Dr. Cheon and the Lost Talisman (2023): The modern super shaman
2023 • Kim Seong-sik • 2.39:1 • Jump to Gallery ↓
Dr. Cheon and the Lost Talisman, directed by Kim Seong-sik, is based on a popular webtoon. The film follows Dr Cheon, a fraudulent exorcist who profits from staged rituals, until he encounters a case that brings his entire system of deception crashing down around him. A genuine possession forces him to confront forces he had previously dismissed, drawing him into a wider conflict involving cursed artefacts, hereditary trauma and a lineage of spiritual warfare.
While it opens with an exploitation of the theatrical aspect of shamanism, the story quickly contrasts this with an immersion into a town that shatters all pretence of fakeness. It’s about ghosts and possession in the cinematic sense of the horror genre. Set mostly at night and using fog, diffused lights and contrasts to fuel the tension, the film anchors its exorcism story in a spiritual context through the use of traditional shamanic iconography. Talismans, ritual swords and symbolic instruments become tools to fight evil in an action-packed scenario.
Dr. Cheon and the Lost Talisman is not just an exorcism film. It is a horror-action adventure steeped in Korean folklore, a contemporary commercial fantasy with digital effects, kinetic set pieces and rapid editing. In a way, it’s a dark superhero movie.
- The Story: A self-professed skeptic and descendant of shamanic lineage runs a popular YouTube exorcism channel—performing fake ceremonies for believers—until a new case forces him to confront real supernatural powers and childhood demons. Read my review of Dr. Cheon and Lost Talisman.
- Actors: Gang Dong-won, Huh Joon-ho, Esom, Lee Dong-hwi, Kim Jong-soo.
- Director: Kim Seong-sik
- Year: 2023
- Cinematographer: Yang Hyun-seok
- Origin: Korean Cinema
- Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1
- Genre: Horror & Supernatural
