A Devilish Homicide

Infobox Korean film
name = A Devilish Homicide


caption = 2007 DVD cover
director = Lee Yong-min
producer = Park Ui-sun
writer = Lee Yong-min
starring = Lee Ye-chun
Do Geum-bong
Jeong Ae-ran
Lee Bin-hwa
music = Kim Yong-hwan
cinematography = Hong Jong-mun
editing = Jang Hyeon-su
distributor =
released = August 12, 1965
runtime = 93 mins.
country = South Korean
language = Korean
budget = ₩5,500,000 [ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0395744/business "Box office / business for Salinma"] , "IMDb". Retrieved on July 31, 2008.]
gross =
admissions =
kmdb_id = 01192
imdb_id = 0395744
hangul = 살인마
hanja = 殺人魔
rr = "Salinma"
mr =

"A Devilish Homicide" (Ko-hhrm|hangul=살인마|rr=Salinma) is a 1965 South Korean horror film, written and directed by Lee Yong-min. It tells the story of a woman, who, having been murdered by her jealous cousin and mother-in-law, returns as a spirit to take vengeance on her killers. The film's English title is sometimes given as "A Devilish Murder" or "A Bloodthirsty Killer". It was released on DVD in 2007.

Plot summary

Family man Lee Shi-mak arrives at an art exhibition, only to find the building empty. Taking a look around, he is shocked to find a portrait of his ex-wife, Ae-ja, whom he has not seen for ten years. Disbelieving his eyes, Shi-mak runs off and takes a taxi home, but is instead taken against his will to a house in the countryside. There he meets an artist, Park Joon-chul, who gives him the very same portrait of Ae-ja and pleads with him to take it and leave. However, at the stroke of midnight he becomes hysterical and hides Shi-mak under the bed, who then watches as a woman enters the room and stabs the artist in the back. After she has gone, Shi-mak flees the scene with the painting, only to find the unconscious body of Ae-ja, looking exactly as she did ten years earlier. He takes her to his friend Dr. Park, who, perplexed by her condition, doubts that she is really alive. While Shi-mak is out of the room, Ae-ja suddenly awakes and kills the doctor before vanishing again.

After he returns home with the painting, Shi-mak's family continue to be troubled by strange occurrences. As his mother returns home from praying at the temple, she is attacked by Ae-ja, and after a struggle she falls into the river and is swept away. Back at the house, Shi-mak’s wife, Hye-sook, is powerless to stop Ae-ja from disappearing with their eldest daughter. Amongst all the chaos, Shi-mak’s mother returns home apparently unhurt, though she starts exhibiting strange behaviour, showing fear at the sight of the rosary and licking the children like a cat. Later, a strange woman arrives at the house claiming to be the new housemaid, and soon after the other two children disappear. The next day, Shi-mak follows his wife to an abandoned temple, where she is confronted by Ae-ja. He watches as his wife is killed, prevented from saving her by the housemaid, who tells him that he has a greater hardship ahead of him. Before leaving she gives him a small orb, asking him to return it when he no longer needs it. Shi-mak returns home to his mother, but when he notices in a mirror that her reflection is that of a cat’s, she reveals her true nature as a spirit and attacks him. He stops her using the housemaid’s orb, and she dies.

Distraught, Shi-mak takes the portrait and smashes it on the floor, discovering a diary that was concealed in the frame. Reading it, he finds a confession made by the artist Joon-chul, telling of the plot made ten years previously to kill Ae-ja. At that time, Shi-mak and Ae-ja had been a happily married couple. Hye-sook, jealous of the couple and resentful of her position as the family’s maid, conspired with Shi-mak’s mother, who despised her daughter-in-law for her inability to bear children. Enlisting the help of Joon-chul and Dr. Park, they convinced Shi-mak that his wife was having an affair, and after driving Ae-ja out of the house, poisoned her to death. As she lay dying with only a cat for company, Ae-ja swore vengeance on those that had killed her. Years later, Joon-chul was enslaved by Ae-ja’s spirit, who commanded him to create the cursed portrait as a means of taking her revenge.

Though saddened by what he has learned, Shi-mak is relieved to hear the voices of his children outside. Noticing that the third eye is missing from the Buddha statue, he replaces it with the orb in his pocket and at once the three children reappear. Realising that the housekeeper was a guardian angel sent to protect his family, Shi-mak gives his thanks to Buddha and prays for the soul of Ae-ja.

Cast

* Lee Ye-chun ... Lee Shi-mak
* Do Geum-bong ... Ae-ja
* Jeong Ae-ran
* Lee Bin-hwa
* Nam Kung-won
* Ju Seok-yang
* Gang Mun
* Jo Seok-geun
* Ra Jeong-ok
* Lee Up-dong
* Kim Hwak-sil
* Choe Jeong-ae
* Chu Seok-yang
* Im Yun-hui
* Han Jae-gyeong

Release and critical response

"A Devilish Homicide" was produced by Jeil Films, and was originally released on August 12, 1965. [ [http://www.kmdb.or.kr/eng/md_basic.asp?nation=K&p_dataid=01192 "A Bloodthirsty Killer ( Sal-inma )(1965)"] , "KMDb". Retrived on July 31, 2008.]

It was a late addition to the lineup of the 7th Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival (2003), and was decribed by "Midnight Eye" correspondant Jasper Sharp as "a delirious B-movie shocker". [Jasper Sharp, [http://www.midnighteye.com/features/pifan2003.shtml "PiFan 2003 Report"] , "Midnight Eye", August 4, 2003. Retrieved on July 31, 2008.] In 2007, "A Devilish Homicide" was released on DVD by CineLine Korea. In a review for "BeyondHollywood.com", James Mudge noted that the film shared many of the themes and motifs of more recent Korean horror films, blending folklore with then-current concerns, in this case fears over the changing role of the traditional family unit. He commented, "Lee’s direction has at times an almost expressionistic feel, with exaggerated camera angles and weird set design working well to keep the viewer on edge and to give the film a surreal look... The murky black and white photography, along with some good suggestive use of shadows gives the proceedings a nightmarish, gothic air". He also considered the special effects to be "fairly accomplished for the time", and regarded the film as "far more than just a curiosity piece". [James Mudge, [http://www.beyondhollywood.com/a-devilish-homicide-1965-movie-review/ "A Devilish Homicide (1965) Movie Review"] , "BeyondHollywood.com", May 29, 2007. Retrieved on July 31, 2008.]

The Korean Film Archive offered free viewing of "A Devilish Homicide" on its website in July 2008. [Lee Eun-joo, [http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2891784 "Creepy days ahead online as cult horror classics arise from the vault"] , "JoongAngDaily", July 2, 2008. Retrieved on July 31, 2008.]

References

External links

*
* [http://www.kmdb.or.kr/eng/md_basic.asp?nation=K&p_dataid=01192 "A Devilish Homicide"] at the Korean Movie Database
*Cite web|title=Online Classic Movie Theatre |url=http://www.artpluscn.or.kr/board/board/board_content.asp?tb=inno_9&page=7&num=91 |publisher=ARTPLUS, Korean Film Council |author=Kim, Hansang |date=2007-03-28 |accessdate=2008-01-28 |language=Korean |
*Cite web|title=Korean Horror Fims : Yi Yong-min and renaissance of 1960s' horror film |url=http://hks415.interview365.com/2 |publisher=Interview 365 |author= |date= 2007-11-29 |accessdate=2008-01-28 |language=Korean |
*Cite web|title=When a maid comes down from a devil stair |url=http://www.cine21.com/Article/article_view.php?mm=005001001&article_id=5544 |publisher= |author=Kim, Hui-chan|coauthors=Lee Soonjin |date=2001-11-26 |accessdate=2008-01-28 |language=Korean |
*Cite web|title=Review 살인마 |url=http://horrortimes.net/bbs/?mid=review&page=4&sort_index=regdate&order_type=desc&document_srl=96677 |publisher=Horrotimes.com |author=Hong, Junho |date=2007-10-08 |accessdate=2008-01-28 |language=Korean |
*Cite web|title=국내 호러 영화 명장면 베스트 10 (Best Scene Top 10 in Korean Horror Film) |url=http://www.onkino.com/kinozine/kinozine_detail.asp?id=5851&category=5&now_page=7 |publisher=ONKINO.com |author=주성철 (Joo Seong-cheol |date= |accessdate=2008-01-28 |language=Korean |