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Train to Busan Movie Review

Train to Busan is a 2016 South Korean zombie action film directed by Yeon Sang-ho and starring Gong Yoo. It’s a phenomenal piece of blockbuster filmmaking.

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“Dad, you only care about yourself.

That’s why mommy left“

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Seok-woo and his daughter are on a train to Busan on the latter’s birthday to see his wife. However, the journey turns into a nightmare when they are trapped amidst a zombie outbreak in South Korea. Full disclosure first, I am not a fan of zombie movies at all. I find these creatures to be rather uninteresting and most of the movies with them I find to be uninspired and dull.

Imagine my surprise, then, that I ended up absolutely loving this movie. I wholeheartedly agree with the amazing embrace of both critics and audiences for this picture and I would go even further to state that this is by far the greatest zombie movie ever made. No argument from me there.

Why did I love it as much? For one thing, the character development is truly fantastic, an increasingly rare occurrence for the genre. I cared not only for the main characters, but even for the supporting ones, such as that baseball team and those two older sisters. Their deaths were particularly heartbreaking.

I absolutely loved Yoon Sang-hwa. He is by far the most memorable personality of the bunch and his death was truly painful to witness. He wasn’t just a comic relief, but a wonderfully caring person. His many hilarious remarks were terrific. Couple those with his insanely good fighting abilities and you’ve got a kick-ass husband and friend who was the force to be reckoned with against these zombies.

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I also loved his dynamic with the protagonist. The movie is undeniably a pure blockbuster at its core. However, due to some important themes introduced, the film’s premise was elevated to even greater heights. The conflict between these two as well as the conflict between Seok-woo and his daughter is all about the selfish versus the selfless. That theme is further exemplified in the case of that ruthless business executive, a man who would quite literally throw others under the bus just to save himself.

The banks being the bloodsuckers just like zombies is also well touched upon. Seok-woo is wonderfully developed and his change in behavior is expected, but believable. His eventual sacrifice for his daughter was one of the best scenes in the film. That birth flashback was just incredibly touching. Couple that with the beautiful final scene in the tunnel and you’ve got a truly powerful ending all around.

The one thing in Train to Busan that bothered me the most were the zombies. I personally prefer them to be slower and more classical. This version of hyperactive, almost seizure-bound zombies did not appeal to me as much. Still, their dependence on light was very well explored and utilized into the terrific action sequences.

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Yes, the film has a lot of action, but many of these set pieces are superbly executed. Kinetic and plain fun, even I as a non-action fan found these scenes a joy to behold. It was also fascinating seeing the best trains from Korea and how stupendously designed and modern they are. The train setting is superbly realized. The score is also quite strong and the directing is fantastic.