When I started writing the Beacon of Speech Blog, one of the first articles of my new endeavor, way, way back in 2016, was Jesus' Science Problem. Long story short, we summarized that people are stupid and that as soon as we discovered alien life, people would begin worshiping the aliens instead of God. We also speculated that people would abandon religion and worship any scientific entity that developed a process that would give a person eternal life.
Back in 2018, I watched the Korean Zombie Movie Train to Busan. It was one of the best things I had ever seen on Netflix. I became an instant fan of the unique style of Yeon Sang-ho. Just a few weeks ago, I saw a preview for the series Hellbound by Yeon Sang-ho on Netflix and set a reminder.
With the limited information of director and short Netflix preview, I just finished watching episodes 1-3 of Hellbound.
Wow.
I want to give no spoilers, just very basic plot points of good and evil, heaven and hell. Yoo Ah-in gives the performance of a lifetime as Jeong Jin-soo. The story shows just how quick the shit can hit the fan when dealing with religious themes.
In a time where Hollywood is bereft of original ideas, Hellbound created something intriguing and captivating, while containing layers of social commentary below the surface. Not quite a drama, not quite a horror series....
Just watch it. Don't take my word for it, challenge your own boundaries. I will be watching episodes 4-6 tonight.