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Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum
Movie

Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum

2018 • Horror, Mystery

Woke Score
1.4
out of 10

Plot

An internet broadcaster recruits a handful of people for their 'experience the horror' show at Gonjiam. They are to explore the haunted asylum and stream it live on the show. To attract more viewers, the show hosts play tricks on the guests, but things start to get out of hand when they are inside the place, where tortured souls could really be lurking in the shadows.

Overall Series Review

Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum is a found-footage horror film centering on a group of young South Koreans who livestream their exploration of a notoriously haunted psychiatric hospital to gain internet fame and ad revenue. The narrative is driven by the modern-day critique of vanity, greed, and the reckless pursuit of clicks, contrasting the characters' superficial motives with genuine supernatural terror. The film builds dread effectively, relying on atmosphere and jump-scares as the staged scares of the live broadcast devolve into real-life horror and psychological manipulation by the entity within the asylum. The movie maintains a tight focus on its genre elements and social commentary about digital narcissism, largely avoiding broader socio-political or cultural lectures. The consequences faced by the characters are a direct result of their avarice and disregard for warnings, making it a moral tale about the dangers of online exploitation.

Categorical Breakdown

Identity Politics1/10

The movie features an entirely Korean cast exploring a real-life Korean haunted location. The casting is culturally authentic to the setting and premise. The plot’s conflict is driven by the universal sin of greed and the desire for internet fame, not by race, immutable characteristics, or intersectional hierarchy. There is no critique of 'whiteness' or forced insertion of diversity; the focus is on individual character merit and moral failing.

Oikophobia1/10

The central conflict is a localized supernatural horror story tied to a specific, infamous South Korean landmark. The narrative critiques modern social pathology—the extreme vanity and greed of a YouTube culture—not the foundational institutions or heritage of South Korean or Western civilization. The setting is viewed as dangerous due to a past, contained tragedy, not because the home culture is fundamentally corrupt or racist.

Feminism3/10

The male leader of the group is the narcissistic and cowardly villain who orchestrates the dangerous situation and stays safely behind to profit from it. This setup critiques a specific form of modern male toxicity (greed/exploitation). However, female characters are not depicted as universally perfect ‘Girl Bosses’ but are instead portrayed with a mix of traits; one woman is shown to be intelligent and assertive, while two women are the first to recognize the genuine danger and attempt to abandon the mission, showing self-preservation and sense. The core theme is vanity, not gender roles or anti-natalism, resulting in a low but not perfect score.

LGBTQ+1/10

The film does not engage with queer theory or gender ideology. The character relationships and dynamics are focused on the immediate terror and the pursuit of fame. There is no centering of alternative sexualities, deconstruction of the nuclear family, or lecturing on gender identity. The structure is normative, focused entirely on a survival horror narrative.

Anti-Theism1/10

The horror is purely supernatural, dealing with a haunting, tortured souls, and a curse, which inherently acknowledges a spiritual realm and objective supernatural danger. Traditional religion is neither present as a source of strength nor is it demonized or framed as the root of evil. The film’s moral message operates on a transcendent level by punishing the characters' moral failings of avarice and vanity.