The Ugly

Play trailer

1:30

The Ugly

Sep 2025

1h 42m

Mystery & Thriller

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

53%

Tomatometer

30 Reviews

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

From director Yeon Sang-ho (Train to Busan, Peninsula) comes a story of generational grief and guilt. One day while overseeing a documentary crew filming his blind father at work, Im Dong-hwan gets a phone call that his missing mother's remains have been found after forty years. Determined to find the truth of her disappearance, Dong-hwan embarks on a twisted odyssey through his family's traumatic past, uncovering dark secrets along the way.

Nick Schager

The Daily Beast

Sep 22

It builds to revelations that speak emphatically to social shallowness, pressures and prejudices—even if, in the end, its bombshells resonate as less surprising than inevitable.

Go to Full Review

Kristy Puchko

Mashable

Sep 16

The Ugly is a stirring thriller, bolstered by dark twists, and paid off with a final scene that plays like a monkey's paw curling.

Go to Full Review

Brian Tallerico

RogerEbert.com

Sep 10

1.5/4

The film is a dour, depressing drama, a movie that gets so lost in its lethargic structure that it feels like a chore.

Go to Full Review

Angelo Muredda

Film Freak Central

Oct 17

1.5/4

The Ugly is thrown into a full-blown panic attack by the aesthetic challenge posed by something as simple as depicting its disabled characters moving through the world.

Go to Full Review

Brogan Luke Bouwhuis

InBetweenDrafts

Oct 6

7/10

Yeon’s direction, Pyo’s cinematography, and Park’s dual performance are more than enough to compensate for the film’s shortcomings.

Go to Full Review

Panos Kotzathanasis

Asian Movie Pulse

Oct 5

6.5

Yeon Sang-ho strips things down to create one of his strongest works in years. From the layered documentary-style storytelling, to the bold choice of never showing the mother’s face, The Ugly is as unsettling as it is human.

Go to Full Review

Read all reviews

Alessio C

@alessiocherry Oct 4

"The Ugly" surprised me. The premise was nothing special, but damn - the director managed to build real tension out of thin air. The suspense was thick, acting on point, and even the usual Korean overdrama stayed on the right side of believable. It did drag a bit in the final act, though, when the mystery was already solved - and showing the mother’s face at the end kinda ruined the beautiful ambiguity they’d built. Still, a strong, moody thriller that proves atmosphere can beat plot any day. 7/10

See more

Johnny A

Sep 26

This murder mystery was well worth the watch. Enjoyed the story and it's tense dive into the ugly truth the community in the film tried to hide and ignore.

See more

Stephen C

@bob25009 Sep 26

Success in 1 hour and 42 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Dubbed and subtitled in worldwide studios!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The USA grossed over $53,600.00!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

See more

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Yeon Sang-ho

Director

Park Jeong-min

Actor

Kwon Hae-hyo

Actor

Shin Hyun-been

Actor

Im Sung-jae

Actor

Han Ji-hyeon

Actor

The Ugly: Trailer 1

1:30

The Ugly: Teaser Trailer

1:07

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

From director Yeon Sang-ho (Train to Busan, Peninsula) comes a story of generational grief and guilt. One day while overseeing a documentary crew filming his blind father at work, Im Dong-hwan gets a phone call that his missing mother's remains have been found after forty years. Determined to find the truth of her disappearance, Dong-hwan embarks on a twisted odyssey through his family's traumatic past, uncovering dark secrets along the way.

Director: Yeon Sang-ho
Screenwriter: Yeon Sang-ho
Distributor: Well Go USA Entertainment
Production Co: Wow Point
Genre: Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: Korean
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 26, 2025, Limited
Box Office (Gross USA): $53.6K
Runtime: 1h 42m