Synopsis
A young girl is raised as a killer in the Yanbian province of China. She hides her identity and travels to South Korea where she hopes to lead a quiet life but becomes involved with two mysterious men.
Votre Filmothèque
Cast
- Kim Ok-vinSook-hee
- Shin Ha-kyunJoong-sang
- Sung JoonHyun-soo
- Kim Seo-hyungKwon-sook
- Cho Eun-jiKim Sun
- Lee Seung-jooChoon-mo
- Jung Hae-kyunJang Chun
- Park Cheol-minSook-hee's Father
- Son Min-jiMin-joo
- Min Ye-jiYoung Sook-hee
Recommandations
- 80
IGN
Jung’s The Villainess offers enough action to make up for the otherwise confusing complexity of its storytelling. - 80
Variety
Channeling “La femme Nikita,” “Kill Bill,” Nikkatsu’s ’70s female exploitation films and a gazillion Hong Kong martial arts heroines, The Villainess nonetheless succeeds in being one-of-a-kind for its delirious action choreography and overall narrative dementia. - 75
The Film Stage
There’s something about the overwrought relationships and hidden connections that amplify our excitement. Jung is moving things so fast (despite a runtime just over two hours) that we’re never afforded a pause to roll our eyes or laugh. We instead buckle down since each revelation means Sook-hee is given another reason to fight. - 70
The Hollywood Reporter
The flurry of characters takes a long time to get straight, and identification is made even harder by the nervous handheld camerawork and rapid-fire editing that makes no concessions. But no matter: the film comes into its element in the imaginative action scenes. - 70
Screen Daily
A satisfyingly convoluted revenge thriller in which the dynamically staged, blood-drenched action sequences are a highlight rather than the film’s sole raison d’être. - 67
The A.V. Club
The Villainess delivers all the overstuffed thrills we’ve come to expect from Korean action cinema. But it also strains under the weight of those expectations. - 63
Slant Magazine
When one finally puts together the pieces of the film’s scattered narrative puzzle, The Villainess doesn’t add up to all that much beyond a slick march toward an act of bloody revenge. - 60
Village Voice
The Villainess is entertaining enough, but it’s hard to shake the feeling that we should be caring more for this character as the film goes on, not less.
