Burning

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Burning

Released Oct 26, 2018

2h 28m

Mystery & Thriller

Drama

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Popcornmeter

95%

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197 Reviews

80%

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1,000+ Ratings

Jong-soo runs into Hae-mi, a girl who once lived in his neighborhood, and she asks him to watch her cat while she's out of town. When she returns, she introduces him to Ben, a man she met on the trip. Ben proceeds to tell Jong-soo about his hobby.

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Critics Consensus

Burning patiently lures audiences into a slow-burning character study that ultimately rewards the viewer's patience -- and subverts many of their expectations.

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David Stratton

The Australian

Burning...refers to the resentment and the anger felt by the young and struggling towards the rich and overbearing. Revelations like these hover just beneath the surface of this beautifully directed mystery.

Rated: 4.5/5

Apr 25, 2019

Full Review

Wenlei Ma

News.com.au

Lee hypnotises with his story of a love triangle, crafting a movie that could be described as visual poetry.

Rated: 4.5/5

Apr 21, 2019

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Jake Wilson

The Age (Australia)

This is the kind of film that all but demands a second viewing in order to appreciate the complex elegance of the design, assembled from details systematically calculated to lend themselves to more than one interpretation.

Rated: 4/5

Apr 19, 2019

Full Review

Bianca Garner

Filmotomy

Burning still holds up to multiple viewings, because it’s not really about one particular mystery regarding a missing young woman. The film is dealing with a much bigger mystery…what is our purpose in life?

Oct 10, 2024

Full Review

Calum Cooper

Source (Scotland)

But no matter which way you choose to interpret the film, we’re left with a hauntingly engrossing experience that’s going to gnaw away at my psyche for weeks to come.

Rated: 4/5

Jul 14, 2024

Full Review

Juan Pablo Russo

EscribiendoCine

... A captivating film that explores mysteries, class struggles, and fiery love triangles. [Full review in Spanish]

Rated: 9/10

Jan 2, 2024

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julie b

Slow burn, at times too slow, with a persistent chill and aching discomfort, as well as a solid amount of ambiguity. Most importantly, Steven Yeun is 🔥incredible🔥 - clearly a villain but also funny, mysterious, and infuriatingly arrogant, but I found the other characters lacked sufficient definition. Also, at times it jumped around a bit and there were things introduced but not explored. I struggled with rating this and haven’t fully made up my mind - somewhere between 3.5 and 4 stars. “I make my own offering and consume it”

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

09/19/24

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Peter K

Lots of subtle symbolism in this mysterious drama with some real surprises . . . very well-directed! "Slow Burn' could also have been the title. Even the cat is named 'Boil' for an extra touch of cynicism.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

09/10/24

Full Review

Caleb J

Patient. Dark. Gritty. Intense. Lee Chang-dong delivers an enthralling drama mystery that'll leave you feeling broken inside, but also with so many questions. Steven Yeun is deliciously good in this.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/18/24

Full Review

Ian W

It's not brilliant, or anywhere near as good as the critics think it is. Kind of one of those films that if it was shot in London / NY with English dialogue, probably a 7 or 8 out of 10 job at best. But it's South Korean and sub-titled, so gets an additional score from the critics. But hey, it's a decent film. A little bit draggy at times. Leaves quite a lot of questions unanswered. But worth a watch.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/09/24

Full Review

Online A

the best directed South Korean movie I've seen. I really expected and hoped it would've become more of a "thriller" about halfway through. My only criticism is I think they waited too long for the ending climax instead of basing an entire act & tone to it. the director is brilliant, it's beautifully shot & I'd love to see him make a Thriller like Midsommar or Psycho.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/31/24

Full Review

Alec B

Ostensibly this is three kinds of movies in one (a character study, a mystery, and a revenge thriller) and yet each of these classifications fail to adequately describe all or even part of "Burning" as Chang-dong Lee continually undermines or subverts your expectations. It's a haunting enigma

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/05/24

Full Review

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Lee Chang-dong

Director

Yoo Ah-in

Jong-soo

Steven Yeun

Ben

Jeon Jong-seo

Hae-mi

Kim Soo-kyung

Yeon-ju

Choi Seung-Ho

Yong-seok

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Burning: Trailer 1

1:44

Burning: Teaser Trailer 1

1:17

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Synopsis

Jong-soo runs into Hae-mi, a girl who once lived in his neighborhood, and she asks him to watch her cat while she's out of town. When she returns, she introduces him to Ben, a man she met on the trip. Ben proceeds to tell Jong-soo about his hobby.

Director: Lee Chang-dong
Producer: Lee Chang-dong, Lee Joon-dong, Ok Gwang-hui
Screenwriter: Oh Jungmi, Lee Chang-dong
Distributor: Well Go USA
Production Co: Pine House Film, NOW Films, NHK
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Drama
Original Language: Korean
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 26, 2018, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 29, 2019
Box Office (Gross USA): $715.0K
Runtime: 2h 28m
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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