“Colony” Poster
Director: Yeon Sang Ho
Cast: Gianna Jun, Koo Kyo-hwan, Ji Chang-wook, Shin Hyun-been, Go Soo, Kim Shin-rok, Lee Joong-Ok, Choi Kwang-Il, Kim Hyung-Mook, Hong Suk-Bin
Running Time: 122 min.
By Paul Bramhall
While in recent years it’s 2019’s Parasite that most commonly gets referred to as Korean cinema’s international breakout hit, over the course of the 21st century there have of course been other examples along the way. In the early 2000’s it was 1999’s Shiri that made waves overseas and for many, including myself, acted as the first introduction to what Korean cinema had to offer. In 2003 I still remember colleagues who had no interest in Asian cinema discussing a crazy movie in which some guy eats a live octopus, in what would turn out to be Oldboy. Then of course in 2016 there was Train to Busan, a production for which the simple concept of setting a zombie outbreak on a train (in Korea!) proved to be a recipe for success.
Train to Busan was the first live action movie from director and screenwriter Yeon Sang-ho, a follow-up to his animated feature Seoul Station from the year prior, and in the 10 years since its release he’s become Korea’s busiest filmmaker. Based on directing gigs alone he’s helmed 5 movies (including a sequel to Train to Busan in the form of 2020’s Peninsula) in addition to both seasons of Hellbound and Parasyte: The Grey. Regular readers may be aware that I haven’t Continue reading
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