Train to Busan: A Train to Your Heart and a Train to a Sequel?

I really didn't want to watch this. But I did.

As someone who tries their best to not watch Korean dramas or movies, I had already made up my mind that I wasn't going to watch this movie the moment it came out. But everyone was talking about it. Up to the point where they were giving out spoilers. (Seriously though, people who give out spoilers should have a little spot in hell where they're made to watch Dragonball the movie or Avatar the Last Airbender for eternity.)

Anyway, I already knew the ending and I didn't want to watch it. But I ended up watching it last Sunday at the movies with Mariah (I'm still pissed about spending money to go watch this movie btw). 

Thankfully, Train to Busan shattered my expectations. 

Here is the trailer for those of you who have not seen it.

It's not bad for a trailer. It doesn't give away too much of the story line so you can still be surprised when you watch the movie. 

**Some Spoilers Ahead**

The Story

The story is centered around Seok-woo (Gong Yoo) and his daughter Su-an (Kim Su-an), who take a train to Busan so Su-an can go see her mother on her birthday. By this time the outbreak had began to spread and an infected person boarded the train just as it left the station. 

That infected person kills a member of the train staff, who then also turns into a zombie and the outbreak spreads throughout the train. 

With communications down, the train continues its way towards Busan with a few problems along the way.

Overall, the story is full of suspense and heart wrenching moments. Like when Seok-woo's mother called him on the phone as she dies. Unlike typical zombie movies where the characters would arm themselves up and start kicking zombie ass, Train to Busan focuses on showing how people would react when faced with life and death situations. It focuses on human connections, our selfishness, our fear and our love. 

It's a cool story if you think about it and I am impressed at how well they managed to portray all these things so well. 

The Characters

Gong Yoo as Seok-woo

Okay. I'm going to be a little biased. I didn't know that Gong Yoo would be the main character in this movie. I loved him in Coffee Prince (it's the only thing I've watched him on) and I have watched that story countless times. So when I saw his face I decided that I was going to like this movie anyway. 

Kim Su-an as Su-an

Su-an's character is the typical innocent child archetype. She has a good heart and tries to do the right thing. However, there are times where he character makes some questionable decisions. I mean, you're in a zombie apocalypse, everyone is dying and it's like she ignored all of these things. She actually gets really annoying, but you can really feel how much she loves her dad. 

(Left to right) Jung Yu-mi as Seong-kyeong & Ma Deong Seok as Sang-hwa

My favourite characracters. Seong-kyeong and Sang-hwa are a couple. Seong-kyeong is the typical headstrong pregant wife and Sang-hwa is the tough guy who is also a doting husband. While I liked their characters, I didn't understand how Seong-kyeong could run around that much as she's pregnant. There was once scene where she crawled underneath a wrecked train. I don't know about being pregnant, but I thought pregnant people weren't supposed to run around like that.

Now, Sang-hwa. He can actually be quite the hot head but he's only being protective of his wife. He puts her first above anything else. He had a really badass scene where he, Young-guk and Seok-woo kick zombie ass. Even his death was badass. He sacrificed himself to save everyone. It was very touching.

Ahn So-hee as Jin-hee

And then there's Jin-hee. It seems like her only concern is with her "boyfriend". Nothing special about her character except that she did fight tooth and nail to help them get into the carriage. 

Choi Woo-shik as Young-guk

Nothing special about this guy either. I feel like they put Jin-hee and Young-guk in the story just to add a little "young love". This guy isn't even brave. He couldn't even hit his friends-turned zombies. Bro, they're not your friends no more. They will kill you so freaking fight back. =.=

Kim Ui-seong as Yong-suk

This guy was the main antagonist I believe. He is selfish and used people's fears and trust for himself. It took SO long for him to die. I don't even know how he got infected in the first place. 

My Favourite Scenes

Remember the badass scene I mentioned Sang-hwa had? This is it. These three had to fight through 4 cars full of zombies with nothing but bats, makeshift arm braces and their fists. The scene where Sang-hwa enters the car was so cool. 

I believe this scene was one of  the only comic relief scenes we had. They had just escaped the hoard of soldier zombies and made it back into the train. The first thing this guy does is to call Jin-hee and cries like a little baby. It was adorable and funny. hahahaa

This last scene is a little bit darker. They were all "banished" to the end of the train car as its occupants didn't trust them (no thanks to Yong-suk). But all the occupants were killed right after when one of them opened the door and let the zombies in. Justice anyone? 

Least Favourite Scene

I don't want to elaborate on this, but I didn't like Seok-woo's death and Su-an's singing at the end. I don't get why Su-an even started singing that song at the end. She could've sang it on the train car after her dad jumped off.

Overall, I enjoyed Train to Busan. Even with the stereotypical characters, the story still managed to portray loss, sacrifice, love with a little bit of suspense and gore. As a zombie movie lover, I can definitely say that this is one of the best I've seen and I would definitely watch it again.

In other news, the movie was such a success that fans are asking for more. So, there might even be a Train to Busan 2 in the making! 

You can read more here.