Editor's Note: The following contains spoilers for Ballerina

One cannot help but notice Netflix's South Korean revenge drama Ballerina flaunting a similar vibe to the John Wick universe's The Continental series. This is particularly interesting considering a film from that universe starring Ana De Armas (and also titled Ballerina), is slated for release in 2024. When Ballerina's protagonist Jang Ok-ju (Jun Jong-seo) first appears, she seems to be someone who cannot be bothered, even by armed robbers. Ok-ju worked for a security agency as clearly visible from her insane combat capabilities. Living a dreary life, Ok-ju comes across an old school friend, Min-hee (Park Yu-rim), the ballerina in the title who shows Ok-ju the brighter side of life. As a ballerina, Min-hee stood in complete contrast to Ok-Ju's approach to life. It is Min-hee's unexpected demise that leads Ok-ju on a path of revenge that culminates in a twisted revenge thriller ending.

Ballerina introduces the primary character, Ok-ju, in a supermarket where she’s busy with her business regardless of the fact that the place is being robbed. However, when the robbers do not like Ok-ju’s indifferent behavior, they try to mess with her, only to end up being beaten into a pulp by Ok-ju. It appears that Ok-ju’s life remains an isolated one. She once worked for a security agency and clearly, she didn’t have many friends. Her only friend was Min-hee, whom she came across, after a long time, when she went to the bakery to purchase a cake for her own birthday. On remembering Ok-ju from school, Min-hee took the responsibility of ensuring Ok-ju celebrated her birthday the right way, setting the foundation for a strong friendship.

'Ballerina's Ok-ju Seeks Vengeance

One odd day, Ok-ju receives an invitation from Min-hee. Ok-ju has not been in touch with Min-hee for some time and the invitation from Min-hee has brought Ok-ju out of her hole. When Ok-ju arrives at Min-hee’s place, she only finds a shocking note left behind by Min-hee. It turns out that Min-hee has killed herself. Before dying, she left a note requesting Ok-ju to avenge her death. Ok-ju cries helplessly upon seeing Min-hee’s lifeless body in the bathtub.

Set on the path to uncover the mystery behind Min-hee's death, Ok-ju uses the clue left by Min-hee on her note – the social media handle of a man named Choi Pro. Ok-ju manages to establish contact with Choi when she receives a call on Min-hee's phone. The guy on the phone threatens Ok-ju assuming she's Min-hee and threatens her with making her lose her friends by exposing her reality. Before keeping the phone down, he also gives Ok-ju an address for their meeting.

On arriving at the bridge where she's supposed to meet Choi, Ok-ju witnesses that Choi uses the cover of a Sushi restaurant to run his drug network. To investigate further, Ok-ju decides to chase Choi to his house. The next day, she breaks into Choi's house to find the real reason behind Min-hee's suicide, which is forced by Choi's evil actions. At first, Ok-ju discovers the various whips and toys that Choi employs to fulfill his deviant sexual fetishes. After this initial discovery, Ok-ju discovers that Choi preys on young girls, such as Min-hee, and records them in compromising positions, later using the videos to blackmail the girls. He has been carefully keeping the records of his dark acts in data drives. When Ok-ju accesses the video in a data drive labeled "Ballerina," she witnesses poor Min-hee being a victim of Choi's evil crimes.

Ok-ju and Choi Pro Finally Face Each Other

Discovering the real reason behind Min-Hee's suicide, Ok-ju finds herself fuming with anger. She has the culprit in front of her, and she now only needs to come up with a plan to bring Choi within her reach. From a device implanted at Choi's house, Ok-ju finds out about the club where Choi picks up her prey. As part of her plan, despite her disinterest in being dressed in a dress too feminine for her taste, Ok-ju arrives at the club in hopes of coming across Choi. As fated by Ok-ju, Choi quickly zeroes in on Ok-ju, believing he has his next prey in front of him, without knowing that Ok-ju could be the last person he ever meets. From the club, Choi takes Ok-ju to his usual spot: a hotel where he records the women regularly. Choi employs his usual tactics to make Ok-ju unconscious, not knowing that she is prepared for Choi's moves.

Just as when Choi tries to take off Ok-ju's clothes on camera, Ok-ju takes a deadly swing at Choi, not expecting him to defend himself with such agility. After some hand-to-hand combat, Ok-ju's attempt at taking Choi's life fails when the hotel clerk intervenes with a gun. Thanks to a high school student (Shin Sehwi) who was kept as a slave girl at the hotel, Ok-ju managed to escape the place in Choi's Lamborghini. Although Ok-ju fails to avenge Min-hee's death in the way she originally planned, she does manage to leave a dent by giving Choi a horrendous scar on his face. Not only does Ok-ju scar Choi's pretty face (something he's very proud of) but also takes away Choi's dear Lamborghini. When Choi opens his eyes, he finds himself in front of his boss (Kim Moo-Yul) who reprimands Choi for being taken down by a girl. He orders Choi to bring Ok-ju to him within three days.

RELATED: The 20 Best South Korean Horror Movies That Will Keep You Up All Night

After their initial meeting, both Ok-ju and Choi start preparing for another round. Angered by his recent humiliation, Choi visits his pharmacist friend Myung-shik (Park Hyoung-Soo) for help. On the other hand, Ok-ju approaches an old couple who only have what looks like classic, possibly outdated guns. Not having much choice, Ok-ju proceeds with the purchase. But before Ok-ju can plan and make her next move, Choi manages to kidnap the slave girl Ok-ju rescued from the hotel. Using the help of his contact, Myung-shik tracks down the Lamborghini and the location of Ok-ju's residence. Although Choi does not get his hands on Ok-ju, he reports to his boss that he has killed Ok-ju and buried her in the mountain behind her house. In reality, Choi planned to torture the schoolgirl to find Ok-ju's whereabouts.

At the same time, Ok-ju ends up on a rampage as she starts searching for her new friend. Ok-ju's search ends at the big boss's lair where she meets Choi's boss. But without giving him an opportunity to proceed with his intimidating threats, Ok-ju keeps the conversation short and puts a bullet to his head. She then goes on to leave a massacre in her wake while looking for her friend. Thankfully, Ok-ju finally manages to find the schoolgirl when she intercepts Myung-shik. However, before Myung-shik can be harmed, Choi comes to the rescue and shoots Ok-ju, injuring her in the process. Thankful to Choi for saving him, Myung-shik tries to escape the situation but not before he asks Choi to send the $100 million he was promised in return for his help. Unfortunately, Choi even kills his accomplice to find his way out of paying him, considering even his boss is dead.

'Ballerina's Ending Sets Everything on Fire... Literally

Choi then fixes his gaze on Ok-ju, inching closer to her to kill her. Coincidentally, the schoolgirl saves Ok-ju once more as she distracts Choi, giving Ok-ju an opportunity to take down her nemesis. At the end of Ballerina, unlike her usual way, Ok-ju decides to wait before killing Choi and takes him, in his own car to Min-hee's secret spot: her favorite beach. Ok-ju is helped by her friend to set up a flamethrower — the best piece in the old couple's arsenal. Seeing his end near, Choi begs to be spared and suggests that he doesn't even know why he's being killed. Choi believes his actions don't warrant such extreme measures. This is when Ok-ju introduces herself as the ballerina, helping Choi put the pieces of the puzzle together.

At first, Choi tries to beg his way out but when the tactics don't seem to work, he quickly shifts his stance and talks about brutally tormenting Min-hee in her afterlife if Ok-ju kills him. To this threat, Ok-ju promises that she will be hunting him even in hell and sets Choi on fire, putting an end to his terror and existence. As Choi burns in the fire, Ok-ju is taken back to the day when Min-hee first took her to the secret beach. That day, Min-hee revealed how much she desired to be reborn as a fish — a dream she's trying to achieve through being a ballerina. The day with Min-hee at the beach introduced Ok-ju to true warmth and happiness, both of which are things Ok-ju barely experienced before meeting Min-hee.

After avenging Min-hee's death, Ok-ju makes a final pitstop at Choi's house to recover his stash of explicit videos. On her way out, Ok-ju also recovers a small diary with details that hint at unfinished work for Ok-ju. At the end of Ballerina on Netflix, Ok-ju rides towards the rising sun with a mission on her mind. Although Ballerina's story is wrapped up quite satisfyingly with Choi's death, there is clearly potential for Ok-ju to return once more, given so much of her origin story remains under the veil.