The Witch: Part 1. The Subversion (2018) Review: An Explosive Korean Sci-Fi Action Thriller

The Witch: Part 1. The Subversion (2018) movie poster. Source: Warner Bros. Korea. Used for review and commentary purposes.

Park Hoon-jung's The Witch: Part 1. The Subversion (2018) begins with an ordinary life and gradually introduces the feeling that something is not quite right. At first, the movie seems to follow the quiet daily life of a teenage girl, but questions surrounding her past slowly begin to emerge.

The film does not explain everything immediately. Instead, it allows the audience to follow Ja-yoon while sharing some of her uncertainty. As the story develops, the familiar atmosphere gradually becomes darker and more threatening.

Kim Da-mi plays Ja-yoon, a high school student living with her adoptive parents in the countryside. On the surface, her concerns seem ordinary: family, school, friendship, and the financial difficulties affecting her home. But questions connected to her past slowly begin to enter that normal life.

What interested me most was the way the movie handles that transition. Rather than immediately emphasizing action and science fiction, The Witch gives Ja-yoon's everyday life enough time to feel familiar before gradually building its mystery. This spoiler-light review focuses on the pacing, Kim Da-mi's performance, the rural setting, the mystery, and the movie's distinctive action style without revealing Ja-yoon's major secrets, important twists, or the ending.

1. A Spoiler-Light Look at the Story

Ja-yoon is a high school student who lives a peaceful rural life with the elderly couple who adopted her when she was young. Years earlier, she was found alone with little memory of where she had come from.

When financial difficulties begin putting pressure on her family, Ja-yoon enters a televised talent competition, hoping the opportunity might help improve their situation.

Her appearance on television unexpectedly attracts the attention of mysterious people who seem unusually interested in her. Their arrival begins to disturb Ja-yoon's otherwise ordinary life and raises questions about why they have come looking for her.

That is about as much of the story as I would recommend knowing beforehand. A large part of the movie's appeal comes from discovering the answers alongside the characters, so I will leave the details of Ja-yoon's past and the people surrounding her unexplained.

2. Why the Slow First Half Matters

The first half of The Witch is deliberately more restrained than its reputation as an action thriller might suggest. A significant amount of time is spent observing Ja-yoon's family life, school routine, friendship, and financial concerns.

I think that slower approach serves an important purpose. Before the story moves into unfamiliar territory, Park Hoon-jung establishes what an ordinary life looks like for Ja-yoon.

Her friendship with Myung-hee, played by Go Min-si, is particularly effective in creating that sense of normality. Their casual and sometimes playful interactions make Ja-yoon feel like a believable teenager rather than simply a mysterious character waiting for the plot to reveal something.

The countryside contributes to the same feeling. Ja-yoon's home, farmland, school life, and slower daily rhythm create a warm and familiar environment.

Viewers expecting nonstop action from the opening may need some patience, but I think the movie benefits from taking its time. By allowing us to become comfortable with Ja-yoon's everyday world first, even small changes in mood begin to feel more noticeable.

For me, that contrast became one of the most memorable parts of the movie. After spending so much time watching Ja-yoon joke with her friend, help her family, and move through a quiet rural environment, the darker side of the story felt more disruptive when it finally pushed into that world. If the movie had begun with intense action, I do not think the later change in tone would have had the same effect on me.

3. Kim Da-mi Holds the Mystery Together

Kim Da-mi has a difficult role because Ja-yoon needs to remain interesting long before the movie is ready to answer the questions surrounding her.

Much of her early performance is grounded in ordinary behavior. Ja-yoon interacts with her parents, jokes with her friend, worries about practical problems, and often feels more like an ordinary teenager than the central character of a dark thriller.

At the same time, Kim Da-mi leaves just enough uncertainty around the character to keep us paying attention. The performance does not give the audience easy answers about everything Ja-yoon is thinking or feeling.

That balance is important. Ja-yoon remains approachable enough for us to care about her family and everyday life, while the unanswered questions surrounding her continue to support the movie's mystery. For me, Kim Da-mi handles both sides of the character very effectively.

4. Mystery Works Better When the Movie Withholds Answers

The Witch understands that a mystery can lose much of its power when the movie explains too much too early.

New characters, unusual conversations, and uncomfortable encounters gradually create questions without immediately providing answers. For much of the early story, the tension comes less from direct action and more from trying to understand why certain people have suddenly entered Ja-yoon's life.

Choi Woo-shik contributes strongly to that uncertainty as the mysterious young man often referred to as Nobleman. His relaxed and almost playful behavior does not always match the tension surrounding him, which makes his presence difficult to read.

The movie also suggests that the world surrounding Ja-yoon may be larger and stranger than it first appears, but it avoids explaining everything immediately. I think that restraint works in the film's favor because the audience is allowed to remain curious rather than simply receiving information.

5. Why the Action Feels So Different

When The Witch moves into action, its style becomes much more aggressive. The movie does not treat the action like polished superhero spectacle. Instead, the confrontations often feel sudden, fast, and dangerous.

What stood out to me most was the sense of speed. Movement can happen very quickly, and the choreography uses confined spaces and sudden changes in distance to make it difficult to predict where the next impact will come from.

The sound and editing also help give these scenes a sharp sense of impact. Rather than stretching every movement into a long display, some moments happen with surprising abruptness, which makes the action feel more unpredictable.

What surprised me was how different this felt from the quieter first half. By that point, I had become used to the movie's slower rhythm, so the sudden speed and force of the action felt even more intense. Instead of feeling like action had simply been added to the story, it felt like the movie had been holding back another side of itself.

The violence can become quite strong, so the movie may not be suitable for viewers who are sensitive to intense screen violence. For action fans, however, its combination of speed, impact, and unpredictability gives the later sequences a distinctive personality.

6. Where the Movie May Divide Viewers

The movie's unusual structure is also likely to be the main reason some viewers enjoy it more than others.

Anyone coming primarily for intense action may be surprised by how much time the first half spends on family life, friendship, and mystery. The movie is willing to slow down and let ordinary conversations occupy the screen, so viewers expecting constant momentum may find the early pacing too patient.

The film also does not rush to explain every question raised by its larger story. Some viewers may enjoy that sense of mystery, while others may prefer a more self-contained story that provides clearer answers within a single movie.

I can understand both reactions. For me, the slower pacing and unanswered questions fit the movie's personality, but they are also the two elements most likely to determine whether its unusual combination of genres works for a particular viewer.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Why is the movie called The Witch?
A: The title does not mean that the movie is about a traditional witch who uses magic. Instead, “The Witch” can be understood as a symbolic name for someone with extraordinary abilities that ordinary people may fear or struggle to understand. As the story develops, the meaning of the title becomes clearer.

Q: Is The Witch: Part 1 very violent?
A: Yes. The movie contains some intense and violent action, particularly as the story progresses. Viewers who are sensitive to strong screen violence may find some scenes uncomfortable.

Final Thoughts: Why I Give The Witch: Part 1 a 4 Out of 5

What makes The Witch: Part 1. The Subversion memorable to me is the way several very different elements come together. It begins with family concerns, friendship, and a quiet rural setting, gradually builds a mystery around Ja-yoon, and eventually shows a much more intense side of its personality.

Kim Da-mi is a major reason that combination works. Her performance gives the movie a strong central character without giving away the mystery too easily. I also enjoyed the atmosphere, the patient buildup, and the distinctive style of the action once the movie increases its intensity.

I would not give it a perfect score because there were moments in the first half when the patient pacing felt a little longer than necessary to me. I also wanted slightly more resolution to some of the questions surrounding the larger story. Those choices fit the movie's mysterious style, but they occasionally left me wanting a little more.

For me, however, those weaknesses do not outweigh what the movie does well. Its combination of mystery, atmosphere, Kim Da-mi's performance, changing genres, and intense action gives it an identity that feels different from a conventional action thriller. For those reasons, I give The Witch: Part 1. The Subversion 4 out of 5 stars.

🎬 Movie Info

Title: The Witch: Part 1. The Subversion (2018)

Director: Park Hoon-jung

Genre: Action / Mystery / Sci-Fi / Thriller

Cast: Kim Da-mi, Cho Min-soo, Park Hee-soon, Choi Woo-shik, Go Min-si

My Rating: ★★★★☆ 4.0 / 5.0