Train to Busan, Trained to Love

Release Date：Jul/22/2016

Genre：Action/Horror/Thriller

Director：Sang-ho Yeon

Cast：Yoo Gong、Dong-seok Ma、Yu-mi Jeong、Woo-sik Choi、An Sohee

Viola's Rating： 8.6

Feature films that pick zombie as main theme are not something new, but it seems that it never leaves the trend. Besides “The Walking Dead” being as one of the most popular TV series since 2010, the 2013 “World War Z” rekindled the genre again, but not only made by Hollywood, Korean director Sang-ho Yeon’s first live-action film, “Train to Busan”, is about zombies as well.

This action horror thriller describes what has happened on KTX (Korean Train Express) in the morning when people start to become zombies. While the zombie-virus breaks out in South Korea, a bunch of passengers struggle to survive on the train from Seoul to Busan.

Unlike “The Walking Dead” or “World War Z”, “Train to Busan” keeps the main characters, aka the victims, to a confined space, the train. This way, the nerves the audience gets from the flick is much higher since there’s nowhere to run. Although the passengers do leave the train for a short while, they end up going back to the train for some reason, and this setting limits their solutions to fighting or safe house rather than running away.

Besides the attributes being a confined space, a train gives the characteristic of “separating worlds”. In another Korean directed motion picture “Snowpiercer”, different carts connote different social status and different mental or physical difficulties the main characters have to conquer. In “Train to Busan”, these carts represent cooperation, family love, friendship, humanity or relationship.

Although the score of the movie distracts moviegoers a little bit due to its contrasting ambience from the zombie atmosphere, director Yeon attempted to build the transition of several characters during this blood-curding train trip. Not endeavoring to scare the audience for two hours, there are some amusing dialogues and parts where viewers can start breathing again and inhale for the next chilling cart adventure.

Since zombie has always been in favor of US citizens, Hollywood is considering buying the copyright of “Train to Busan”, but although it’s critically acclaimed among US critics, too, whether it’ll be as big as it is in Asia is still pending. Train is not a common used transportation in the US, and apparently, an airplane won’t act as effectively, so how to continue the tension will be crucial to making a Hollywood version.

Overall, “Train to Busan” is the best zombie picture that teaches us lessons. It contains more than just bloody violence and breathtaking action, but includes big amount of melodrama, social commentary and strong characters that embody various traits required for becoming better people and forming a better society.