Day 5

Metamorphosis (2019)

Directed by Kim Hong-sun

Metamorphosis is the story of a family forced to relocate because they’re related to a Catholic priest who was recently involved in an exorcism that went terribly wrong. The family is understandably not thrilled about this move, but try to make the best of it, unaware that their new neighbor hides some disturbing secrets that indicate that the demonic presence from earlier may not be done with this poor family. As you may be able to tell, this isn’t the most unique setup for a possession film, but it’s a time tested method of introducing a well-rounded cast of characters with their own hopes, dreams, and flaws. In addition to solid characters, there’s an amazing sense of atmosphere in Metamorphosis, helped by the incredibly creepy and imaginative visual style. There’s one shot in particular of a uniquely decorated cliff face that is seriously haunting.

Unfortunately, Metamorphosis suffers from many of the same problems that other possession films succumb to. As per usual, we have no idea what the demon can do and we both found that terribly distracting. Sometimes it can do whatever it wants, sometimes it is limited in strength, I don’t know why either of these things happen when they happen, and the plot suffers for it. There are also pacing issues where, at 1 hour and 50 minutes Metamorphosis seems a bit overlong, you could probably cut 20 minutes out of this movie and not really change anything. Especially because so much of the great foreshadowing doesn’t really add up to anything in the end. Still though, when it works, Metamorphosis hits hard, bringing great visuals and atmosphere to a familiar genre. If you’re a fan of exorcism or possession movies, we’d recommend giving this one a watch.