‘Wall to Wall’ review: A weak foundation

South Korean media has led the charge in class commentary in recent years, with Bong Joon Ho’s 2019 film Parasite and Hwang Dong-hyuk’s Netflix juggernaut Squid Game capturing the attention of international audiences as well as the modern cultural zeitgeist. Writers and directors have since clamored to replicate their success with mixed results. Consequently, “Eat the Rich” narratives have become repetitive and cliché. Director Kim Tae-joon’s 2025 Netflix film Wall to Wall is, unfortunately, another entry in this subgenre that utilizes anti-capitalist messaging for a meaningless spectacle.

Wall to Wall follows Woo-seong (Kang Ha-neul), a young man whose life consists almost entirely of labor with few interpersonal relationships to break up the monotony. He sits in an office cubicle by day and delivers food on his bike by night. All of this work has seemingly paid off, judging by the look of his newly purchased apartment, but it ultimately reflects the emptiness of his life rather than serving as any kind of reward for his hard work.

Devoid of any personal touches, it becomes a pressure cooker for his deteriorating mental health. Noise disturbances bring Woo-seong’s attention to the fact that all is not as it seems in his building. When he makes an acquaintance of fellow resident Jin-ho (Seo Hyun-woo), the mystery begins to unravel, and it is bloodier than he could have ever imagined.

Wall to Wall is far from the best anti-capitalist film on Netflix.

Cr. Young-Uk Jeon/Netlix © 2025

The premise is certainly interesting, and director Kim sets the tone well with the oppressive atmosphere he crafts at the beginning of the film. Drab office spaces and rain-soaked city streets help highlight the bleakness of Woo-seong’s existence, as well as the uniform interior of his apartment building. Unfortunately, the film quickly descends into the same repetitive beats that grow tiresome without worthwhile payoff. There is little interesting utilization of the sets, and the cinematography fails to excite. The dull execution does not match the film’s tone, which aims to be larger-than-life.

Kang Ha-neul’s sweat-soaked and wide-eyed performance as Woo-seong is serviceable. That said, a better script would have allowed him to show more range. His character needs development beyond his financial struggles to infuse him with more humanity rather than simply being an avatar for a singular issue. All of the characters in the film are underdeveloped and underwritten, a huge disservice to the story overall, as emotional beats fall flat without any attachment to the characters experiencing them. Seo Hyunwoo’s performance as Jin-ho is also serviceable, but his inclusion in the story is rushed and convoluted. There is a lack of creativity in how the script utilizes the other residents in the apartment building, which feels like a missed opportunity in a film about the experience of living among others in the city.

The bottom line.

Wall to Wall is not a good film about class disparity, and it is far from the best anti-capitalist narrative available on Netflix. The death knell for films with lukewarm social commentary should toll quickly, and studios should start platforming films that actually have something to say.

Wall to Wall is available now on Netflix. Watch the trailer here. 

Images courtesy of Netflix.