same sense of supernatural, each in their own way. They all have a gift of extraordinary guidance, which is also their curse. So the question is: do these people have true revelations, are they haunted by their evil demons or is it something else? This movie is a very good example of a psychological thriller-drama and i really liked how it all turned out. There is a message here for all of us, and maybe also some therapeutical advice.

I would have to go into spoilers if i really wanted to comment my opinion on the movie. So i will skip that. The actors were okey but i needed a little more expression. The highlight is the music which sets the right tone for the whole movie. The resolution of the plot was a little bit sloppy with some sudden revelations and solutions, but the main worth of the movie is the conversation starter about faith.

Read More

A Promising Mystery That Loses It’s Way

Yeon Sang-ho’s latest Netflix film, Revelations Kdrama, is a psychological crime thriller that explores the downfall of a pastor after a life-changing event and a troubled detective tracking a serial kidnapper.

The movie weaves together the lives of these two characters in a way that feels like a nod to classic Korean crime dramas. Of the two, the pastor’s storyline is far more gripping. He starts as a quiet, devoted man focused on growing his small church, but his encounter with a mysterious and menacing visitor sends him spiraling into a completely different person.

On the other hand, the detective’s arc feels generic. While not badly written, it leans too much on familiar tropes. Haunted by visions of her deceased sister—who died tragically—she struggles with guilt and becomes obsessed with a kidnapper who once held her hostage and is now free. Eventually, these storylines converge, and that’s when the film truly shines.


Read More: https://www.dramadaze.com/revelations-kdrama-review-a-promising-mystery/

Read More

My Review of the Movie Revelations:

I watched the film over two days. It falls under the genres of horror, mystery, and fantasy. At first, I was intrigued by the poster—it gave off a strange and gripping vibe that made me want to understand the meaning behind it. However, by the second day, I found myself confused due to a lack of clarity in several key points.

The movie is interesting and manages to keep the viewer engaged, building curiosity about who the villain truly is. But halfway through, the amount of unexplained mystery becomes overwhelming. It leans more towards a Western horror style rather than the Korean touch I expected.

There were several logical gaps that felt overlooked during the storytelling. For example:

The criminal was wearing a sensor bracelet—typically, any attempt to remove it should trigger an alert, yet no one seemed to notice in the film.

The villain suffered multiple severe injuries, including falling from a cliff, hitting his head on a rock, and being thrown from a high place—yet he only died after falling from the seventh floor. This defied logic.


Although the film includes religious themes, I want to clarify that I have complete respect for all beliefs. My criticism isn’t directed at the religion itself, but rather at how the concept was executed. There were too many inconsistencies that made me lose interest and excitement about how the story would unfold.

In summary:
Revelations has a captivating premise and an intriguing visual style, but it suffers from weak storytelling logic and unresolved plot points. With more attention to detail and narrative clarity, it could’ve been a much stronger film

Read More

Better than expected

This was better than I was expecting!! All the actors did a great job, especially RJY & SMJ, they did amazing at portraying the insanity of their characters.

SHB did really good too especially when it came to the scenes where she had to show how she felt in 2 minds regarding following her professional duty or going with her personal emotions.

The plot was paced well; I didn’t lose interest. And we saw more depth as the story unfolded. I appreciate how the background music fit appropriately with the scenes.

Overall I’d say this is decent, it’s worth watching especially if you’re into the thriller genre.

Read More