We’re back with a new film review and this time we watched ‘Daemuga: Sorrow and Joy’. This Korean film was released in 2022 and was distributed by KT Alpha.
‘Daemuga: Sorrow and Joy’ was written and directed by Lee Han-Jong. The movie has some really good names playing in it so I was a bit surprised I hadn’t heard about it before.
Plot
In ‘Daemuga’ we follow our character Shin Nam as he’s going to Shaman classes and desperately tries to earn back the 10k his mom gave him for a downpayment on an apartment. Shin is portrayed by Ryoo Kyung-Soo and he does a great job as the down on his luck fake shaman. Even though he doesn’t have any spiritual powers, he starts his own service.
Shin is contacted by Jung Yoon-Hee (Seo Ji-Yoo) who wants to contact her dead stepfather so she can find out where the relocation contract is so the local gang who wants to redevelop the area can stop threatening her.
Shin asks for help from his teacher to channel the spirit and gets given the Daemuga ritual. The ritual goes well but it turns out the story is a bit darker than he was told.
A couple of months later a fellow classmate is contacted by Shin’s mother to find him as he’s missing. Cheongdam Doryung (Yang Hyun-Min) is guided by a child spirit for his shamanism.
The third shaman of the story Ma Sung-Joon (Park Sung-Woong) wants to protect Jung Yoon-Hee but has lost his spirit after becoming a bit too wild and drinking too much.
The head of the gang threatening everyone is Son Ik-Soo played by none other than Jung Kyoung-Ho and he’s not afraid to get his hands dirty to get what he wants. That includes ordering a seance.
Overall
This was a very entertaining watch. I enjoyed all of the different stories and how they intertwined. The performances were well done and the silly moments didn’t clash with the dramatic ones.
Go ahead and watch the trailer for ‘Daemuga: Sorrow and Joy’ below.
