Peninsula

Peninsula Story: An ex-soldier is sent back to retrieve bags of cash from the Korean peninsula, now completely abandoned after the zombie apocalypse.

Peninsula Review: Around four years after the events of ‘Train to Busan’, South Korea has become a wasteland filled with zombies. Former Captain Jung Seok of the Republic of Korea Marine Corps is tasked with finding and retrieving a truckload of money in the quarantined zone, which will set him up for life. But when his team reach the peninsula, they encounter militants who have gone rogue. Jung Seok must fight for his life with the help of a few stray survivors.

After the breakthrough success of ‘Train to Busan’ in 2016, expectations were reasonably high for its sequel. Naturally, director and co-writer Sang-ho Yeon decided to up the stakes and dive head-on into the apocalyptic world he created. Taking obvious inspiration from various dystopian films and shows, this sequel fails to match its well-received predecessor. Set in an open world, the zombie count is substantially increased and needs to rely more heavily on CGI as a result. Unfortunately, the VFX is erratic in some places, and looks out of a video game with questionable physics, especially when involving automobiles. This is a significant aspect of the film, so your mileage may vary entirely based on your reaction to it. For many, it will probably lower the sense of terror impeccably captured in ‘Train to Busan’.

The story has some potential with interesting themes on human greed and sacrifice when all else is lost. They’re certainly more pertinent considering the prevalent scenario in the world today. Director Sang-ho Yeon is keen to explore what it takes to save a loved one under extraordinary circumstances, and the story becomes more gripping when he does. Jung Seok (Dong-Won Gang) encounters a mother Min Jung (Jung- hyun Lee) and her two daughters, and their relationship is heartfelt bringing some much-needed depth to the plot. Their performances also lend to a few emotional beats that hit home. Then again, some of the scenes feel stretched out, which affects the pacing drastically. While ‘Peninsula’ has its moments including ingenious ways of dealing with zombie hordes, you’ll be disappointed if you’re expecting a worthy sequel to ‘Train to Busan’. Instead, it’s reasonably enjoyable as a standalone action zombie flick.