The 40 most popular 1990s korean movies, ranked. Click any film for ratings, reviews, trailers, and where to watch.


The Dream
1990 · 1h 32m
country: South Korea
A monk rapes a beautiful young woman who visits his monastery. He quits the monastery, marries the woman, and they have kids. But she despises him all the while and devotes herself to tormenting him.


Happy End
1999 · 1h 40m
country: South Korea
When a wife becomes the breadwinner of her family after her husband loses his job, adultery becomes part of her life.


Easy Virtue
1992 · 1h 49m
country: South Korea
Jang is attacked in her home by a masked man two nights in a row. Her husband is reluctant to call the police, but they both begin to suspect the odd young man living next door


Rehearsal
1995 · 1h 44m
country: South Korea
Min-su meets beautiful actress Seung-hae when he goes on a job to take care of a financial matter with the local theater. Min-su seduces her and they make passionate love.


Madame Aema 4
1990 · 1h 36m
country: South Korea
In this entry in the long-running Madame Aema series, Aema's husband becomes romantically involved with a Japanese woman after taking a job at a Japanese company. Aema must also contend with two men who are making romantic advances towards her.


Shiri
1999 · 2h 5m
country: South Korea
North Korea's 8th Special Forces hijack a shipment of CTX, a potent new liquid explosive, and threatens South Korea as part of a plot to re-unify the two countries. Ryu and Lee, special agents of O.P., South Korea's secret intelligence service, attempt to track down the terrorists and find the CTX. Meanwhile Hee, the 8th's ultra-bad female sniper, resurfaces to wreak havoc and haunt Ryu.


Christmas in August
1998 · 1h 37m
country: South Korea
It's a sweltering summer, but Jung-won, a terminally ill, thirty-something photographer, is already in the winter of his life when he begins a tentative romance with a young traffic cop who doesn't know about his condition. Is their relationship doomed before it even begins?


Memento Mori
1999 · 1h 38m
country: South Korea
The ghost of a lesbian high-school girl takes revenge on the people who used to bully her. And another young girl finds her old diary detailing her love and rejection when she was alive.


Inshalla
1997 · 1h 47m
country: South Korea
A Korean foreign exchange student is arrested on charges of illegal immigration while vacationing in Algeria. However, she is aided in her release by a mysterious agent from North Korea.


An Affair
1998 · 1h 48m
country: South Korea
Seo-hyun is an ordinary housewife in her late thirties with a ten-year-old son and a successful architect husband. For her, life is a series of banal routines. Her sheltered life is suddenly threatened with the appearance of Woo-in, her much younger sister's attractive new fiancé.


Tell Me Something
1999 · 1h 58m
country: South Korea
Detective Cho, a cop on the edge, is mourning his mother's recent death while under investigation for graft; on top of that he is suddenly put in charge of a seemingly-impenetrable mystery.


Green Fish
1997 · 1h 51m
country: South Korea
Returning home and finding his town drastically changed, a former soldier falls in with gangsters.


Birdcage Inn
1998 · 1h 41m
country: South Korea
Jin-a, a young prostitute, moves into a seaside motel called the Birdcage Inn, run by a dysfunctional family. Struggling with her circumstances and the family's treatment, she forms an unlikely bond with the daughter, Hye-mi. As they navigate love, betrayal, and personal growth, their friendship ultimately leads to a deeper understanding and a chance for redemption.


Too Tired to Die
1998 · 1h 37m
country: United States
Kenji is a Japanese twenty-something who is followed by Death in various disguises. When he finally faces her, Death tells him that he has only 12 hours to live and he needs to make the most of it.


A Growing Business
1998 · 1h 40m
country: South Korea
A peaceful yet somewhat boring small town has everything the townspeople need: a beauty shop, a pharmacy, a convenience store, and a Chinese restaurant. 'Chung-Wha-Roo' is the only Chinese restaurant in town until a new Chinese restaurant by the name 'A-Bang-Goong' opens right across the street. At first, A-Bang-Goong seems less than enthusiastic about their business; the exterior of the restaurant resembles a warehouse without a signboard, and all the employees are grotesque and brusque, even lacking the willpower for decent service including delivery. Despite the fact they serve only two dishes on the menu, their incredible gourmet flavor quickly becomes the toast of the town. As A-Bang-Goong becomes a local and nationwide phenomenon,, WANG, the owner of Chung-Wha-Roo becomes desperate. WANG visits his rival's to taste the famous dishes. However, he falls faint after discovering a human finger in his food.


Lynx 2 - Challenger
1995
country: Unknown
Lynx (Kim Jong-Min) Lee Seong-Soon, he defeats Kim Jang-Son in a duel with the pro-Japanese group and flees to Bongcheon wanted for murder. At that time, when a Joseon maiden named Mae-Hwa was in danger, Lee Seong-Soon appeared and helped. Meanwhile, Jang Chun-Yong, nicknamed the Shanghai Eagle in Shanghai, defeats Kobayashi, the branch manager of Komada Institute, and flees to Bongcheon.


Emperor Of The Underworld
1994 · 1h 27m
country: South Korea
Oh-seung is a living legend in the airborne troop headquarters for his outstanding combat abilities. He surprises everyone by his request for a transfer. One day, the special agents investigating the new underworld boss Yoo Deok-pal's group sex party are killed and Oh-seung is asked to bring down Deok-pal. Oh-seung has his old friend Ju-cheol released from jail and join him in attacking the Deok-pal organization. Hyun-sook, an ex-colleague of Oh-seung and Ju-cheol, finds out about the investigation but she is helpless now as a regular member of Deok-pal's group sex. Deok-pal feels the heat from Oh-seung and Ju-cheol and kidnaps and murders their mentor Man-tae. On the day of the funeral, Deok-pal and his men surrender to Oh-seung and Ju-cheol, and his organization collapses together with other small crime groups.


007 Laughing Operation
1991 · 2h 11m
country: South Korea
One day, secret agent IQ-007 Shim Hyung-rae accidentally got involved in a treasure map incident. Can he beat the villains to the treasure?


Armageddon
1996 · 1h 27m
country: South Korea
The year is 2157. An alien organization with ultra-high technology, 'Eed', invades the Earth. As the Earth fa ces extinction, Elka, a descendant of the lost continent Atlantis, looks with the help of a super power computer Delta 8988, for the last hero who may be able to save the world. It turns out to be Oh Haesung who lives in the 20th century. Marie, a special agent sent from Elka, comes to the year 1996 with the important mission of fetching Haesung. However, Eed also finds out about Haesung and sends an assassin.


The Quiet Family
1998 · 1h 41m
country: South Korea
A family decides to buy a lodge in a remote hiking area. Their first customer commits suicide and the distraught family buries his body to avoid the bad publicity. But their luck gets worse, the bodies start piling up, and the family becomes frantic to rectify the situation.


Attack the Gas Station!
1999 · 1h 53m
country: South Korea
A quartet of disaffected Korean youths have robbed a Seoul gas station. After taking the gas station over, their wacky antics ensue; forcing the manager to sing, kidnapping customers that complain about the service, and staging fist-fights between street gang members and gas station employees; all of these reflect their own gripes against society.


A+ Life
1999 · 1h 22m
country: Unknown
A man struggles with his responsibities to his father and his desire for true love.


48 + 1
1995
country: Unknown
No overview available


Madame Aema 9
1993 · 1h 35m
country: South Korea
Aema is a bored housewife married to a successful, workaholic businessman. She begins an affair with Jean, a business associate of her husband's. Her husband suspects and begins tormenting Aema, while not letting on that he knows, to protect a business deal. Aema leaves her husband, but is persuaded to return after heeding advice from a friend.


The Day a Pig Fell Into the Well
1996 · 1h 57m
country: South Korea
The lives of 4 interconnected South Koreans – a married couple, a novelist the wife is having an affair with, and a second woman the novelist is simultaneously involved with.


Byeon Geum-ryeon
1991 · 1h 54m
country: Unknown
Innocent country girl, Byeon Geum-ryeon, is kidnapped in Seoul and forced to work in a brothel. She escapes and falls under the protection of Madam Seol who teaches her some unusual love-making techniques which transform the country bumpkin into the Cinderella of the red-light district.


Vanished
1994 · 1h 55m
country: South Korea
Former Minister of National Security, Park Jin-wook, is kidnapped from the US by South Korean agents because he was about to reveal secrets concerning the rise of the military dictatorship of the 1980's.


No. 3
1997 · 1h 48m
country: South Korea
Tae-joo manages to rise in rank in a gang for saving the boss's life. However, prosecutor Dong-pal appears in front of him as his sworn enemy. Meanwhile, Jo-pil wants to get rid of Tae-joo's gang, training for revenge. The three men's goals intertwine.


Girls' Night Out
1998 · 1h 45m
country: South Korea
Three best friends meet and boldly talk about sex together. Their characters are as different as their lifestyles. One works at a hotel, one at a design firm and the other is a graduate student. The conversations alter their lives as they begin to have different sexual relationships than before.


Mrs S from Moscow
1993
country: South Korea
No overview available


Downfall
1997 · 1h 45m
country: South Korea
A young woman is tricked into prostitution, thinking she is going to sell beverages at a village store. She soon learns about the dark world of Korea's red-light districts, where their pimps and society exploit her.


The Ring Virus
1999 · 1h 50m
country: Japan
Sun-ju is a reporter who uncovers a series of inexplicable deaths that occurred simultaneously. Her investigation leads her to a resort, where she finds a videotape filled with mysterious images. After viewing it, a message appears on the screen that she has just been cursed, and that in order to save herself she must - end of tape. Somebody has erased the rest, leaving her horrified and uncertain of her next move.


Madame Rosy
1993
country: South Korea
Hyang-Mi lives with her husband Dong-Hyeok and her 6-year-old daughter Eun-Ju. Since her husband is in Seo Rak Mountain due to his work, Hyang-Mi feels loneliness. Whenever she feels lonely, Hyang-Mi soothes her loneliness watching videos. As weekend comes, she goes to the mountain to meet Dong-Hyeok. However she hears that her husband meets a mute girl called Sun-Nyeo from maidservant


Motel Cactus
1997 · 1h 31m
country: South Korea
The film consists of four episodes, all of which take place in Room 407 of Motel Cactus, a love hotel in Seoul.


The Harmonium in My Memory
1999 · 1h 56m
country: South Korea
Hong-yun is a high school girl in little mountain village when she falls head-over-heels for a handsome new school teacher, Mr. Kang. What with taking care of her youngest baby brother for her widowed mother and the impossible age difference, it is a roller-coaster ride for her as she tries to become someone special for Mr. Kang while he seems interested in the other new teacher at the school, Miss Yang.


Mayumi: Virgin Terrorist
1990 · 1h 50m
country: South Korea
Two North Korean terrorists posing as Japanese tourists under the names of Shin Icho and Ma Yumi, blow up a Korean Airline flight enroute to Baghdad. When investigators catch up with the two in Bahrain, they take suicide pills but Ma Yumi is revived and forced to stand trial for her crimes.


A Short Love Affair
1990 · 1h 54m
country: South Korea
Bae Il-do, who feels unappreciated in his rural village, runs away from home and works as a tailor. His wife grew up under a harsh stepmother and worked as a housekeeper and bar hostess before meeting Il-do, for whom she bore a child. The young and attractive Gong-rye comes between them, having an affair with Il-do while working with him in a garment factory. Their secret meetings don't remain secret for long and Il-do's wife inevitably finds out...


Two Cops
1993 · 1h 50m
country: South Korea
An easy-going corrupt detective is partnered up with a younger, more idealistic detective. The two try to influence each other to become more like themselves but must cooperate when faced with a strange case.


What You Cherish Can Never Be Forgotten
1998 · 1h
country: South Korea
No overview available


Thunderhawk 8 - Esperman And The Thunderhawk
1993
country: South Korea
No overview available
The 1990s were the independent film decade, when Sundance and Miramax pushed low-budget American filmmaking into the mainstream. It's also when Hong Kong action, Japanese animation, and Iranian art cinema found large Western audiences.
South Korean cinema spent the 2000s building a reputation for genre films that refuse to stay in their lane — thrillers that turn into family dramas, revenge stories with slapstick. Parasite's Best Picture win in 2020 confirmed what festival audiences had known for two decades.