Director: Sang-ho Yeon
Starring: Dong-Won Gang, Jung-hyun Lee, John D. Michaels
Running Time: 116 minutes
Release Date: Friday, August 7, 2020 *Canada*
| Film Synopsis |
Four years after South Korea’s total decimation in "Train To Busan", the zombie thriller that captivated audiences worldwide, acclaimed director Yeon Sang-ho brings us PENINSULA, the next nail-biting chapter in his post-apocalyptic world. Jung-seok, a soldier who previously escaped the diseased wasteland, relives the horror when assigned to a covert operation with two simple objectives: retrieve and survive. When his team unexpectedly stumbles upon survivors, their lives will depend on whether the best—or worst—of human nature prevails in the direst of circumstances.
| Review |
Summary (out of 5)
South Korean director Yeon Sang-Ho’s 2016 hit, "Train to Busan", found a new way to bring the zombie genre to light. Placing the drama and horror within the confines of a high-speed train.
PENINSULA, takes place four years after the first film, at a point when the entire Korean peninsula has been over-run by zombies. A group of four survivors, led by former army captain, Jung-seok (Gang Dong-won), is selected for a mission that would take him back into the Peninsula. As the four arrive they discover the real enemy is not the undead, but a brutal new civilization of survivors, run by grifters and mercenary paramilitary units, who force refugees into zombie-fighting arena games.
PENINSULA is a mix of zombie with a touch of a Mad Max movie. The epic 20-minute climax reminded me especially of "Mad Max: Fury Road".
Now is this sequel worth a watch? PENINSULA is extremely fun but doesn't live up to the expectations of "Train To Busan". There is still stuff to enjoy but really this film could have just been a standalone. This action-packed movie has very heavy CGI elements that felt extremely rough and still needed some work. It felt more like a video game than a movie. “Train To Busan” had characters and zombies. In this film we have fewer characters that we really don't care if they live or die.