South Korean thrillers are one-of-a-kind, from I Saw the Devil, which redefined the genre in 2010, to The Wailing, which stunned viewers with its flawless storytelling in 2016. While most of these are crime and horror thrillers, it is uncommon to see a thriller about internet stalkers. Imagine someone who can stalk you without actually following you and knows everything about you, from your hobbies to your deep dark secrets. That is precisely the message the new South Korean thriller Unlocked intends to convey.

The upcoming Netflix original thriller Unlocked is based on the 2017 novel Sumaho o Otoshita dake by Akira Shiga, which also inspired the Japanese film Stolen Identity. The Japanese live-action adaptation apparently did not succeed in reaching the audiences, but we’re all too familiar with Netflix’s Korean adaptations. Following the recent release of Jung_E, this will be the second Korean original film to be released on Netflix this year. With that in mind, here’s everything you need to know about Unlocked.

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

Unlocked: The Plot

Na Mi (Chun Woo Hee) works as a typical marketer at a startup company, hoping to secure a promising career. On her way back from the office, she loses her smartphone, which is later found by a man named Jun Yeong (Yim Si Wan), whom she approaches in an effort to retrieve it. Although he returns the phone to her, she finds it unusual because it was previously broken but is now fixed.

Having installed spyware on her smartphone, Jun Yeong now has access to every move Na Mi makes, including her whereabouts, hobbies, professional life, finances, and social network. In the meantime, a police detective Ji Man (Kim Hee Won), who also happens to be Jun Yeong’s father, discovers traces of his son at a murder scene. Driven by justice and morality, he begins to unravel the secrets surrounding Jun Yeong while the perpetrator is out to ruin Na Mi’s life — all because she lost her phone.

While we summarized the plot based on the trailer, here’s what Netflix lists as the official synopsis.

The story seems to focus on how Na Mi is victimized by an unknown person while simultaneously exploring the perpetrator’s side of the story as the detective, who also happens to be his father, is introduced. We can expect a riveting tale if it differs from the original Japanese adaption.

A woman’s life is turned upside-down when a dangerous man gets a hold of her lost cell phone and uses it to track her every move.

Unlocked: The Cast & Crew

     Netflix

Chun Woo Hee plays Na Mi, a stalked victim who has her life turned upside down when she loses her phone. The actress began her career in 2004 as a supporting actress in Love So Divine, and her breakthrough part came in 2014 with the film Hang Gong Ju. Despite not being as well known as other mainstream actresses, she has had remarkable roles in films such as Rustle, The Beauty Inside, and Anchor. Fans of Korean dramas might also recognize her as Lee Yeon Hwa in Argon and Im Jin Joo in Be Melodramatic.

The stalker Jun Yeong is played by Yim Si Wan, who was on a roll the previous year with back-to-back hit dramas Tracer, Thirty-Nine, Tracer Season 2, and Summer Strike. Misaeng: Incomplete Life, for which he received a Korea Drama Award, Strangers from Hell, Reply 1997, Emergency Declaration, The Attorney, and Run On are among the actor’s best works. Meanwhile, Kim Hee Wan portrays investigator Ji Man, who pursues his own son in a bid to preserve justice. The actor has appeared in various television shows and films, including The Beauty Inside, Silence, Bring It On, Ghost, and My Love from Another Star.

While these three actors lead the film as the main cast, the supporting cast members include Kim Ye Won (Suspicious Partner), Park Ho San (Prison Playbook), Jeon Jin Oh (The Uncanny Counter), Kim Joo Ryoung (Squid Game), and Lee Jae Woo (Dr. Romantic). The film is written and directed by Kim Tae Joon, who’s making his directorial debut. Although the novel’s original story belongs to author Akira Shiga, the film only adapts the basic premise, and Kim Tae Joon made the required changes to develop the movie distinctively. His first career move was in The Flu as an actor, and he later worked as an Assistant Director on the 2015 film Office before taking over as director of Unlocked.

Release Date

Unlocked will be released on Netflix on February 17.

Given how Netflix propels practically every South Korean project to success, the upcoming film promises to be intriguing for fans of Korean thrillers. Let’s hope it avoids the same blunders as the first adaptation and delivers a blockbuster for the debut filmmaker.