Hope

Hope
Starring Hwang Jung-min, Zo In-sung, Jung Ho-Yeon, Eum Moon-suk
Directed by Na Hong-jin

Foreign films are unique in that they don't make movies to appease the masses, but films that the directors and writers are emotionally drawn to. They don't care if it makes billions of dollars, they want to tell the story the way they want to, unlike American films that rely solely on box office gross week-to-week. "Hope" is an epic (and I mean epic, running at 2 hours and 40 minutes) blend of horror, action, sci-fi and even comedy that doesn't hold the audiences' hands but allows the story to flow in its own natural pace, resulting in a conclusion more fit for a sequel than a definitive ending.

In the small South Korean harbor town of Hope Harbor, police chief Ko Bum-seok (Hwang Jung-min) is called to investigate the mysterious death of a cow by his second cousin Ko Sung-ki (Zo In-sung). Thinking it's a tiger, the two split up to search for clues as Sung-ki goes to the woods and Bum-seok heads into town, and immediately discovers it wasn't a tiger. The town is in ruins, with what seems to be giant-sized footprints in blood and a wake of carnage in its path. He finds the town completely decimated with bodies all over the place, and finally comes into contact with the creature. Meanwhile in the woods, Sung-ki and his friends come upon their own discovery that further adds to the mystery, and when rookie cop Im Sung-ae (Jung Ho-yeon) arrives, all hell breaks loose as the survivors band together to battle the creatures that threaten their town.

This is a movie where going into it knowing less is helpful, but not necessary. The basic premise is that the town is being invaded by some sort of creatures, but we don't fully know what they are. "The Wailing" director Na Hong-jin again subverts the typical tropes of cinema by blending different genres into a masterwork of talent. While the set designs are horrifying, the action is palpable, the creatures are straight out of sci-fi lore, and the characters are so inept that it's almost like slapstick comedy.

There's essentially three stories being told in this movie, all of which coalesce into one epic conclusion. The main story is Ko Bum-seok hunting the creature in the town which takes up the first hour or so of the movie - and in doing so, perfectly establishes the tension, dread, and terror he feels as we don't see the creature either. He's ten steps behind, running down deserted roads, seeing buildings in ruins, and then hearing distant screams and gunfire. As he goes to investigate a car goes flying by, or a group of people get annihilated in front of his eyes by an unseen entity. It's terrifying and shot in such an expert way you'll wonder how they did it, culminating in the final reveal of the creature (which, of course, is CGI, but decently-done CGI, not that "Thor: Love and Thunder" crap) and an epic car chase through the city. 

The second story is Ko Sung-ki and his friends in the woods and the events they uncover there. Again, the tension and dread is amped up to eleven, and again when we see the CGI creatures they're both frighteningly terrifying and oddly beautiful, even though they wreak an insane amount of carnage. 

The final story centers on Im Sung-ae, the rookie cop who is more adept at the situation than anyone else, as she arrives at the town with AK-47 loaded and ready to kick some creature butt. There's a running gag in the movie where Ko Bum-Seok asks people where they get their weapons, and their reply is the same: "does it really matter?" It's pretty hilarious in an otherwise action-packed sci-fi epic.

While the movie does lag a bit here and there, I was never bored nor did I really want it to end. It's intriguing, hilarious, terrifying, and poignant in equal measure, and the only real downside is the lack of character development - but I feel that was done on purpose. These characters aren't superheroes, but flawed humans faced with the impossible, thrusting us into the movie ourselves where we ask, "what would we do?"

For anyone who's looking for a unique spin on the sci-fi genre, and who doesn't mind reading subtitles, "Hope" will give you hope that there's still great movies out there, even if they don't come from America.

The Score: A+