Train To Busan - directed by Sang-ho Yeon
While there is no small debt owed to "World War Z" in the plot and execution of "Train To Busan" it is still a zombie movie loaded with originality and its very own sense of style.
Like the best examples of the zombie sub-genre the central premise is simple.
Take a small bunch of humans, drop them into a distinct environment, surround them with flesh hungry undead folk and let it all play out.
The title basically tells you everything else that you need to know.
A train departs Seoul and an outbreak of zombie-ism occurs shortly afterwards.
Normally you'd be thinking 'phew- dodged a bullet a there!' but dammit if there isn't an infected person already on the train.
A bone fide hit in its native South Korea it isn't difficult to see why.
This is a really exciting film with very few slow spots and any that it does have seem more like rest stops on the carnage laden journey rather than lulls.
It also manages to squeeze in some genuinely moving moments and a subtle social commentary.
The plot here is that divorced Father Seok-woo and his young daughter Su-an board a train bound for her Mother's house in Busan.
Su-an has not had a lot of attention from Seok-woo who is always working.
His attempt to make up for it with a birthday present backfires and so he agrees to to the trip.
On the train with the pair we meet a man and his heavily pregnant wife, a high school baseball team and a young woman in love with one of them, an older businessman and a homeless man.
Comparisons with "World War Z" kick in as soon as the crap hits the fan.
The zombies are glassy eyed with prominent red veins in their arms and faces and they run like the wind.
They also have the tendency to bunch up in huge hordes.
You definitely don't want these guys on your train!
The environment in which most of the film takes place is ideal for the story being told here.
While comparisons with "Snowpiercer" are no doubt going to be made they are valid only by virtue of setting.
"Train To Busan" is a thrill ride and any additional layers be they social or emotional are icing on the cake.
I appreciated how well formed the characters were and nicely defined the zombies are also.
There are a few tricks with these guys that come into play throughout the natural course of a train trip.
Think tunnels and stations, darkness and crowds.
Like all good zombie flicks (and a lot of pretty bad ones too) the human characters have as much to fear from each other as they do from the undead hordes.
That diverse group of characters come to the fore here and as often as I found myself gripping the seat arm as floods of ravenous zombies came after the heroes I found myself angry at the behaviour of some of the humans.
While not as clearly presented an idea as say the work of George A Romero - particularly Dawn of the Dead and Day of the Dead- there is the feeling that if people worked better together the whole horrible business could be contained rather quickly.
Of course that doesn't happen and the train becomes a microcosm of the entire world.
Some people become selfish in their desire to look after themselves while others immediately try to band together.
The violence is definitely more World War Z than Romero and although there is a lot of blood, plenty of teeth sinking into flesh and some satisfying baseball bat action it all fits within the realms of the M rating.
It is the correct decision in this case I think.
Gore - be it the splatter sort of the likes of "Brain Dead" or intense violence like that found in the 2006 "Dawn of the Dead" remake brings its own tone and neither is required here.
The violence is pitched just strongly enough to make the stakes clear but not so graphically that it becomes a thrill on its own.
The impact here comes from seeing a small group of survivors making good and bad decisions as the numbers dwindle.
A scene in which the passengers disembark at a station they believe has been secured by the military but turns out to be populated entirely with infected soldiers who now turn on them it a gem.
Frenetic, tense and relentless in its length it is almost a relief when it finally ends.
I say almost because it is such a load of fun that who could not love every second if it.
Clearly I loved this film and I can see exactly why it has been a success throughout the world.
The themes are universal and the characters transcend nationality and as much as these are powerful tools in making the movie as good as it is purely and simply this film is a blast from start to finish.
I sat enthralled for the entire two hours.
It is really nicely shot too and although CGI is used it is only sparingly and I would imagine that this wasn't a particularly expensive film.
The effects - both optical and practical are excellent.
The performances are superb with special mention due to the child actor who plays Su-an and to Ma Dong-seok who plays Sang-hwa - the husband with the pregnant wife.
Interestingly it is he who is the action hero of the piece rather than the lead actor.
It is one of the many things that "Train To Busan" gets so right.
In fact I struggle to find fault anywhere and have no reservations in recommending this great film.
If you are normally put off films with subtitles I implore you to give this one a try nevertheless.
And of course any horror fan, action fan or just general film fan owes it to themselves to see this.
RATING: 85 / 100
CONCLUSION: A little gem of a movie. A thrill show from start to finish with great characters, excellent action and an abundance of inventiveness in the execution.
Starring: Yoo Gong, Soo-an Kim, Yu-mi Jeong, Dong-seok Ma, Woo-sik Choi, Sohee, Eui-sung Kim, Gwi-hwa Choi, Jang Hyuk-Jin, Seok-yong Jeong, Chang Hwan Kim, Myung-sin Park
Screenplay: Sang-ho Yeon
Music Score by: Jang Young-gyu
Cinematography: Lee Hyung-deok
Cinematography: Lee Hyung-deok
Edited by: Yang Jin-mo
Running Time: 118 minutes
Language: Korean
Rated: M - Violence
Running Time: 118 minutes
Language: Korean
Rated: M - Violence
Like the best examples of the zombie sub-genre the central premise is simple.
Take a small bunch of humans, drop them into a distinct environment, surround them with flesh hungry undead folk and let it all play out.
The title basically tells you everything else that you need to know.
A train departs Seoul and an outbreak of zombie-ism occurs shortly afterwards.
Normally you'd be thinking 'phew- dodged a bullet a there!' but dammit if there isn't an infected person already on the train.
A bone fide hit in its native South Korea it isn't difficult to see why.
This is a really exciting film with very few slow spots and any that it does have seem more like rest stops on the carnage laden journey rather than lulls.
It also manages to squeeze in some genuinely moving moments and a subtle social commentary.
 |
| Humans are often as big a threat as the zombies |
Su-an has not had a lot of attention from Seok-woo who is always working.
His attempt to make up for it with a birthday present backfires and so he agrees to to the trip.
On the train with the pair we meet a man and his heavily pregnant wife, a high school baseball team and a young woman in love with one of them, an older businessman and a homeless man.
Comparisons with "World War Z" kick in as soon as the crap hits the fan.
The zombies are glassy eyed with prominent red veins in their arms and faces and they run like the wind.
They also have the tendency to bunch up in huge hordes.
You definitely don't want these guys on your train!
 |
| From the cuddly deer in the great opening scene to the infected themselves the zombies are savagely intimidating |
While comparisons with "Snowpiercer" are no doubt going to be made they are valid only by virtue of setting.
"Train To Busan" is a thrill ride and any additional layers be they social or emotional are icing on the cake.
I appreciated how well formed the characters were and nicely defined the zombies are also.
There are a few tricks with these guys that come into play throughout the natural course of a train trip.
Think tunnels and stations, darkness and crowds.
Like all good zombie flicks (and a lot of pretty bad ones too) the human characters have as much to fear from each other as they do from the undead hordes.
That diverse group of characters come to the fore here and as often as I found myself gripping the seat arm as floods of ravenous zombies came after the heroes I found myself angry at the behaviour of some of the humans.
While not as clearly presented an idea as say the work of George A Romero - particularly Dawn of the Dead and Day of the Dead- there is the feeling that if people worked better together the whole horrible business could be contained rather quickly.
Of course that doesn't happen and the train becomes a microcosm of the entire world.
Some people become selfish in their desire to look after themselves while others immediately try to band together.
 |
| Not the best place for a kid! 10 year old Kim Su-An gives a great performance |
It is the correct decision in this case I think.
Gore - be it the splatter sort of the likes of "Brain Dead" or intense violence like that found in the 2006 "Dawn of the Dead" remake brings its own tone and neither is required here.
The violence is pitched just strongly enough to make the stakes clear but not so graphically that it becomes a thrill on its own.
The impact here comes from seeing a small group of survivors making good and bad decisions as the numbers dwindle.
A scene in which the passengers disembark at a station they believe has been secured by the military but turns out to be populated entirely with infected soldiers who now turn on them it a gem.
Frenetic, tense and relentless in its length it is almost a relief when it finally ends.
I say almost because it is such a load of fun that who could not love every second if it.
 |
| Train To Busan's visual effects are very effective |
The themes are universal and the characters transcend nationality and as much as these are powerful tools in making the movie as good as it is purely and simply this film is a blast from start to finish.
I sat enthralled for the entire two hours.
It is really nicely shot too and although CGI is used it is only sparingly and I would imagine that this wasn't a particularly expensive film.
The effects - both optical and practical are excellent.
The performances are superb with special mention due to the child actor who plays Su-an and to Ma Dong-seok who plays Sang-hwa - the husband with the pregnant wife.
Interestingly it is he who is the action hero of the piece rather than the lead actor.
It is one of the many things that "Train To Busan" gets so right.
In fact I struggle to find fault anywhere and have no reservations in recommending this great film.
If you are normally put off films with subtitles I implore you to give this one a try nevertheless.
And of course any horror fan, action fan or just general film fan owes it to themselves to see this.
thanks for info, very nice
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