SummaryThe difficult life of Jongsu (Ah-in Yoo), a frustrated introvert, is complicated by the appearance of two people into his orbit: first, Haemi (Jong-seo Jun), a spirited woman who offers romantic possibility, and then, Ben (Steven Yeun), a wealthy and sophisticated young man she returns with from a trip. When Jongsu learns of Ben’s mysterious hobb... Read More
Directed By:Lee Chang-dong
Written By:Jungmi Oh, Lee Chang-dong, Haruki Murakami, William Faulkner
Burning
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
91
User score
Generally Favorable
7.8
My Score
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Top Cast
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
91
95% Positive
37 Reviews
37 Reviews
5% Mixed
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Feb 14, 2022
100
It’s gripping in the moment, but with plenty to take away for afterwards. Genius really isn’t too strong a word.
Oct 25, 2018
100
While each event expands the narrative — filling in the larger picture with nods at sexual relations, class divisions and a riven people — they don’t necessarily explain what happens or answer the fundamental question that burns through this brilliant movie.
User score
Generally Favorable
7.8
82% Positive
197 Ratings
197 Ratings
10% Mixed
25 Ratings
25 Ratings
8% Negative
18 Ratings
18 Ratings
Oct 23, 2025
10
"Life is a Pantomime of Great Hunger" Lee Chang-dong’s 2018 masterpiece, Burning, is not a film you simply watch; it’s an enigma you inhabit. It tells its story not in words, but through silent, loaded gestures; A stifled yawn, a gaze held too long, or the act of pretending to peel a tangerine that isn’t there. First of all, I love how the intensity and mystery build exponentially. At first, I wasn’t even sure what the movie was about. But as it progresses, I started to find meaning, to seek solutions, to search for answers. A masterclass in ambiguity: the cat, the well. Cinematically, it is profoundly beautiful. One of the most stunning sequences in modern cinema is Hae-mi, topless, dancing in the twilight at Jong-su’s farm, her arms reaching for the sky as if trying to physically grasp the “great hunger” she feels. It is a perfect, wordless pantomime of desperate, beautiful yearning. The film’s genius is that it turns the viewer into a participant. We are forced to sift through the silent, contradictory evidence of the characters’ “pantomime” and confront our own “great hunger” for an answer; An answer that, the film suggests, may never truly exist at all.
May 17, 2025
10
A perfect balance of beauty and tension propelled by a score of the rarest form.
May 17, 2018
100
Once again, Lee has crafted a film of wondrous complexity and inscrutability. The more we see in Burning, the less sure we are of what we are watching.
Oct 24, 2018
90
This stunning, slow-build thriller from South Korean director Lee Chang-dong sizzles with a cumulative power that will knock the wind out of you.
Nov 7, 2018
88
Lee plays the actors off one another to create a compelling exploration of human nature. South Korea’s official Oscar submission, Burning culminates in a finale so astonishing that it will sear itself into viewers’ memories for years to come.
Oct 29, 2018
80
Personally, for that reason, I would have lopped off the final scene, which I simply didn’t believe in, and which, if anything, resolves too much. A movie as cryptic as “Burning” deserves to hang fire.
Nov 14, 2018
50
The second-half of Burning is allegorical and intentionally obtuse. It’s intriguing, even. But it all leads to an ending that satisfies no one, especially after 2½ hours.
Aug 18, 2020
10
a very good film that holds your attention with good editing and a smooth screenplay...unlike the film Parasite that tried too hard to be creative and funny. I would recommend Burning.....a movie that will hold your interest to the very end .....
Apr 15, 2019
5
Im wuseligen Seoul trifft Jong-su zufällig seine alte Mitschülerin Hae-mi wieder – die den schüchternen Tagelöhner kurzerhand zum schnellen Sex ins Mini-Apartment einlädt. Als Gegenleistung passt er ein paar Tage auf ihre Katze auf, als Hae-mi in Afrika urlaubt – und mit dem hübschen wie stinkreichen Ben (Korea-Starexport Steven Yeun) im Gepäck wiederkommt. Zu dritt trifft man sich zum Fine-Dining, Feiern im Club oder zum Kiffen auf dem Land – wo Ben Jong-su schließlich ein dunkles Geheimnis anvertraut. Dann verschwindet Hae-mi plötzlich. Eine unerreichbare Frau, Jazz und eine komische Katze: Die Haruki-Murakami-Verfilmung Burning hat einige Lieblingsthemen des Erfolgsautors an Bord. Und auch Regisseur Chang-dong Lee gibt sich nicht mit nur einem Genre zufrieden. So dümpelt der überlange Film ewig als gut gespieltes und stimmungsvolles Mystery-Liebesdrama herum, nur um sich im letzten Drittel plötzlich in einen uninspirierten und zudem vorhersehbaren Krimi zu verwandeln.
Jan 9, 2019
5
A good thriller (if it fits into this category), but the actors were lacking enough skills. Hence, the movie lost a lot of its potentials due to the bad choice. Sometimes, the viewer would feel bored due to the monotone narration. The psychotic events were nicely written.
Jun 2, 2025
3
The movie is so boring, you can easily understand all the plot since the beginning, some parts are so cringe and slow, it tries to add something about social problems but it doesn't get anywhere.
Mar 31, 2019
3
It's a thriller devoid of thrills, and the main reason to watch is curiosity about what "The Walking Dead's" Steven Yeun will do with a major film role. (He's OK.) "Burning" plucks a few key aspects from Murakami's short story, but doesn't do it justice despite taking hours longer to watch than the story takes to read. The ending, especially, seems ridiculously wrong. The lead character seems like a dullard, not the intelligent young man one pictures in the story. The South Korean setting is interesting, though.
Production Company:
- Pine House Film
- NHK
- Now Films
Release Date:Oct 26, 2018
Duration:2 h 28 m
Tagline:Now Tell the Truth
Website:
Awards
International Cinephile Society Awards
• 1 Win & 10 Nominations
Buil Film Awards
• 2 Wins & 8 Nominations
Grand Bell Awards, South Korea
• 1 Win & 8 Nominations
