The Abandoned – Netflix Review (4/5)

THE ABANDONED on Netflix is a crime thriller from Taiwan (org. title: Cha wu ci xin). This movie is a serial killer mystery with a horror-fueled plot. A tense and brutal story. Read our full The Abandoned (2023) movie review here!

THE ABANDONED (2023) is a new Netflix movie from Taiwan (org. title: Cha wu ci xin). If you like South Korean genre films, you want to check out this one as well. It is extremely tense and brutal with a character-driven story that grabs hold of you and never lets go.

Also, it’s a serial killer mystery that I could easily see a US remake of. Or maybe a Spanish one, who knows?! It’s definitely the kind of movie that I would expect to see remakes of in the coming years. And yes, I’d be ready to watch this story unfold in another language and setting again.

Continue reading our The Abandoned movie review below. Find it on Netflix from December 31, 2023.

A twisted serial killer mystery

When The Abandoned opens, it’s with police officer Wu Jie about to take her own life. It’s New Year’s Eve and she’s been through hell recently. You’ll see what her backstory is as the story unfolds. Her desire to leave the world behind ends when the body of a young Thai woman washes ashore.

As an officer, she feels the need to work on this case and do what she can for the woman. Especially when it turns out that she has a cut-off ring finger and a missing heart. Clearly, this was a planned murder committed by someone with a grudge.

Once the police start investigating the case, the number of missing women climbs. Wu Jie pushes her own demons aside (and they are brutal as well), so she can help her rookie colleague catch this killer. A killer that turns out to be a serial killer.

The ending of The Abandoned (2023)

This is not to give away spoilers for The Abandoned on Netflix, but rather to assure you that the ending of this Netflix movie delivers. You will get all the answers. Both as to who the serial killer is and why they commit these heinous murders.

Well, as much as you can explain being a serial killer.

What I mean to say is simply that the ending of The Abandoned doesn’t need an “ending explained” because the movie delivers all the explanation itself.

Do note that the official IMDb runtime is just over 2 hours, while the Netflix movie is around 1 hour and 45 minutes. While I would like to see the movie with the two-hour runtime as well, this Netflix version doesn’t lack anything. Also, the Netflix release is the theatrical version.

A few familiar faces

Janine Chang plays the lead detective, who is battling the desire to end her life. We’ve already reviewed a movie on Netflix starring Janine Chang with The Soul. I loved her in that movie and I love her in this as well. Janine Chang is both full of heart and can kick your butt.

DO CHECK OUT THIS ONE

Our review of The Soul which we gave a top rating >

Apart from her acting role, Chang is also a producer of the film. You may also recognize Janine Chang Ning for her role in the horror movie franchise The Bridge Curse.

Ethan Juan plays the role of Lin You Sheng. He isn’t exactly a good guy as he deals with several criminal activities. The character, not the actor, but Ethan Juan manages to breathe life into the character in a way that makes you see all his good sides as well.

Watch The Abandoned on Netflix now!

Director of The Abandoned (org. title: Cha wu ci xin) is Ying-Ting Tseng. He could easily be one of the new Asian horror directors that we’ll see more from. In fact, he already won an award at the 2023 Fantasia Film Festival. The “New Flesh Award for Best First Feature” so he’s off to a great start.

Ying-Ting Tseng also took part in writing the screenplay with Pin Chun Lin and Yi-Chien Yang. The fact that he wrote this with female writers does come across in the way both the female detectives and victims are portrayed. At least, it feels that way to me.

As the last Netflix release of 2023, this is also one of the best. A crime thriller with a serial killer mystery and some extremely horror-fueled moments along the way. Do not miss out on this one!

The Abandoned is on Netflix from December 31, 2023.

Details

Director: Ying-Ting Tseng
Writers: Ying-Ting Tseng, Pin Chun Lin, Yi-Chien Yang
Cast: Janine Chang Ning, Ethan Juan, Simon Hseuh, Yu An Shun, Brando Huang, Bruce Chen