Train to Busan (2016)

So I have two biases that I should reveal before I start with this review. Bias one is that I heart Gong Yoo, and It takes a lot for me to hate him. He has to really screw up "BIG" time (see what I did there? lol), so the idea of seeing him in action - in an actual theater - already sold me! Bias two is that I love psychological horror! I know a lot of people say that this wasn't a real horror movie, but I don't agree. It's the kind of horror movie that shows us how f@#%ed up we can be. If anyone has seen the movie "The Mist", you know exactly what I mean. The ending of that movie is one of my favorite movie endings! I would rather see a haunting ending that makes me think, than a happy one where a hero saves the day.

The story is pretty standard for a Zombie film. There's not too much originality, as far as innovating the genre. If you have ever seen a Zombie movie, this follows the usually story structure. What makes this movie work so well is the focus on the characters. Many of the characters are a little stereotypical, but getting to know them is what drives the story. The story is less about the Zombies, and where they came from, and more about wanting to see the characters survive. Being invested in the characters is what makes the action so intense. It also helps that the zombies look cool... really cool!

The cast does a great job! Gong Yoo did not disappoint me. He manages to have charm, even when he's a jerk. Kim Soo An really looks like she could be his daughter, and also did a great job. Even with the extra cheesy moments, the characters felt real to me. I loved Ma Dong Seok, and Jung Yu Mi. Choi Woo Shik had some really good moments too. So Hee was my least favorite in the main cast, and sometimes a little too overdramatic for me, but still mostly good. I forgave a lot of the overacting because it fit the genre.

The MVP of this cast is Kim Eui Seong, who I also think was the MVP in "W". I wish I could say more about how much I loved his character, but instead I will say that I can't wait to see what he does next!

I think the rewatch value for this is pretty high, especially if you like horror movies. The suspense of what will happen next will be gone, but it's still an entertaining story, and the zombies in action are really awesome!

I did tear up at the end, and thought it was extremely well done, and better than most zombie film endings. The ending definitely falls under the category of haunting, and will stay with me for a long time.

Overall I think this is a must see movie, even if you are not a horror fan! In the pantheon of zombie movies, and there are so many great ones, this one definitely holds it's own.

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OMG This movie is the real deal! A movie with a complete package. Horror, suspense, comedy (a little bit of) lovestory and a surprisingly it was also a tear jerker (drama).

The story was way different than any other zombie apocalypse movies. It will make you scream for the rest of the movie, and you'll also feel the excitement and adrenaline rush will run throughout your body. It's like your actually in there being followed by zombies.

The acting of the cast was great. Not only the main actors but also the supporting ones especially the zombies :D Also I like to point out the effects.. It was cool, yeah it was like watching a holywood film.

This is now my new favorite. Highly recommended! :)

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Much like a bag of stale chips.

Story: 2.0
Have you read the title? Have you seen the poster for the movie?
If you said yes, to both of these questions you know 90% of the story. The other ten percent is introduced, but never expanded upon.

Without spoiling anything, I can't go into any detail. But, the story loves to add in story beats and plot points to increase the tension, suspense and/or emotional value of scene. Once that scene is over, that plot point is lost in the wave of zombies. Don't expect to receive any closure from this film.

As I was watching the film, I had a thought. "Wow, this is crazy how are they going to wrap this up? They have so many story threads dangling in the wind. I wonder what happened with that characters mother?". The BAM unnecessary story twist and the movie was over.

Where is the other half of this story? What happened with out main cast of characters?

Acting/Cast: 6.5
Oh my, this is the most mixed bag of acting I have ever seen. Most of the main cast did amazing work, that really pulled you in. Some of the supporting characters acting was good, but left little impression. Then you have the main characters daughter. I get shes a kid and all but, her emotionless state through most of the movie was weird and when she did try to conjure up some emotions they felt flat and emotionless. The same goes for the rest of the background and scene actors. They have two emotions blank wall stare and yell in fear or pain.

Music: 8.0
Music is used well where its needed and never seems to be out of place. As with most of my reviews, I don't have much to say about the music of this movie. It does what it needs to do, without causing distractions.

Rewatch Value: 1.0
No....

Overall: 5.0
Overall this move is much like a bag of stale chips. It still tastes decent enough, but there are alot of other snacks out there that taste a lot better. Your not going to watch this film and leave felling satisfied. But, if your board and just want to watch some mindless zombies munch on some brains, Its not the worst thing in the world to watch, but its also not all that great either.

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This is a great movie that i watched at the cinema. I don't regret it at all.
The acting is superb even the kid can acting well. The zombies are scary and believable.

Even though it's a movie about zombie, doesn't mean it doesn't have meaningful story behind it.
Surprisingly it has a warm story about father and daughter relationship. Normally western movie that is about zombies doesn't have good story but train to busan has a very strong story as the backbone of this movie. It makes you feel sad dan warm at the same time.

This kind of high quality movie from asia esp. south korea really makes me feel proud as an asian, we, as asian can also make very good movie, i hope it can win oscar lol under foreign movie category.

Thank you Train To Busan! Thank you to writers, directors, actors and all crew for making such a proud movie like this.

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If you're a fan of zombie movies, Gong Yoo or just great filmmaking then please, for the love of all that is good, watch this movie!!!

Also, bear with me, this review is gonna be long...

STORY -

I'm not even being hyperbolic when I say this is one of the greatest zombie movies I've ever seen. As an avid fan of all zombie movies, from the serious horror ones to the comedic parodies, I was completely and utterly blown away by Train to Busan. Not only was the script something I've never seen before, but it was so well-paced and so perfectly executed with just the right touch of horror, suspense and heart-warming humanity that it simply just skyrocketed into my top favourite zombie movies of all time.

There have been so many reiterations of zombies and what they are and how they act, and while Train to Busan's zombies aren't exactly unique, I found it so interesting that they don't seem to die. What I mean is almost all zombie movies have a moment of epiphany when the heroes realise they can kill them by a headshot, but in this one, they seem rather invincible and I think that's what adds to the horror of TTB's zombies. Of course, you find out more about them later on in the story, but that involves spoilers and I'll keep this review relatively spoiler-free. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed the way they depicted the zombies in TTB and I love that they set this movie on a train. I think the only other movie I can think of that comes close is Snowpiercer (a revolution set on a train with Chris Evans, quite good too), but that didn't have any zombies. Funnily enough, it was also directed, produced and written by Korean filmmakers (not the same ones, but I feel like TTB may have been inspired by it?)

Another reason why I love this movie was the human element of it. Normally, I'm the kind of girl that likes gory zombie movies where it's more about the zombie kill and less about the people, but this one captivated me from start to finish. Maybe it's because I'm a Gong Yoo fan, but honestly, the most horrifying moments in TTB didn't even have anything to do with zombies and everything to do with the lack of humanity shown by some people. There are several instances in the movie that made you want to scream and reach in and kill some people yourself. I guess that's how you know a movie's completely succeeded because it made you have such a visceral reaction to it.

The best part, however, of TTB was the love between Seok Woo and his daughter Soo An. And the love between Sang Hwa and Sung Kyeong. And the bromance between Seok Woo, Sang Hwa and Yeong Guk. Basically, what I'm saying is the main cast really freaking killed it. The chemistry between all of the main characters really added a touch of lightness to an otherwise dark movie.

ACTING/CAST -

Did I mention how much I love Gong Yoo? I saw Goblin before I saw this and fell madly in love with him (as did most people), but my gosh, if you're ever in doubt about his acting, this movie will steer you back on the right path because he really outdid himself. Every moment with him was a delight, or as delightful as a dark zombie movie can be. His character development throughout the movie was so natural and so gradually done that I really have to commend him for it. Kim Soo An, who plays his daughter, was also fantastic. She's such an incredible child actress!! Honestly, everyone was so good in this movie!

MUSIC -

I gave this a 9 because there weren't 'songs' in this movie like you find in dramas so I guess you could say it was forgettable in the sense that I didn't really notice it, but I honestly think that's because I was so gripped by the story to even notice anything else. I do have to say that the score really helped elevate the suspense of certain scenes and really helped ramp up the heartache in others.

REWATCH? A million times yes!!! I want a Train to Busan 2!!!

OVERALL... PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GONG YOO, WATCH THIS!!!!!

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I have been a fan of zombie movies ever since I watched Romero's original Night Of the Living Dead in middle school. Any chance I get, I watch them. Some are good, but most are really cheesy. I still love them. Train To Busan is in a class all by itself, however. It reminds me of a mix of Romero's Day Of the Dead and the British zombie virus movie 28 Days Later, both of which are masterpieces. Except it surpasses both.

From the get go it keeps you on the edge of your seat and freaks you out with the gory and truly horrifying cinematography. It is is so lifelike that the hordes of zombies will give you chills down your spine!

In terms of acting, it really didn't feel like anyone needed to strain themselves too much. Mostly it was all about showing the overwhelming terror and I feel like everyone did their job there. I was especially impressed by the child actress who played Gong Yoo's daughter. She played the sad and serious little girl to perfection. Her character was written differently than most children are written. Instead of being the cute and helpless little kid, she was an earnest and quiet one, brave and wise for her years.

I highly recommend this movie to anyone who is a fan of zombies and horror. It stands out from other Asian horror movies and can rival even the most acclaimed Western horror movie. I will most assuredly rewatch it, probably many times over. 10/10

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First of all....I hate scary movies. I am the biggest coward when it comes to these types of movies. So what would possess me to watch this movie? Gong Yoo that's what. For him I would personally fight off those zombies. I sucked up my fear, I manned up and put on my big girl panties and watched this film.

The storyline was typical zombie type thing. I wanted them to give a background of just what caused this accident that created zombies. It came out of no where...but anyway...

Actors...wonderful.... Gong Yoo...phenomenal. I am on an Gong Yoo binge so he can do no wrong for me right now. The little girl that played h is daughter Soo An was amazing. She had me bursting in tears at the end. This is me riding on the train, watching this movie on my way to work. I went from laughing and crying in seconds. I am sure everyone thought I was crazy. I was literally crying when I saw him get bit. Ma Dong Seok once again was amazing as well. I loved him in Bad Guys and I was excited to see him in this one as well. I would always feel safe with him by myself. He takes care of business. Although for most of the movie, I wanted Kim Eui Sung's character to get killed...when it actually happened, I felt sorry for him. He was trying to make it home to his mother(aww..sigh..). Yeong Guk(Choi Woo Shik) actually dying by Jin Hee's side (Ahn So Hee) because he felt that he couldn't protect her was sad as well.

I think I heard somewhere that there will be a sequel to this movie. But Gong Yoo turned in to a zombie. Will they find a cure to turn them back? I don't know if I would watch it if he is not in it. Oh well....just have to wait and see I guess.

Music...I really didn't pay attention to it...was too busy trying to be brave and focus on Gong Yoo's face only.

Re-watch...as much as I love Gong Yoo...I don't think that I would re-watch this only because I hate scary movies.

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Let me start off by saying that if you can't handle blood than this movie might not be for you. Zombie movies have a lot of that. There isn't really any gore, but it still might be difficult for some people to watch.

THE PLOT is sure to keep you on your feet. I'm not a fan of zombie movies/shows but I decided to watch this because of all the hype surrounding it. And I wasn't disappointed. The story is quite a thrill.

THE CHARACTERS were great. Seok Woo's character development was very good. He literally went from a selfish man that only looked out for himself to someone who was self-sacrificing and giving. Geong Yoo gave a great performance. I was surprised at how well the lead's daughter was at acting.it was heart-wrenching to hear her scream for her father at the end.

REWATCH VALUE is low for me because as I've said before, movies like this aren't my thing. Probably won't watch this again but it was a nice break from the rom-coms that I've been watching. 8/10.

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I was a nervous wreck watching this!

I came for Gong Yoo, I'll be honest. I do have to say that this movie was very well done. I hated the ending, but, for me, if it's not a totally happy ending, I'm never satisfied. I do understand why it ended the way it did, and it was effective, but it was disappointing for me.

We got to see just enough of everyone's back story to develop opinions and/or feelings about each character. You have the heroes that step up in a pinch, as well as those that, in a life-threatening situation, become even more selfish, caring only about their own safety. You also get to see some people come to the realization about that is important in life, albeit too late.

The zombies were different than in other shows/movies I've seen about zombies. In the first place, these things were freaking fast! That dialed up the tension level considerably, then you'd see a zombie running along with his body all out of alignment, with his arm broken behind his head or something, and you just have to laugh - good way to release some of that pent up tension.

The special effects were very good. I'm not expert, but there weren't any times that something was completely fake looking (okay, zombies, I know, aren't real - but they COULD be!)

Music - to be honest, I don't remember hearing any music, just lots of grunting and screaming.

Rewatch value - I don't think I'd need to watch this again, it wouldn't have the same shock/fear factor. One time was enough, but it was a heck of a ride!

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Not happy at all with the ending and seriously over the top!

So basically I’m hearing from a YouTuber that this show is getting a remake by Hollywood which will instead include New York (seriously known to be garbage with originality) and I decided to give it a try. It was nice seeing Gong Woo from Squid Game take a different role as a father. I just can’t get over though that this movie had a stupidly abrupt ending like can we not see the little girl reunite with her mother? Can we not see at least a vaccine announcement and be able to find her father? Can we not see the pregnant woman name her child after the father? I mean. WHY DIDNT THEY FREAKING ADD ANY OF THOSE TYPES OF SCENES IN WTF MAN?!?!

Can I mention that the zombies in this weren’t that scary like I just felt they were rather over the top! The blue eyes really makes them like they were possessed more than infected. If this was a demon or a supernatural type of film, I would’ve understood it more but yeah I would even call the zombies forgettable. Sorry I’m not part of the “Train to Busan” fan club..

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This movie became so famous that it was even released in my country so of course I had to watch it. The plot isn't super original (because come on, it's a zombie story, survival and blah blah blah) but it was well put together and in general the acting was pretty good (except Sohee and Wooshik's which felt very fake and exagerated sorrynotsorry, they need to improve and I know they will). Btw, THIS IS NOT A HORROR MOVIE. I'm saying this because it's often presented as horror and after watching I it I can say that it is clearly a drama. It's not scary at all (thank God) so if there're people like me that are worried of not being able to sleep at night: it's fine. The soundtrack is amazing as well. I don't think I'll ever rewatch this again purely because the surprise factor isn't in it anymore but if you haven't watched it I really recommend it.

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