"Burning" is a quite slow-paced, vague and open mystery.

Similar to the very first episode of "Persona", a South-Korean mini series, I got the sensation that in this film, they don't make any considerable, evident proof or scenes to explain to you what exactly is happening. No, instead, they do meticulously pan, show you certain moments, patterns and details but let you, the audience, be the one to try to make sense. Hence why I personally found the film vague. It's not that it lacks in emotion or scenes... it lacks sense. But then, again, it is a mystery, just one were there's an additional particle that puzzles you, an additional mystery besides the one in the film: the one between you and the plot.

The pace is very slow too (and the duration is generous, almost 2 hours and a half), so those with smaller attention spans (like me) might have to force their way to focus properly, and there were indeed some sequences that, although I understood they were placed to give ambience, to characterize the film, I found them not only boring, but odd. They were clearly chosen out of artistic need, out of wanting to achieve an aesthetic. So I won't call them necessary.

Kudos to Yoo Ah-In's peculiar performance and soulful voice!