From visionary director Park Chan-wook, Thirst is a hypnotic descent into sin and salvation—a bold reimagining of vampire mythology where blood is not the only thing craved. Inspired by Émile Zola’s Thérèse Raquin, this haunting blend of horror and romance explores faith, flesh, and the fatal cost of longing.

🩸 Story Overview

Sang-hyun (Song Kang-ho) is a devoted Catholic priest who believes deeply in sacrifice. When he volunteers for a medical experiment to help cure a deadly virus, he awakens not to sainthood—but to damnation. The experiment leaves him alive, but changed: a vampire torn between divine duty and unholy thirst.

As he battles his growing urges, Sang-hyun finds himself drawn to Tae-ju (Kim Ok-bin)—the neglected wife of his childhood friend. What begins as forbidden affection unravels into obsession, betrayal, and ultimately, blood-soaked liberation. The deeper they fall, the more twisted their love becomes—testing the limits of guilt, pleasure, and moral decay.

🌑 Why It Stands Out

  • Park Chan-wook’s Signature Style:
    Visually intoxicating, narratively daring—each frame pulses with symbolism and sensuality.
  • Characters on the Edge:
    Sang-hyun’s torment and Tae-ju’s hunger create a morally rich, emotionally volatile dynamic rarely seen in genre cinema.
  • Vampirism Reimagined:
    Not just about fangs and immortality—Thirst ties vampirism to faith, shame, and the human desire to feel alive.
  • A Dark, Lyrical Tragedy:
    Equal parts erotic, grotesque, and poetic—a cinematic meditation on what we’re willing to sacrifice to feel something pure.

🏆 Reception & Legacy

  • Premiered at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Jury Prize and ignited international acclaim.
  • Lauded for its bold storytelling, layered performances, and Park’s fearless genre fusion—though its provocative themes challenged and polarized audiences.
  • Today, Thirst is widely considered a modern horror masterwork, standing among the most complex and artful vampire films ever made.

Thirst doesn’t just sink its teeth into you.
It lingers—like guilt, like love, like the taste of something forbidden. 🩸