Netflix's new Korean thriller, 'Mousetrap,' centers on a reclusive writer who discovers his identity has been stolen. The film, based on the webtoon 'Field Mouse,' sees the writer, Je Moon-jae (Ryu Jun-yeol), team up with a loan shark, No-ja (Sul Kyung-gu), to uncover the perpetrator.
The narrative begins with a flashback to a pivotal moment in Moon-jae's teenage years in 2011, where his parents died in a car accident that he suspects was not accidental. This event led him to become a recluse, suffering from a panic disorder. Now a successful novelist living in a high-rise apartment, his isolated existence is disrupted when he finds he can no longer access his bank accounts.
A police detective, Park Sun-yong (Lee Kyu-hyung), begins investigating a person named Kim Yeong-geun, following an anonymous tip. The situation escalates when Moon-jae discovers his classmate, who managed his finances and real estate, has sold his apartment and disappeared. Forced to leave his home for the first time in three years, Moon-jae ventures out only to find that someone is impersonating him.
The extent of the identity theft becomes clear when the loan shark, No-ja, confronts Moon-jae. The film's premise sets up an investigation into "The Rat," the mysterious figure behind the stolen identity, with the possibility that the accountant classmate is involved or part of a larger conspiracy.
Critics note that 'Mousetrap', like 'Agent Kim Reactivated,' takes its initial episodes to establish its story, focusing heavily on Moon-jae's disorientation and struggle to be believed as he navigates the outside world in his pajamas. While this slow build may leave main characters like Sun-yong and No-ja less developed initially, the palpable tension of Moon-jae's situation and the intriguing premise of the unlikely partnership are highlighted as compelling elements. Ryu Jun-yeol's performance as the paranoid writer is recognized as a strong point.
The film's unlikely team-up and their pursuit of the shadowy figure are deemed the most intriguing aspects, though the review expresses a desire for more immediate insight into the central mystery in the early stages of the series.