Moral Criticism under Korean Routines

Summer 2021-11-25 08:01:29

With no Chinese films shortlisted, three Korean films were shortlisted for different units of the Cannes Film Festival this year. On May 14, "Miss", which was shortlisted for the main competition, and "Travel to Busan" screened at midnight, appeared one after another. Park Chan-woo's "Miss" surprised the four with his beautiful lily love tunes and emotional female bed skills; young director Yan Yan Shang Ho's "Travel to Busan" brought South Korea's most popular commercial realism critical film to Cannes again.


The plot of "Travel to Busan" is easily reminiscent of science fiction thriller disaster movies like "Fatal Cold" and "Resident Evil". Due to environmental pollution causing biological genetic mutations, a terrifying "female zombie" boarded the train bound for Busan. On the train were passengers of all kinds, including father and daughter of civil servants, wrestlers and wives who were about to give birth, members of the middle school baseball team, government officials, etc. who were alienated due to the long-term busyness of adults. The "female zombie" virus attacked a female flight attendant who tried to save her. The bitten person quickly became a new "zombie" and continued to bite. In a short while, the train became a "zombie train"... and was able to escape temporarily. The civil servants, wrestlers, and baseball team students after the disaster have united and tried every means to protect their families and other survivors from this "death train". However, what they have to face is not only terrifying zombies, but also selfish and ignorant humanity...


Listening to the plot is a capitalized "routine." That's right, the story of "Travel to Busan" basically didn't give people any surprises. The ridicule of the government when the social crisis arises-TV news rolls over the remarks that "the government has taken timely and effective measures at the first time, ask citizens to obey orders, and trust the government"; when life is at stake ——Courageous self-serving for others must have, selfishness at the expense of harming others and self-saving; after public safety is out of control, the crisis of trust between people is seen-when the decision is a matter of life and death, how many people can remain rational and calm. Bewitched by rumors? In the end, the process is dark and there is a Korean film realist routine with a relatively bright ending-most good people are not rewarded, only one or two fires of hope are left to illuminate the way forward.


However, despite all the routines, the film is quite qualified from a commercial perspective. The "zombie" transforms, bites, fights, roars, and chases and dances wildly. A series of processes are simple and neat, basically achieving the creation of a thrilling atmosphere. People with intensive phobia may feel a little uncomfortable, and zombie film lovers should be able to watch it very well. The makeup and special effects of the zombies are all done well, achieving the scary purpose without being too exaggerated or distorted. Kong Yoo (the righteous deaf school teacher in "The Furnace"), who plays the role of the father of a civil servant, continues to play a righteous savior, and the frozen relationship with his daughter is also resolved in this life and death salvation. The handsome and very characteristic Kong teacher is also a good at sensationalism. The extreme environment where life and death are hanging by a thread pulls the good and evil of human nature into a fuller tension. The confrontation continued to the end, and it was rare that it did not collapse in the middle.


Although the author is not too cold about Korean movies, which are sometimes too dark and sensational and always rescued by sensationalism, I still have to say that domestic commercial movies can have more such "routines", and we are also happy.

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Extended Reading
  • Jeffery 2022-03-22 09:01:33

    This is the most comfortable zombie movie I've ever seen! In the past, watching zombie movies would make people feel bloody! uncomfortable! But this film changed the usual zombie film and added the test of human nature to the zombie film! I think the director is still great! When the little girl finally sang, she burst into tears and swept away the horror of the zombies before! It will make us think after reading it! Every actor in there is doing a great job!

  • Dusty 2022-03-19 09:01:04

    Pregnant women's physical max

Train to Busan quotes

  • Seok Woo: Sorry, but you're infected.

  • Sang-hwa: After the tunnel!