What are the best South Korean movies on Netflix? From horror to thrillers to romance to space epics, there’s plenty to enjoy from Netflix’s Korean movie library. We’ve left it up to Letterboxd users to determine the best Korean movies on the streaming service.
To determine which movies are ranked higher when the same rating is achieved (as there are some movies with a 3.3 rating), we put the movie that has seen the most viewers as a tiebreaker.
Normally, we would also show the IMDb rating, but for the k-drama fans out there we used the scores from the MyDramaList database of Asian movies and TV shows, which is viewed and used by millions of k-drama fans worldwide.
To determine which movies are ranked higher when the same rating is achieved, we placed the movie watched by the most viewers as a tiebreaker.
Here are the best Korean movies on Netflix according to Letterboxd users:
10. Love and Leashes (2022)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.2
Director: Park Hyun Jin
Kind: Comedy, Drama, Romance | Execution time: 117 minutes
Mold: Seo Hyun, Lee Jun Young, Lee El, Seo Hyun Woo, Kim Han Na
MyDramaList Rating: 8.0
Image. Love and Leashes – Seed Film
There are many Korean movies and shows adapted from webtoons, but easily one of the best of them was Love and Leashes. The film caused quite a stir online when the trailer was first released, as many subscribers were more excited by the BDSM storyline.
Jung Ji Hoo is a capable and popular high-flying employee at work, but one day that image threatens to crumble when a colleague, Jung Ji Woo, accidentally receives a package that belongs to him and opens it to find a large dog-collar and accompanying leash inside. What follows is a lighthearted introduction to a BDSM relationship between the two.
9. Steel Rain (2017)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.3
Director: Yang Woo Seok
Kind: Action, Thriller, War | Execution time: 138 minutes
Mold: Jung Woo Sung, Kwak Do Won, Kim Gab Soo, Kim Eui Suhg, Lee Kyung Young
MyDramaList Rating: 8.0
Image. Steel Rain – Next Entertainment World
It’s always exciting when South Korean cinema explores stories involving its controversial northern neighbor, even more so when it explores the concept of two nations at war.
In the midst of a coup, a North Korean agent escapes south with the country’s wounded leader in an attempt to keep him alive and prevent a war in Korea.
8. Pandora (2016)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.3
Director: Park Jung Woo
Kind: Drama, Thriller | Execution time: 136 minutes
Mold: Kim Nam Gil, Kim Joo Hyun, Jung Jin Young, Kim Young Ae, Moon Jung Hee
MyDramaList Rating: 8.3
Image. Pandora – CAC Entertainment
Pandora’s story certainly looks like it was inspired by the events of the Chernobyl and Fukushima nuclear disasters. If there are fans of the incredible HBO series Chernobyl, then Pandora is 100% worth your time.
When an earthquake hits a Korean village housing a damaged nuclear plant, a man risks his life to save the country from impending doom.
7. Time to Hunt (2020)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.3
Director: Yoon Sung Hyun
Kind: Action, Crime, Thriller | Execution time: 134 minutes
Starring: Lee Je Hoon, Ahn Jae Hong, Choi Woo Shik, Park Jungmj
MyDramaList Rating: 7.9
Image. Time to Hunt – Sidus Pictures
Some of the best dystopian films of recent years have come from South Korea. Time to Hunt hasSquid Game actor Park Hae-soo at his cold and calculating best as the killer Han.
Four young people want to leave their dystopian world behind and go to a distant paradise to perform a money heist, a daring act that will have unexpected consequences.
6. Space Sweepers (2021)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.3
Director: Jo Sung Hee
Kind: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi | Execution time: 132 minutes
Starring: Song Joong Ki, Kim Tae Ri, Jin Seon Kyu, Yoo Hae Jin, Park Ye Rin
MyDramaList Rating: 8.4
Image. Space Sweepers – Bidangil Pictures and Dexter Studios
Billed as South Korea’s first space blockbuster, it was a huge hit with subscribers around the world, while also earning ₩24 billion domestically at the Korean box office.
When the crew of a garbage collection spaceship called The Victory discovers a humanoid robot named Dorothy known to be a weapon of mass destruction, they become involved in a dangerous business deal that puts their lives at risk.
5. Night in Paradise (2021)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.4
Director: Park Hoon Jung
Kind: Action, Crime, Thriller | Execution time: 132 minutes
Mold: Uhm Tae Goo, Jeon Yeo Been, Cha Seung Won, Lee Gi Young, Park Ho San
MyDramaList Rating: 8.0
Image. Night in Paradise – Next Entertainment World
Bloody and dramatic, Night in Paradise is one of the best South Korean gangster movies on Netflix.
An assassin named Tae-goo is offered the chance to switch sides with Bukseong’s rival gang, led by Chairman Doh. Tae-goo rejects the offer which leads to the murder of his sister and niece. In revenge, Tae-goo brutally kills Chairman Doh and his men and flees to Jeju Island where he meets Jae-yeon, a terminally ill woman. Although, Bukseong gang henchman Executive Ma relentlessly hunts down Tae-goo for revenge.
4. The Call (2020)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.6
Director: Lee Chung Hyun
Kind: Horror, Thriller | Execution time: 112 minutes
Mold: Park Shin Hye, Jeon Jong Seo, Kim Sung Ryung, Lee El, Park Ho San
MyDramaList Rating: 8.3
Image. The Call – Next Entertainment World
A remake of the 2011 British and Puerto Rican film The Caller, the Korean adaptation was a welcome addition to Netflix’s library during the height of the global pandemic. As the only horror title on this list, The Call is definitely worth adding to your watchlist.
Connected by phone in the same house, but 20 years apart, a serial killer puts another woman’s past and life on the line to change her fate.
3. Tune in for Love (2019)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.7
Director: Jung Ji Woo
Kind: Drama, Romance | Execution time: 122 minutes
Mold: Jung Hae In, Kim Go Eun, Park Hae Joon, Kim Gook Hee, Jung Eugene
MyDramaList Rating: 8.1
Image. Tune in for Love – Netflix
Reviews are strongly mixed regarding the story, however, many still agree that Tune in for Love is highly enjoyable and one of the best Korean movies currently on Netflix.
In 1994, the first day Yoo Yeul went on the air as the new DJ of the popular radio show Music Album, a college girl Mi-su meets Hyun-woo who happens to be passing by the bakery where he works. Like the music streaming from the radio, their frequencies slowly synchronize. even when they’re apart, the show brings them together through ebbs and flows of events that arise from both sheer coincidence and inevitability, until bitter reality sets in and pulls them apart.
2. Forgotten (2017)
Letterboxd Rating: 3.8
Director: Yang Hang Jun
Kind: Drama, Thriller | Execution time: 108 minutes
Mold: Kang Ha Neul, Kim Mu Yeol, Na Young Hee, Moon Sung Geun, Jung Taek Hyun
MyDramaList Rating: 8.5
Image. Forgotten. BA Entertainment and Baram Pictures
Some of the most underrated content on Netflix are thrillers from South Korea. Jang Hang Joon’s Forgotten will keep you on the edge of your seat from start to finish.
Seoul, South Korea, 1997. When young but extremely anxious student Jin-seok, his parents, and his successful older brother Yoo-seok move into a new house, mysterious and terrifying events begin to occur around them, unexplained events that threaten to destroy their seemingly happy life. Unable to understand what’s going on, Jin-seok wonders if he’s losing his mind.
1. 20th Century Girl (2022)
Letterboxd Rating: 4.0
Director: Bang Woo Ri
Kind: Drama, Romance | Execution time: 119 minutes
Mold: Kim Yoo Jung, Byun Woo Suk, Park Jung Woo, Roh Yoon Seo, Kim Sung Kyung
MyDramaList Rating: 8.6
Image. Girl of the 20th century. Yong Film
Ranked 8th in the best movies on Netflix according to Letterboxd reviews, it should come as no surprise to see Girl of the 20th century at the top of the list of the best Korean movies. It also continues to prove that some of the most popular content from South Korea is rooted in ’90s nostalgia.
Yeon-du asks her best friend Bora to gather all the information she can about Baek Hyun-jin while she is away in the US for heart surgery. Bora decides to get close to Baek’s best friend Poong Woon-ho first. However, Bora’s clumsy plan unfolds in an unexpected direction. In 1999, a year before the new century, Bora, who turns seventeen, falls into the fever of first love.
What is your favorite South Korean movie on Netflix? Let us know in the comments below!