Train to Busan (Busanhaeng) — outstanding non-clichéd zombie-movie
Busanhaeng is a zombie apocalypse-themed masterpiece made in South Korea. As a result of an incredible effort by director Yeon Sang-ho one of the best modern zombie movie was born. If it is not the best of all time, then at least it is the best since the release of 28 Days Later. Back in 2002, Danny Boyle set a new benchmark for zombie genre films with his 28 Days Later. Since then zombies stopped to be slow and clumsy as in early George A. Romero films. Modern zombies are evolved into more dangerous creatures almost as fast as Usain Bolt himself. Slow old-school zombies are left mostly in awesome comedy zombie movies such as: Shaun of the Dead and Zombieland. As you may have already guessed Busanhaeng follows the fast-zombie path.
Instead of making another mediocre horror film Yeon Sang-ho and his crew made an original and unique movie. This film is filled with heavy drama elements and without genre clichés. There is no single shot fired in the movie. There are no superheroes or superpowers involved. There are no scare-jumps. There are no blood, gore, and body torture elements. It is pure survival drama. Only common citizens in their everyday locations using everyday objects to hide from infected. Desperately trying to survive and escape from the affected area. As the main scene of the action is a moving train, there is a significant influence is exerted by a closed space and a lot of tension built on it.
The film shows both sides of humanity. On the one hand, there is cowardice, selfishness, lack of compassion. On the other hand, there is mutual help, generosity, heroism. The film shows how people are changing when faced with a common threat to their lives. It shows their ability or inability to work in the same team for common goal — survival. Very well shown the internal change of characters. How fear affects their behavior, logic, and intelligence. How it changes their perspective on moral. How it affects their actions. All this takes place against the backdrop of the eastern mentality and culture, which is very different from the western and hence from any Hollywood film. The film offers not only an excellent story with a good script but also all the technical aspects of the film are made at the highest level. There are no any shortcomings on visuals, special effects, and acting.
I strongly recommend this film to all zombie/survival/horror genre fans.