Train to Busan – Review
I must confess that I have a soft spot for zombie movies and television shows. But they have to be done well. I need more than just the undead biting into people. The problem is that there are only so many variations on the theme.
Somewhere I came across a recommendation for a movie called Train to Busan. I was surprised that I had not heard of it as it was released in 2016. Perhaps it is because it is a Korean language film. I sat down to watch it without much expectations.
I was blown away.
The plot is simple. A father is taking his daughter on a train to Busan to be with her mother for her birthday. The father is not a nice guy, is a terrible father, and a bad enough husband that he is separated from his wife. It should be a simple trip to take his daughter and be back after lunch to return to the office.
Except for the zombie apocalypse!
Unknown to the passengers, some kind of outbreak has taken place that is turning people in rabid killers who rip out flesh with their teeth. Unfortunately, also unknown to the passengers, an infected person has gotten into the train.
You can imagine how well that went. The zombie plague spreads across the train, leaving a small group of survivors trying to escape death. They are determined to finish their journey to Busan, which they believe is safer.
This all sounds rather a predictable movie, sort of a blend of Snowpiercer and World War Z (this has the fast zombies). However, it actually is a fresh take on it.
What makes the Train to Busan stand out is the human element. What other zombie shows have revealed is that the main question in a zombie apocalypse is not “How will we survive the zombies?” but “How will we treat each other?”
The father begins on the side of look out for yourself and forget about the needs around you. He tries to install this into her but she instead begins to change him. We see this dynamic in other characters as they make the decision of whether they will help each other or use each other as pawns in there own survival.
I will not spoil anything but there are a number of twists and turns. Things happened that I did not expect. And much of that is emotionally moving. This movie will actually tug on your heart strings.
Train to Busan is not an action adventure. There is very little of killing of the zombies (although there is plenty of the opposite). The zombie apocalypse is a tool to test human morality in the face of a terrifying disaster.
You might not like movies with subtitles but I found the story so engaging that I forgot that I was reading subtitles. And I also want to mention that the daughter is played by a talented young actress who made me believe she was experiencing this.
I definitely recommend watching the Train to Busan. (Amazon affiliate link)
