Director: Kim Seok-jung
Year: 2014
Country: South Korea
Alternate Titles: Jombieseukul
Genre: Zombie
Plot:
Arriving at a reformatory school, a group of students sent there to work on their attitude issues try to stand up to the teachers trying to control them, but when a diseased pig from an undisclosed pandemic awakes and turns the faculty into zombies, the students are forced to find a way out of the school.
Review:
Overall, this one was a fairly solid and likable genre effort. Among its better elements is the straightforward and simplistic storyline involving the means by which the different groups are brought together. The main storyline of getting the students at the school, where we get an in-depth look at their personal issues and behavioral qualities that require them to deal with the ruthless treatment at the hands of the other teachers, works rather well. This sets up the personality and different motivations each student has while getting a chance to see the treatment that occurs at the hands of the verbally and physically abusive teachers who are not afraid to beat down or insult them. This allows for a great storyline to deal with the students at the school. We also get enough of a backstory for the zombie virus to come about, where the discovery of the infected pig carcasses from decades ago comes back to life and turns one of the faculty into a zombie to spread it to the other faculty members. It all works nicely enough here to get both of these aspects settled, which gives the storyline a fine start.
On top of that, the main zombie action here also works rather nicely. Almost solely relegated to the final half of the film following all the opening introductions and character reveals, the series of encounters and chasing here has some incredibly thrilling moments involving the ravenous creatures wandering through the halls looking for victims. After the initially shocking moments that showcase the group encountering the possessed faculty member turning in front of them for the sudden shock sequences, the more involved sequences involving the group trying to maintain a sense of secrecy while getting out of the school alive provide some suspenseful aspects. As the ravenous numbers and darkened hallways bring about the traditional swarming sequences in an atmospheric location so crucial for the genre, it brings about some technical aspects to the film which hit the required marks of the genre. With the scenes also bringing about some fine gore in the bloody kills and plenty of traditional id no less impressive make-up in the zombies on-screen, there’s a lot to like with this one.
There are some big issues in the film that hold it back. The biggest drawback here is the absolutely awful and outright terrible characters that we're supposed to follow and care about. Since the students are presented as rebellious troublemakers sent to the school as a means to help their studying in school and get better, their attitude and snarky behavior constantly make everyone out to be the most unlikable and despicable group of toxic teens around. The teachers and other authority figures present are no better, far more content to verbally abuse the students or beat them physically to encourage better attitudes or school habits. No one in the film becomes likable as a result, and that severely cripples the immersion in the first half, as the inability to care about anyone is a big factor. It also ties into the other issue where the first half is a bit too sluggish and underwhelming, with very little zombie action in favor of dealing with the students. It’s not until quite late in the film that the attacks begin in earnest, after getting hints before then, and these all manage to bring this down.
Overview: ***/5
Featuring enough to like with some positive aspects and a couple of big issues, this one comes off fun enough for what it is but has some big drawbacks to keep it from going higher than that. Those who appreciate Asian horror in general or are undiscerning zombie fanatics will have the most to enjoy here, while most others, turned off by its factors, will want to heed caution here.
This review was originally published on Asian Movie Pulse and is gratefully reprinted with their cooperation.
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