Deranged ~ The Worms Are Coming! The Worms Are Here! Parasites and Panic!

“Deranged” is a 2012 Korean film, categorized as Epidemic/Medical Disaster, Thriller, Science Fiction (Sci-Fi) and Horror, streaming on Tubi TV and Apple TV.

 

• Memorable Quote:  “Why are you drinking water like that? … do not under any circumstances go near the waterside. Going near water is suicidal.”

SUMMARY: A deadly parasite epidemic spreads across South Korea, and an ordinary pharmaceutical salesman desperately searches for a cure to save his infected wife and children before they are driven to suicide. His sells drugs for a living. Why can’t he buy the medicine his family needs?

♦ It’s an Epidemic!

In “Deranged”, Jae-Hyuk is a struggling pharmaceutical salesman whose life has fallen apart after bad financial decisions destroyed his once-promising career. He, his devoted wife Gyung-Soon, and their two children now live almost in poverty. Jae-Pil is his brother, and it was his bad financial intel that led Jae-Hyuk to make bad investments. He heard it from a friend. That same friend is trying to give him some more info. He insists that this time it must be bona fide because lots of people are buying shares in this drug company. Jae-Pil is not too keen on following up on this investing tip after what happened to Jae-Hyuk.

As if life isn’t hard enough, South Korea is shaken by a horrifying phenomenon: corpses begin appearing in rivers and reservoirs across the country. Victims exhibit bizarre symptoms before death. The symptoms include:

• intense thirst,
• uncontrollable hunger,
• hallucinations, and
• eventually an overwhelming urge to jump into the water and drown themselves.

Authorities are clueless, so they start “suspecting”. Mass suicides? Drug abuse? Sadly, the truth is dark and far more terrifying.

It’s an Epidemic! But What’s the Cause?

Jae-Hyuk’s personal nightmare begins when his wife and children become infected. Their symptoms escalate quickly. He manages to get them to the hospital, where they are quarantined. He learns about a drug that can cure the infection and sets out to try to find it. But everywhere he goes, the pharmacies are sold out. In fact, it’s a drug that they discontinued and no longer manufacture. The drug manufacturer must be contacted, and the government needs to get them to initiate production on a large scale. Jae-Hyuk’s younger brother Jae-Pil happens to be the detective investigating the outbreak. Although the brothers have a strained relationship, the crisis forces them to work together.

The cause is revealed to be a genetically modified parasitic horsehair worm that infects humans. Once inside the body, the parasite rapidly reproduces, consuming nutrients while manipulating the victim’s nervous system. Genetically modified? WHAT??!! Are scientists INSANE? Why would they take a creature that doesn’t harm humans and turn it into an infectious disease that causes humans to kill themselves? WHO DID THIS?

Finding out how this happened is important. But at the moment, saving the lives of his wife and children is more important! His family is Jae-Hyuk’s priority. He is so desperate to find the drug that he even searches the black market. He can’t worry about breaking the law now or finding out the cause of the epidemic. On the other hand, it’s Jae-pil’s job to find out, and he is horrified at what his investigation uncovers.

Main Characters:

• Jae-Hyuk (played by Kim Myung-Min, “A Day”, “Battle of Jangsari”, “Monstrum”, “Detective K Series”, “Your Honor”, “Pandora”, “Law School” )
• Gyung-Soon (played by Moon Jeong-Hee, “The Match”, “The Unrighteous”, “The 8 Show”)
• Jae-Pil (played by Kim Dong-Wan, “Moorim School”, “For Eagle Brothers”)
• Yeon-Joo (played by Lee Ha-Nee, “Aema”, “Phantom”, “The Rebel”, “Fiery Priest”, “Knight Flower”, “One the Woman”, “Alienoid 1 and 2”, “Immortal Classic”, “Shine or Go Crazy”)

Where to Watch: Tubi TV and Apple TV

Viewership and Rating:

• IMDb: 6.3 out of 10 stars
• My Drama List: 7.9 out of 10 stars

My personal rating is the same as MDL.

Are you a sci-fi lover? Then “Deranged” is a treat!

Deranged is a tense medical mystery disaster thriller that feels disturbingly relevant. But I don’t want you to leave after watching this movie and start thinking you need to put the water in your sinks and toilets in a Petri dish.

NOTE: Horsehair worms are real parasitic worms. Scientists have thoroughly documented that they are a group of parasitic animals in the phylum Nematomorpha. Science has already documented they are harmless to humans and pets. They’re long, extremely thin, hair-like worms and the larvae infect insects and grow inside them (insects like crickets, grasshoppers, mantises, beetles, and cockroaches). Later, they emerge into fresh water to mate and reproduce. Fully developed horsehair worms live freely in ponds, puddles, troughs, and even household water sources like toilets and sinks (if an infected insect fell in). But scientists INSIST horsehair worms cannot infect humans, pets, or livestock. Even if swallowed accidentally, they cannot survive in a mammalian digestive system.

• [SOURCE: Team, Science Insights. “Are Horsehair Worms Dangerous to Humans?” ScienceInsights, 15 Nov. 2025, https://scienceinsights.org/are-horsehair-worms-dangerous-to-humans/.]

Yeah right! Who are you gonna believe? Scientists OR Scriptwriters? LOL.

LINKS OF INTEREST:

Movie Review:  ‘Deranged’ (2012). | Nameless Digest

Deranged (Yeon-ga-si): Film Review | Hollywood Reporter

Review: Deranged (연가시, Dir Park Jeong-Woo, 2012). | London Korean Links

Deranged (2012). | Korean Film Biz Zone

TRAILER/TEASER:

CJ Entertainment USA. “Deranged (연가시) – Official Main Trailer w/ English Subtitles [HD].” YouTube, 20 Jul. 2012, https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=A4NjPVRuSEw.

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