Mask Girl – Netflix Series Review

MASK GIRL on Netflix is a new thriller series from South Korea (org. title: Maseukeugeol). As with most South Korean genre productions, the story is very character-driven and does not hold back. By episode 2, murder is part of the plot. Read our Mask Girl series review here!

MASK GIRL is a new Netflix thriller series with 7 hour-long episodes. It’s from South Korea (org. title: Maseukeugeol) and has a plot told from multiple sides. I am loving this current trend in series, where we get a lot more perspective and a deeper understanding of various characters.

WANT ANOTHER STORY TOLD FROM MULTIPLE POVs?

You’ll want to check out the horror movie Home for Rent on Netflix – it’s amazing!

In this latest series, the plot is somewhat slow-burn, but it does feel like most everyone is constantly heading for disaster. Episode 1 doesn’t get too crazy, but there is plenty of blood (and yes, murder) by episode 2. One scene even reminded me of Park Chan-wook’s Oldboy (2003) which is a very good thing.

Continue reading our Mask Girl series review below. Find all seven episodes on Netflix from August 18, 2023.

Character-driven and full of gray areas

I have long loved these South Korean genre productions where the story is character-driven. Especially because no one is ever truly good or truly evil. Well, okay, very young children are innocent and some people are just psychotic killers, but everyone else? Full of gray areas in terms of morality.

That’s how we end up with murders (oh yeah) just a few episodes in.

The story of Mask Girl follows Kim Mo-mi. She’s just an ordinary working woman in South Korea, who dreamt of making it big and becoming a Superstar. However, her strong insecurity about her appearance – which we do see where stems from – keeps her from living out her dreams.

And yet, as a camgirl of sorts, wearing a mask and dancing for men, who adore her, Mo-mi gets a taste of the life she dreamt of. Suddenly her “ugly face” doesn’t matter. Wearing a mask and getting her perfect body and solid dance moves in focus, she wins over fans constantly.

Of course, the rest of her life is still a very bleak existence. Over the course of increasingly unfortunate and violent events, all of that is about to change.

Truly life-changing events

In Mask Girl, we do follow the main character of Mo-mi mostly. Sure, we get the story from other Points-of-View as well, which is amazing. However, the story follows the chronology of the title character (real name “Mo-mi”) as her life evolves in very unexpected ways.

One event especially – which begins in episode 1 and concludes in a very definite way in episode 2 – leads to her living a completely different life. Talk about a life-changing event indeed.

For me, the most fascinating part of the storytelling in Mask Girl is the brutal honesty. People are selfish and can do horrible things. Sometimes out of actual necessity, at other times to simply avoid the consequences of other actions.

I mean, we are talking about multiple murders in this South Korean Netflix series. It’s not just petty theft or people misbehaving. Though people most definitely do misbehave. And they treat “loved ones” terribly. Sometimes there really is love there (as we come to learn from the various POVs), but those who are loved certainly don’t feel it.

Watch the Mask Girl series on Netflix now!

Mask Girl was written and directed by Kim Yong-hoon, who previously directed and co-wrote the award-winning crime thriller Beasts Clawing at Straws (2020). That movie has the Academy Award-winning Youn Yuh-jung (she won for Minari) in the cast, and is very much worth checking out as well.

In this new Netflix series, three different actors end up portraying Mo-mi in the different phases of her life. And, actually, also under three different names. Another amazing detail in this series! Like already stated, she does go through some life-changing events, and we are right there with her through them all.

Another key character is portrayed by Kim Kyung-ya from the Netflix series The Glory, so you can expect to see familiar faces in this series as well. If you’ve watched some of the other amazing South Korean productions on Netflix, obviously. And if you do like South Korean Netflix productions, then you will definitely want to check out this one. Enjoy!

Mask Girl is on Netflix with all seven episodes of season 1 from August 18, 2023.

Details

Writer & Director: Kim Yong-Hoon
Cast: Ko Hyun-Jung, Ahn Jae-hong, Yeom Hye-ran, Nana