The Ugly (2025) by Yeon Sang ho Bad Accent Review + exclusive video

Yeon Sang-ho, the director of The King of Pigs, The Fake, and Train to Busan, returns to theaters with The Ugly (2025), a mystery thriller adapted from his own 2018 graphic novel. Starring Park Jeong-min in dual roles, the film explores a son’s search for the truth about his long-missing mother—and asks the haunting question: who are the real “ugly” people in society?

In this review, we break down the story, themes, and performances, and look at how Yeon Sang-ho strips things down to create one of his strongest works in years. From the layered documentary-style storytelling, to the bold choice of never showing the mother’s face, The Ugly is as unsettling as it is human.

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