When I stumbled upon the 2024 Korean horror movie "Neulbomgadeun" (aka "Spring Garden") here in 2025, I had indeed never even heard about it. Not that it would deter me from watching the movie, as I overly enjoy all things horror and the Asian cinema at large. So of course I would find the time to check out what director Ku Born had to offer.
Writer Baek Yool-Seo put together an okay storyline, though it was bordering on being generic. For someone well-traversed in the Asian horror cinema, then "Neulbomgadeun" was a mere walk in the park, or should I say walk in the spring garden? But I believe that for newcomers to Asian horror cinema, then "Neulbomgadeun" proves to be much more enjoyable.
Despite of having seen more than my fair share of Korean movies, then I wasn't familiar with the cast ensemble in the movie. And that was actually something that spoke in overall favor of the movie, adding to the enjoyment, as I do like watching new and unfamiliar talents on the screen. The acting performances in the movie were good.
Visually then "Neulbomgadeun" was okay. It was not a movie that relied heavily on special effects though.
This was definitely a watchable horror movie, but personally I found it to be far from among the best of what the South Korean horror cinema has to offer.
My rating of "Neulbomgadeun" lands on a five out of ten stars.
