I was looking forward to seeing this one. I was so disappointed that it was released around here to only a handful of cinemas and my only way to see it was to catch a late screening in the independent cinema in my neighborhood. Anyway it was worth it!
The plot: scientists pour chemicals in the Han river, creating a mutation that a few years down the line gets to Seoul to find that humans are quite good to eat! In doing so it takes away a young girl whose broken up family will try to get her back.
It's a pure monster movie and proud of it. But somehow it picks all the codes of the genre to use them and also break them. You get the mad scientists, the state's mistakes and misinformation, the people hat gets eaten...
But at the heart of this is also the story of a dysfunctionnal family that comes together in grief and revenge. And the treatment on this is far from simplistic and quite brave, avoiding cliches and keeping a very realistic feel, which gives it a very relevant social message.
The "heroes" here are just normal people, not more intelligent that anybody else (in fact sometimes more stupid than average). The monster doesn't destroy big buildings or helicopters, it's here to feed so it just sticks to chasing people (adults and kids) and attacking caravans...
This creature is by the way a real success, it manages to be original and to mix this strange mixture of repulsion (it's a monstruous fish-frog) and fascination (how it moves!).
The whole movie is also constantly playing on your feelings. Most of the scenes are quite ambivalent: in a very dramatic scene, absurd will slowly creep and change your perspective. Or the opposite, it can start funnily and end horribly... You never know if you have to cry or laugh!
It all adds up to a totally compelling experience.
That's what makes some genre movies exceptionnal: when through the codes they deliver something more. Here's one exceptionnal monster movie!
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