agmtw logo
search
Decision to Leave (2022)

Decision to Leave (2022)

A strange but endlessly compelling love story-slash-mystery from South Korean master Park Chan-wook

The Very Best

8.1

Movie

South Korea
English, Korean, Mandarin
Crime, Drama, Mystery, Romance
2022
PARK CHAN-WOOK
Ahn Seong-bong, Cha Seo-won, Choi Dae-hoon
138 min

What it's about

From a mountain peak in South Korea, a man plummets to his death. Did he jump, or was he pushed? When detective Hae-joon arrives on the scene, he begins to suspect the dead man’s wife Seo-rae. But as he digs deeper into the investigation, he finds himself trapped in a web of deception and desire.

The take

A twitchy, uncomfortable noir film for the digital age, Decision to Leave blends the trappings of a restless police procedural with an obsessive forbidden romance. Here, director Park Chan-wook flips every interrogation and piece of evidence on its head, pulling us away from the whodunit and towards the inherently invasive nature of a criminal investigation. It's a movie that remains achingly romantic even if everything about the central relationship is wrong. For detective Hae-jun and suspect Seo-rae (played masterfully by Park Hae-il and Tang Wei, respectively), the attraction between them is built entirely on distrust and suspicion—illustrating the danger of falling for the idea of someone rather than the person themself.

Comments

Add a comment

Your name

Your comment

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

Once Were Warriors (1994)

A Maori family survives in an alienating Auckland in this raw, tragic drama

8.0

Silenced (2011)

A brutal and harrowing exposé of the schoolwide abuse case that sparked outrage in Korea

9.0

Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress (2002)

Two boys bond with the village seamstress through banned books in this coming-of-age historical drama

7.2

My Old Ass (2024)

A pleasant mix of comedy and coming-of-age that may or may not leave you in tears

8.0

The Substance (2024)

Demi Moore swaps bodies in this standout chaotic body dysmorphia horror

8.3

The Beat That My Heart Skipped (2005)

A gangster’s son finds a new way of living in this intense, piano-playing neo-noir

7.6

Being Julia (2004)

A middle age crisis leads to a star finding her spark in this insightful comedy

7.1

Look Back (2024)

Art connects people through time and space in this short and sweet drama

9.0

The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020)

A star-studded and riveting legal drama with a blockbuster feel.

8.1

Zatoichi: Darkness Is His Ally (1989)

The blind swordsman makes his last stand in this action-packed, nostalgic conclusion

7.0

Curated by humans, not algorithms.

agmtw logo

© 2024 agoodmovietowatch, all rights reserved.