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Absolutely non-stop over the top action.
This film has absolutely no claim to veracity whatsoever. We aren't sure who the enemies are (well, seem to be everybody), nor who the hero is - okay, it's obviously Joo Won ie Carter, but who is HE? Even he doesn't know cause he's lost his memory. There's a bit of play with that - he could be two different guys apparently, & this is never resolved as the film sets up the sequel at the end (where China, not visible in this film, obviously will play a role in the next).The setting is in the near future, where somehow North Korea seems to have opened it's borders. A deadly zombie-like virus is the main threat, but most of the action is NOT zombie fighting, so you really can't call this a zombie film. Instead, our hero, Joo Won, looking mighty fine through out, is tasked with rescuing a little girl who's got the antidote in her blood - and everybody wants her LOL
The action just got me laughing - so over the top ridiculous! The opening scene in the thug bathhouse LOL - not quite as good as The K2 but damned close! The fight while skydiving - better than that Bond scene with Jaws!!!! The way that poor kid is tossed around through out the film just kept my attention, & then another kid gets added to the mix - so crazy :D
This film reminded me forcibly of the 2007 film Shoot Em Up - same ridiculously violent scenes, gorgeous lead (Clive Owen), baby getting manhandled during a rescue, etc LOL Loved that film too!
People who get squeamish, who want character development, or who like logical storylines or reasonable action sequences, this film is NOT for you. Just saying!
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Actual Strong Women Here - Be Warned
This drama deserves the highest praise. Incredible acting, gorgeous themes & wardrobe, interesting and well-formatted storyline, great examination of the web of family relationships and how bad choices can echo down thru generations, as well as a very thought-provoking theme of what truly makes a family, or more specifically, a mother?I highly recommend this drama, and I also recommend that anyone wondering if they should watch it just IGNORE most of the commentary. There are many immature, undereducated and basically shallow persons on this site who haven't a clue how to interpret a complicated, thoughtful drama like this. The number of different themes presented, the indirect way the writers show the main traumatic event, the complicated interwoven motivations of all the characters, takes a willingness to watch the entire drama and to do some thinking about it as well.
So if you don't want to do that, this is not the drama for you, just saying. Not fluff, even tho L and his love interest do provide a lovely, sweet little note threading through-out the drama.
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I found the opening scenes, the situation in the present, unnecessarily confusing, but it does set up the situation wanted - ie 2 groups (one NK & one SK) of soldiers sent 400+ years in the past, to the Joseon era, where they meet up with Admiral Yi Sun Sin before he entered the military. Action scenes fighting against Chinese invaders, and heart-warming brotherly bonding occur, as the soldiers try to convince the young Yi Sun Sin that he should give up ginseng smuggling to become the great military strategist he's meant to be. All this does not offer much innovation or new perspectives, but it's very well done and the plot had sufficient twists to make it interesting.
Kong Hyo Jin as the sole female in this film does add some interest overall - not love interest but perspective & comic relief. I'm sure that including her in the story explains the scenario at the beginning. She acts somewhat as a narrator, or at least a narrating presence - she observes rather than plays any active part but she's always interesting to watch.
All in all this did entertain me and even moved me. I thoroughly enjoyed the film.
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This review may contain spoilers
Hard topic done well
I found this drama highly realistic and truly informative about a problem most first world countries have - juvenile delinquency, and the inadequacies of the legal system to combat it. I myself retired from DSS which is social services in the US - and I had teens coming in for help with medical (pregnancy too often!) & living help. Kids who came thru the foster system & were flung out on their own at 18. Kids from bad or indifferent parents. Kids who were thrown out of their homes for not conforming to the morals or religions of their parents. Just heartbreaking.This drama had as the central character a woman that I did not like at all. She had no business being a juvenile judge in the SK system as portrayed, because of her constant 'I hate juvenile offenders' spiel. Nope, nada, not acceptable. However, her journey was imminently worth watching. She overcame her prejudices and gave fair & impartial judgements, trying her best to help these kids on a path away from crime towards being productive citizens, despite their parents and their home situations. I very much enjoyed the way she went after the truth, like a terrier, thru-out.
Now, I do have a huge problem with that first case. A young teen (13???) who is schizophrenic???? WTF???? That psychopathic older teen used and manipulated this vulnerable, MENTALLY ILL child, and he had no business being put in the penal system at all. He needed psychiatric care, pure and simple. However, this really highlights for me the big problem SK seems to have in regards to mental illness - somewhere reform is needed. Lord knows, the US has areas (huge ones) where a ton of reforms are needed, BTW. In fact I'd say it's possible that the SK legal system overall is more efficient than the one here in the US (not a huge achievement). But the way mental illnesses are ignored is just insane.
I did not like the way the chief judge was treated by the main character, BTW. At no point did she ask him when he found out about his son - which makes a big difference. She exhibited a very holier-than-thou attitude thru the entire drama in fact, which made me long for someone to slap her down. Her boss was going to have his career ruined, as he knew when he found out about his son - despite the fact he hadn't a clue the kid & his wife had disobeyed him. That's another problem with SK - the way mere proximity (as in a family member, or someone you know/work with) to a criminal, or to scandal, can wash over one and destroy YOUR career etc! The way the families of criminals, who often have been victims of said criminals themselves, are demonized! This is something shown really well in the drama Come Hug Me.
I really loved the ending case - it showed what her problems were, and wrapped them up well. I could have done without her ridiculous lecture to her superior, which really had no truth in it whatsoever (throwing 11 year olds in the penal system does not 'teach them' anything except how to be better criminals next time). Those kids needed actual counseling and the kinds of consequences that children need - ie education and a sense of responsibility. Their parents failed them woefully, and it's not the job of the justice department, nor the schools, to give kids this. Both those boys looked to be sociopathic from the start, which is not going to somehow 'go away' by throwing them in jail or juvenile detention. Anymore than schizophrenia will somehow disappear using the same method. However, the older judge did slap her down a peg at least, and both seemed to learn something from this experience.
All in all this was a very worthwhile watch. Acting, of course, was top-notch.
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