“Peninsula2” is a Korean disaster thriller film released in 2020, also known as "Corpse Train 2: The Infected Peninsula2", directed by Sang-ho Yeon, and starring actors Kang Dong-won, Lee Jung-Hyun, and Re Lee, the plot is about four years after the first episode of "Train to Busan", the main character Jung-Seok, who managed to escape from the disaster, is assigned a special mission to return to the Korean Peninsula2, which has been isolated from the outside world, and encounters a large number of walkers He is confronted by a large number of zombies and the crazy Unit 631, and has to take the surviving Min-jung family to achieve the mission and seize the last chance to escape from the virus-infected Peninsula2.
The world is actually not so bad
The 2016 Korean zombie movie "Train to Busan" was released to critical acclaim and created a phenomenal buzz across Taiwan, not only setting a box office record for Korean films in Taiwan, but also changing many people's viewing habits and attitudes towards Korean films from then on, allowing subsequent Korean films and movies such as "Along with the God:The Two Worlds", "Parasite," and "Crash Landing on You" to officially enter our lives, and now "Peninsula2" is back with this frenzy, bringing viewers an even more thrilling experience at a time when all countries are busy fighting the epidemic.
“Peninsula2” Review
At the end of the first episode of "Train to Busan", the main character Gong Yoo chooses to sacrifice his own life so that his daughter and the pregnant woman played by Yu-mi Jung can escape to Busan, which has not yet been overrun by walkers. However, four years later, the entire Korean Peninsula2 has completely fallen, and although it is a pity that “Peninsula2” does not give an account of what happened to the two characters, the director shifts the focus to the soldier Jung Seok, who was also deeply affected by the disaster, and through the depiction of the character's state of mind in this decaying world, the apocalyptic story of “Peninsula2” takes on a different dimension.
Although the story of "Peninsula2" is set in a time when people's lives have gradually become stable after the recent outbreak of the epidemic, the small characters who are helpless under the changes of the environment, from the psychological state of suffering and guilt even if they manage to survive to the situation of being discriminated against and ostracized because of their refugee status, are all in the same kind of crisis and heavy oppression that director Sang-ho Yeon created for Hong Kong like "Blade Runner". Under the oppressive atmosphere of "Blade Runner", the character has to return to the "Peninsula2" to carry out his mission, which sets a good foundation for the whole story of "Peninsula2".
The film's excellent set style presentation
While the director ostensibly uses Jung-Seok's need to retrieve the money truck to move the story forward, the most fascinating aspect of "Peninsula2," as with all post-apocalyptic movies, is what the characters experience and see during their missions. I love the whole worldview of "Peninsula2" and the way it presents the formerly prosperous Peninsula2 in its current state of disfigurement, combining the decaying ruins of the post-apocalyptic world with the usual realistic style of Korean cinema, giving viewers a glimpse of the transformation of people's lives and state of mind in the purgatory-like world after the outbreak.
In addition to continuing to try to survive in the ruins, whether they are completely desperate for the future, have delusions of freedom, or become twisted and crazy and have lost their conscience, the film's hero, Jung-Seok, returns to the heart of the crumbling city of Seoul and sees the words written on the ground: "God has abandoned us. The film's characters' different ways of survival make the whole film more diverse and richer.
“Peninsula2” is the zombie version of Mad Max
Personally, the main pleasure of watching "Train to Busan" is being in a cramped, claustrophobic car, where the characters not only have to contend with highly contagious and aggressive walkers, find out their habits and weaknesses, but also face the cruel human test of being selfish or helping others. However, without the freshness of the first episode, how should "Peninsula2" continue the high quality of the series and innovate without losing the core of the work? Director Sang-ho Yeon chose to start with the set design and action scenes.
There is no doubt that "Peninsula2" is the pinnacle of special effects technology for Korean films after "Along with the Gods:The Last 49 Days", with not only the broken walls of the aforementioned post-apocalyptic world, but the corpse arena in the depraved Unit 631 camp that treats people like wild dogs, but also a large number of cars driving through narrow alleys and exciting car chases like the corpse version of "Mad Max 4", watching those The director's intention in "Peninsula2" can be felt through the clever use of zombie apocalypse elements in the film.