The Best Serial Killer Revenge Thriller Of The 2010s Is Streaming Right Now, See This Twisted Detective Horror Immediately

I Saw the Devil opens up with a murder and a blood trail upon the white snow left behind by the killer dragging a body. It’s a rather disturbing scene that the fans of gore, torture, and horror are absolutely going to love. However, it’s also an interlude in the story since the victim is the fiancé of a National Intelligence Service (South Korea’s chief intelligence agency) agent, Soo-Hyun, who now vows to find the killer and exact his revenge.

Instead of the classic cat-and-mouse chase we’re accustomed to, Soo-Hyun finds the killer, Jang Kyung-chul, rather quickly, but instead of killing him, he forces the killer to swallow a tracker, which allows the agent to track Jang Kyung-chul’s movements, and listen to his conversations. He then proceeds to stalk the killer and torture him bit by bit until he eventually kills him in the most gruesome way, which could easily help categorize I Saw the Devil as part of the “torture porn” subgenre. However, we have to point out that the movie is much more than a mere torture flick.

Though the death of his fiancé triggers Soo-Hyun to take action and exact his revenge, the focal point of the entire movie isn’t vengeance or torture; it’s actually the exploration of the erosive nature of revenge and how it affects one’s soul and psyche. Sure, the gory elements are technically impressive and vivid enough to make viewers squirm, but the psychological aspects of I Saw the Devil are what separates it from the modern horror genre. This aspect is so masterfully done that the viewers cannot help but ask themselves whether Soo-Hyun has gone too far in his quest for vengeance.

Therein lies the beauty of I Saw the Devil; the cat-and-mouse chase between Jang Kyung-chul and Soo-Hyun is quite dynamic, with both characters switching roles throughout the movie. The psychological aspects challenge the viewers’ perspective of rooting for Soo-hyun and his crusade. There are no jump scares, no overwhelming sound effects, and demon-possessed nuns. Just pure fear and bloodlust, driven by a cold and calculated desire for vengeance.

I Saw the Devil premiered in 2010 in South Korea and 2011 in the US, with a rather limited theatrical release. The movie received favorable reviews from critics, and the audiences loved it. It currently has an 81 percent critics rating and an 87 percent audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. Besides managing to earn back and double its production budget at the box office, its popularity led to massive adoption by streaming services. Those interested in watching I Saw the Devil can see the movie on Hulu, Hoopla, Tubi, AppleTV, Amazon Prime, and even YouTube.