''Dead Friend'' (; lit. "The Ghost") is a 2004 South Korean horror film. It is one of a number of

South Korean horror films South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz ...

set in high school; the trend began with 1998's ''

Whispering Corridors ''Whispering Corridors'' () is a 1998 South Korean supernatural horror film directed and co-written by Park Ki-hyung. It was part of the explosion in South Korean cinema following the Cinema of South Korea#Recovery (1980–1996), liberalization of ...

''.

Plot

Three high school girls are bored and decide to conduct a

séance A séance or seance (; ) is an attempt to communicate with spirits. The word ''séance'' comes from the French word for "session", from the Old French ''seoir'', "to sit". In French, the word's meaning is quite general: one may, for example, spe ...

with a ''bunshinsaba'' - a traditional Korean

ouija board The ouija ( , ), also known as a spirit board or talking board, is a flat board marked with the letters of the Latin alphabet, the numbers 0–9, the words "yes", "no", occasionally "hello" and "goodbye", along with various symbols and grap ...

. As the spirit is called by Eun-jung (

Lee Yoon-ji Lee Yoon-ji (born March 15, 1984) is a South Korean actress. After making her acting debut in the sitcom '' Nonstop 4'', Lee has starred in the television series '' Pure 19'' (2004), ''Princess Hours'' (2006), ''Dream High'' (2011), ''The King 2 ...

), her sister, Eun-seo (

Jeon Hye-bin Jeon Hye-bin (; ; born September 27, 1983), also known as BIN, is a South Korean actress, singer and model. In 2002, she began her career as singer of the short-lived, three-member girl group LUV. However, the group disbanded the following year ...

), scolds the girls. Eun-jung jokingly wishes that the ghost had taken Eun-seo away and that if they do not send the ghost away, it will kill them. Eun-seo is then killed by a ghostly water presence. The amnesiac Min Ji-won (

Kim Ha-neul Kim Ha-neul (; born February 21, 1978) is a South Korean actress. After starting her career as a model, she rose to fame by starring in romantic-comedy films ''My Tutor Friend'' (2003) and ''Too Beautiful to Lie'' (2004) and the action-comedy f ...

), who is an expert swimmer, begins to have nightmares of a ghost from her forgotten past, which seems to be connected to water. She is confronted by an estranged friend, Yu-jung, who tells her that because of Ji-won, "Su-in" is coming for them. Yu-jung is soon found dead. Ji-won slowly remembers that she used to lead an elitist

clique A clique ( AusE, CanE, or ), in the social sciences, is a group of individuals who interact with one another and share similar interests. Interacting with cliques is part of normative social development regardless of gender, ethnicity, or popular ...

back in high school which consisted of herself, Eun-seo, Yu-jung, and Mi-kyung. Before she became part of the clique, Ji-won was friends with Su-in (

Nam Sang-mi Nam Sang-mi (born May 3, 1984) is a South Korean actress. Career Nam Sang-mi was working in a Lotteria restaurant near Hanyang University in the fall of 2001 when someone posted her personal photos on the internet. Her popularity as an ulzzang ...

), but her ego turned her to regard the introverted Su-in as a laughingstock. Ji-won visits her last remaining clique member, Mi-kyung, who is confined to a mental hospital, but the latter lashes out at her. Ji-won learns from Su-in's mother that the event that led to her amnesia was a trip to a forest with the girls, from which Su-in never came back. Mi-kyung is drowned by the ghost. Heading to a spring in the forest, Ji-won finally remembers the event: Ji-won asks Su-in if she can swim, then pushes her into the spring. Su-in comes up and the girls laugh. The three girls then push Ji-won in as a joke, but upon learning that she can't swim, Su-in dived to save her. While Ji-won was saved, Su-in got stuck in the riverbed and drowned. The other girls just watch as this happens. Ji-won alerts the authorities and informs Su-in's grieving mother. Ji-won returns to her mother, only to realize the horrifying truth: Ji-won and Su-in had swapped bodies during their struggle to get out of the spring. "Ji-won" did not lose her memories because she was never Ji-won in the first place; she is actually Su-in. Ji-won's spirit has been terrorizing her and the clique to gain her body back, and now she inhabits her mother. Her mother vomits water and collapses. Ji-won crawls out but Su-in cuts her wrist so Ji-won can't take her. Ji-won's boyfriend, Jun-ho, comes to save them and they are rushed to the hospital. Su-in is later seen walking through the fish market where her mother, who believes her daughter has died, works. She leaves after hesitating, while her mother looks ominously at her with Ji-won's tell-tale smirk, implying that Ji-won has possessed Su-in's mother.

Cast

as Min Ji-won *

as Su-in *

Ryu Jin Ryu Jin (born Im Yoo-jin on November 16, 1972) is a South Korean actor. Filmography Television drama *'' Be My Dream Family'' (KBS, 2021) *''Homemade Love Story'' as Son Jeong-hoo (KBS, 2020–21) *''Run, Jang-mi'' (SBS, 2014-2015) *'' Into ...

as Park Jun-ho *

as Eun-seo *

Shin Yi Shin Yi is a South Korean actress and model known for her drama roles in Grand Prince, Joseon Survival Period and When I Was Most Beautiful. She has also appeared in movies such as My Boyfriend Is Type B, Shinsukki Blues and Everybody Has Se ...

as Mi-kyung *Jeon Hee-ju as Yu-jung *

as Eun-jung *

Choi Ran Choi Ran (born November 30, 1960) is a South Korean actress. She made her acting debut in 1979 and became best known as a supporting actress in television dramas, notably those written by the Hong sisters Hong Jung-eun (born 1974) and Hong ...

as Su-in's mother *

Gi Ju-bong Gi Ju-bong (born September 3, 1955) is a South Korean actor. Career Gi began acting in 1977 and is notable for ''Offending the Audience ''Offending the Audience'' is a play by Austrian writer Peter Handke. It is sometimes called an "anti-p ...

as Detective *

Kim Hae-sook Kim Hae-sook (; born December 30, 1955) is a South Korean actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a Character (arts), character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in ...

as Ji-won's mother *

Greena Park Greena Park (born January 8, 1985) is a South Korean actress. Park debuted in the film '' The Ghost'' (2004). She has played a variety of characters and roles, including the cafe waitress Hee-young in ''BABO'' (2008), the tom·boy Soon-nam in '' ...

as Yu-jung's friend *

Joo Da-young Joo Da-young (born June 16, 1995) is a South Korean actress. She graduated from Chung-Ang University, Department of Theater and Film in 2014. She started her acting career as a child actress in 1999 with KBS1 television series ''TV Novel: Siste ...

as young Su-in

References

External links

* * * {{Rotten Tomatoes, ghost, The Ghost 2004 films 2000s Korean-language films 2000s supernatural horror films South Korean supernatural horror films South Korean ghost films Showbox films 2000s South Korean films