YMMV / The Wailing

• Complete Monster: The seemingly-friendly shaman Il-Gwang and the Japanese hermit—actually a demonic entity—are revealed to be in league with each other and responsible for the horror plaguing the rural village that is the film's setting. The two send in a Hate Plague to the village, which results in those infected murdering those around them before dying. When the police officer Jong-Goo investigates, they mislead him, resulting his young daughter being infected. Showing almost no emotion when his guard dog is beaten to near-death, and letting him get picked apart by crows, the hermit revives a dead man as a walking corpse to kill Jong-Goo and his friends. Meanwhile, Il-Gwang feigns at being helpful while weakening the protections of the village's actual guardian spirit, finally resulting in Jong-Goo's death when his daughter kills him before snapping photos of the bodies, revealing that he keeps pictures of the victims as souvenirs of his deeds, while the hermit does the same to a church deacon, unveiling his true form before killing him.
• Genius Bonus: The true nature of Moo-Myeong and Il-Gwang is foreshadowed early on if someone knows enough about religions.
  • The first time she appears, Moo-Myeong keeps throwing rocks at Jong-Goo. It's a reference to the biblical "He who is without sin can cast the first stone", which means that she is a holy being on the side of the heroes.
  • While the shaman Il-Gwang performs an exorcism/cleansing ritual to get rid of the evil spirit that's haunting Hyo-Jin, viewers familiar with Korean indigenous religions will recognize that he is actually performing a hex. What's more, part of the ritual involves stabbing an idol which represents a benevolent guardian deity instead of a spirit. All of this hints at Il-Gwang being Evil All Along.
• Mexicans Love Speedy Gonzales: It did get a theatrical release in Japan, but the fact that the main villain of the story is Japanese, played by a Japanese actor, and he's the demon who caused all the troubles in town, it released in only a few theaters. Nonetheless, it managed to bring a lot of Japanese audiences into the screenings, most of whom were either fans of Korean cinema or fans of director Na Hong-jin or both. It also helps the fact that Jun Kunimura, who is already a recognizable actor in his home country, gave a hell of performance that left his fellow countrymen a memorable impression.
• Nausea Fuel: Il-Gwang projectile vomiting blood in the presence of Moo-Myeong.
• Nightmare Fuel: The sheer idea that the new town native is a ghost and is causing the deaths of people around you is bad enough, but when your daughter exhibits the same behavior as the victims and eventually kills your entire family, it makes it worse. It now has its own page!
• Tear Jerker: The ending. The demons have won, and Jong-Goo meets his doom at the hands of his own demon-possessed daughter. As he lays dying, he tries to comfort his daughter who is no longer there, talking about how it is his job as a cop to protect her, all while flashbacks to happier memories of the two of them play. Roll credits.
• The Woobie: Hyo-jin, murdering your family and then meeting a deadly fate is not gonna go well...