Is Peninsula (2020) as good as Train to Busan?
The Korean zombie film Peninsula (2020) is out on Netflix. It’s the sequel to Train to Busan (2016) (also directed by Yeon Sang-ho). My expectations were high, but then I read the reviews which weren’t so good. And after watching the film, I could see why.
Peninsula starts off well with tense, emotional scenes and we are treated early on to the delights of Korean zombies. But after the initial titbits, the film turns into a gunfight with Mad Max-esque chases.
If you like that sort of thing, you’ll enjoy it. But what I find appealing about Korean zombie films and what makes them different is the ‘zombie choreography’. The way the ordinary people morph into zombies is fun and creepy to watch. The way they move in synchronised packs to attack their victims is frightening but artistic. Throw in some engaging characters and we are onto a winner.
So I wonder why most of the time this film decides to steer clear of all these strengths?
PENINSULA FILM PLOT
So here’s the plot. Everyone is trying to get out of Korea as zombies are taking over the country. Survivors rush to catch a boat leaving Busan including Marine Corps Captain Jung-seok (played by Gang Dong-won) who is travelling with his sister and family. But their boat gets infected too. Still, some passengers make it to Hong Kong to start a new life.
However, things aren’t easy and when Captain Jung-seok is offered a lucrative deal to return to his home country on a mission, he takes it. Despite the dangers, he returns to Korea and finds the country very wild indeed. But he has a mission to accomplish before he can leave. Jung-seok teams up with street smart survivor Min-Jung (played by pop singer/actress Lee Jung-hyun) to complete his mission.
PENINSULA VS TRAIN TO BUSAN
As this is the sequel to Train to Busan, I inevitably found myself comparing the two films. They are both action zombie films. But the plot, pace, and mood are very different.
The storyline for Train to Busan is simple. Passengers are on the train trying to get from A to B. Zombies are on the train as well. So the film easily captures the fear and claustrophobic nature of being trapped with zombies!
Peninsula is more ambitious with the storyline. I did like how the story breaks up into several threads and lets us follow the various survivors through their own personal experiences. But the film is set in a deserted Korea. And so the characters have endless space to chase each other about. (not to mention scenes in Hong Kong and on a boat as well). So it’s harder to keep the intensity in the film.
Then there is the issue with the characters. Train to Busan warms up to the crisis which allows us a bit of time to be introduced to them before it all kicks off. (Who wasn’t hoping the workaholic father – played by Gong Yoo – would reconnect with his daughter?) In Peninsula we join the harassed survivors in mid panic. There’s no time for a meet and greet, perhaps that’s why I wasn’t so invested in them.
And finally, in Peninsula the nature of a tough Apocalyptic world has allowed unsavoury characters to take over. So the zombies are not the main enemy which can leave them surplus to requirements. So at times, amongst the fighting and chases, they are reduced to shivering in the distance hardly noticeable through the mist. And if they do get in the way, they can easily be killed. You just shoot them.
FINAL THOUGHTS
There were some innovative ideas in Peninsula, like how the ordinary people have learned to live with the zombies. And the street smart kids who have grown up in this lawless land are great to watch. I enjoyed the first half of the film more than the second. But overall, there are just too many guns and not enough acrobatic zombies.
If you’re not bothered about zombies and like dystopian action then Peninsula is an entertaining film. If you’ve come for the zombies, I recommend Train to Busan.
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