Woochi: The Demon Slayer

Woochi: The Demon Slayer is a Korean fantasy action-comedy directed and written by Choi Dong-hoon. It follows Jeon Woo-chi, a gifted but unserious Taoist sorcerer in the Joseon era, who is blamed for the theft of a legendary magic flute and sealed away inside a painting alongside his loyal dog. Centuries later, in modern-day Seoul, he is released to deal with the monstrous goblins once held in check by that flute, though he seems more interested in enjoying his freedom than in acting the hero.

The film sits between Choi's 2006 gambling drama Tazza: The High Rollers and his 2012 heist film The Thieves in the director's filmography. Gang Dong-won leads as Woo-chi, with Kim Yoon-seok as his rival Hwa-dam, Lim Soo-jung as Seo In-kyeong, Yoo Hae-jin as the dog Chorangyi, and supporting turns from Song Young-chang and Ju Jin-mo. It was produced by CJ Entertainment, Zip Cinema, United Pictures and Daemyung Culture Factory on a budget of about 12 million USD, and it took roughly 40 million USD worldwide, a strong return for a Korean release of its period.

Audience reactions are moderate: it holds a 6.6 on IMDb from around 3,600 votes and a 6.8 on TMDB from roughly 150 votes. A critics' rating of 7 out of 10 from 43 reviews places it somewhat above the viewer scores, suggesting reviewers responded to Choi's blend of period fantasy and contemporary comedy more readily than general audiences did.