Mantis

Mantis (2025) Review

7.3 ~ Another non-ordinary performance by Yim Si Wan, blending action and comedy with his signature charm. The action scenes are sharp and well-executed, showcasing solid choreography and pacing. While the plot leans toward predictability, it still manages to entertain through witty moments and a lighthearted tone. The romantic subplot adds a soft, endearing touch that balances out the intense sequences. Overall, Mantis might not redefine the genre, but it’s an enjoyable watch worth recommending, especially if you’re a fan of stylish action with a dash of humor and heart.

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stuck in self proof

Before commenting on my review, I should note that I watched Kill Boksoon first, so I was already familiar with the world this show created. Since Mantis is a sequel/spin-off, it wasn’t difficult for me to get into the story. Kill Boksoon mainly focused on the life of assassins — their training, missions, and how they deal with the aftermath of killing. It’s the type of story that requires audiences to be emotionally prepared for dark and intense themes. Because Kill Boksoon focused heavily on action and fight scenes, I was curious about what direction Mantis would take.

After finishing it, I think it makes sense that the show focused more on the emotional side of being a killer rather than only the action. The story explores the characters’ emotional struggles and insecurities, which I know some audiences may find difficult to connect with. Personally, though, I really liked this aspect because it allowed me to understand the complexity of the characters’ inner feelings instead of only seeing their surface-level motivations and performances.

One of the most interesting parts of the story is how Dok Go projects his own emotional insecurity onto Jae Yi. This becomes the main reason Jae Yi traps herself in the mindset that she will never be as good as Mantis. What makes this even more tragic is that this belief is not originally Dok Go’s own idea — it comes from MK. Dok Go admires MK so much that he accepts his opinion without questioning it. Because he sees similarities between himself and Jae Yi, he ends up passing that insecurity onto her as well.

Even though Jae Yi clearly defeated Mantis during their match, the seniors still believed she would lose if they used real blades. They underestimated her ability and made assumptions without giving her a fair chance. Dok Go later repeats the same behavior. Even when Jae Yi requests a real blade fight, he refuses because he has already convinced himself of the outcome. The sad part is that Jae Yi would rather accept an honest defeat than live with people assuming she would lose. This becomes the reason she constantly feels the need to prove herself until she finally kills Dok Go.

Mantis also suffers emotionally. He feels guilty for being chosen while Jae Yi was rejected, even though she won. He never truly understands why the seniors made that decision. Because of this guilt, he spends his life trying to protect and support her, often holding himself back because he is afraid of hurting her feelings. Ironically, this is not what Jae Yi actually wants. If Mantis had defeated her fairly, she probably would have accepted the result and worked harder to improve openly instead of becoming trapped in a cycle of proving herself.

In the end, both Mantis and Jae Yi are victims of the emotional pressure created by the older generation. Jae Yi desperately wants to prove she deserved to be chosen, while Mantis keeps trying to support her in ways that unintentionally make her pain worse. This emotional complexity is what made the show so appealing to me.

That said, I still wish the series had given Jae Yi and Mantis more memorable fight scenes because their emotional conflict was strong enough to deserve even bigger action moments.

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Good action, bad story

Same as Kill boksoon it's a very entertaining action movie but also same as it, the story is the weakest part of it.

I believe you have to watch the first part to fully understand the plot and the characters as some from the previous one are mentioned here and mantis himself was hinted at in the first one so to get the whole picture, watch the first movie before this one~

Now the story is all over the place because it's not very consistent, and generally not that interesting, the characters are just too humbled considering they are killers, sometimes they show them as emotional and sometimes devoid of any feelings Mantis himself was a bit obnoxious to some extent so no interesting characters, and no well-written story, this is only saved by good action sequences, aside from that I wouldn't recommend this at all ~

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A waste of it's potential and the talent of the cast

This movie was ok and the fight scenes were good but I don't see them being as memorable as the fight scenes in other action movies. The most disappointing thing about this movie was it's wasted potential. The story could have been so good and it had all the ingredients. The characters and they're relationships with each other could have been really interesting but were not fleshed out and are only saved by the actors who all do a great job. The main issue I had with with movie is that I didn't understand some of the characters motivations. I shouldn't be asking "wait, but why?" when a character makes a decision or an event occurs. For example, I barely understood why the final fight was happening and what little I was able to grasp was flimsy at best. The writers needed to spend more time establishing these characters and their motivations. The character I understood the most was the female lead but even then I still wasn't completely satisfied with what her motivations were. The person I understood the least was the main villain. Why was he doing the things he was doing? It made for a frustrating watch. What a waste of the cast.

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Du style, du charisme… mais ça manque un peu de mordant...

"Mantis" m’a intriguée, mais je dois aussi avouer que je suis un peu partagée 😏. Im Si-wan est impeccable, toujours ce mélange de cool et de danger 😍, et Park Gyu-young apporte ce côté mystérieux qui m'a direct accroché. Leur duo fonctionne vraiment bien, t’as cette tension palpable, ce petit “je te fais confiance… ou pas” qui a su me garder en haleine 🫶🏻

MAIS… voilà, le film a des défauts qui m’ont un peu freinée. Déjà, le rythme n’est pas constant. Y’a des passages où l’action ralentit et où tu te dis “ok… ils attendent quoi là ?!?”, je trouve que ça casse un peu l’immersion. Et côté émotions, c’est frustrant 😩. J'ai senti que le film voulait me toucher, me faire ressentir la solitude ou le poids du monde de ces assassins 🥷 , mais c'est resté trop en surface... Certains persos secondaires sont peu développés, ils sont juste là pour faire avancer l’intrigue c'est tout, mais honnêtement… quel casting 😍 ! "Sol Kyung-gu, Choi Hyun-wook, Yoo Su-bin"… rien que leurs présences ajoutent un vrai poids et une crédibilité immédiate à l’univers. Même en rôles secondaires, ce sont des acteurs qui imposent leur charisme et tu ne peux clairement pas les ignorer 😅

Les scènes d’action sont stylées, mais parfois trop chorégraphiées... avec des ralentis à gogo qui finissent par donner un côté artificiel 🤷🏼‍♀️. La tension fonctionne, mais elle aurait pu être beaucoup plus mordante si le scénario était un peu moins prévisible... Malgré ça, le style visuel et la bande-son restent réussis, ils m'ont maintenu accroché 🎬✨

Bref, "Mantis" reste un film divertissant, mais je ressors avec ce sentiment de “ok, ça aurait pu être tellement plus intense et marquant” 😌. D'où mon 7.5⭐️, parce que j'ai passé un bon moment mais sans la claque que j’espérais 😅✌🏻

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Entre migalhas e confrontos

Bom, no geral, o filme é bem legal. Ele entrega o que promete: rivalidade, disputa de poder e ótimas brigas. A tensão é constante e te prende do começo ao fim.
Os atores mandaram bem e conseguiram deixar a história envolvente, fácil de acompanhar.
Mas aí vem a pergunta que não quer calar: se não tinha intenção romântica, por que deixar aquelas migalhas? 👀 Por que dar tantas pistas sobre um possível envolvimento e não mostrar um confronto de verdade entre eles? Queria ver uma resolução de fato, colocar os pingos nos (i) afinal, eles são amigos? Inimigos? Ou tem algo mais rolando?
Terminei com a sensação de que faltou a cereja do bolo. 🍒 No geral, legal, mas dava pra ter resolvido melhor as lacunas.

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A Nova Geração de Assassinos Elite em um Mundo sem Regras

Eu estava super animada para mergulhar novamente neste universo de assassinos de aluguel! O filme Mantis (Louva-a-Deus) é um spin-off que expande a história da M.K. Ent. (Murder Killers) e apresenta uma nova geração de killers. O foco está em Hanul (Im Si-wan), um assassino de elite que retorna à cena do crime, e em sua rivalidade perigosa com Jae-yi (Park Gyu-young), sua antiga colega. É um thriller de ação super estiloso sobre a corrida cruel para se tornar o assassino Número 1 e provar quem é o mais letal no submundo.

Im Si-wan como Hanul: Ele é a surpresa aqui! Amo o Si-wan, e vê-lo em um papel frio, calculista e letal é fascinante. Ele traz uma intensidade silenciosa que eleva o nível da ação e do drama psicológico.

Park Gyu-young como Jae-yi: Ela é perfeita para o papel da rival forte e determinada. Adoro a energia que ela traz para as cenas de luta e a tensão que cria com Hanul.

Os Secundários que Fizeram a Diferença
Dokgo e a Gestão da M.K. Ent.: Eles são essenciais, pois representam a ameaça institucional e a rigidez do código de conduta dos assassinos, forçando Hanul e Jae-yi a se confrontarem.

Os Killers de Nível Baixo: Eles trazem a adrenalina das lutas e a prova de que o mundo de assassinos é brutal e implacável.

O Confidente (ou a Vítima Inesperada): Em filmes de thriller, sempre há aquele personagem que se torna o elo de humanidade ou o alvo que define a moral dos protagonistas.

O que eu amei em Mantis é que ele consegue ser fiel ao mundo de Kill Boksoon, mas traz uma vibe totalmente nova. A coreografia das lutas é super estilosa e a tensão entre os rivais é palpável.

A maior surpresa para mim foi ver o Im Si-wan nesse papel tão dark! O nome do filme não é à toa: ele remete ao Louva-a-Deus, um predador que é paciente, letal e conhecido pelo canibalismo. Isso é a metáfora perfeita para a M.K. Ent. (Murder Killers), onde a traição é a regra e você tem que devorar seu rival para sobreviver. Os secundários são cruciais, pois criam a estrutura de poder e o perigo constante que torna cada decisão uma questão de vida ou morte. O filme me fez refletir sobre o preço da ambição e o que acontece quando você é forçado a confrontar seu passado em um jogo onde não há regras. É um filme que entrega muita adrenalina e me deixou viciada no ritmo.

O que eleva o filme de um simples thriller para algo mais profundo é a mensagem final do Benjamim. O discurso dele é a essência do mundo cruel que eles habitam, com frases duras como: "O mundo é realmente cruel, os fracos são devorados pelos fortes e os fortes se aproveitam dos fracos. Temos que ser cruéis e poderosos." Ele ensina a sobrevivência implacável: "A prioridade... é agir na hora certa, quando um amigo pode ser seu inimigo. Temos que nos impor e reagir, saber o momento em que atacar." Essa filosofia é o que direciona a trama e a moralidade dos protagonistas.

Recomendo Mantis para quem amou o universo de Kill Boksoon, quem adora thrillers de ação e, claro, para quem quer ver o Im Si-wan em uma performance completamente inédita e viciante. É um filme que eleva a barra do cinema de ação coreano na Netflix.

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