A bit too sentimental. But still a great movie

Rating: 8/10 (17 December 2005)

This is a great movie. The action sequences are spectacular and real. The acting is generally good. And of course, for a non-Korean like me, the movie does a little to educate me about the Korea history.
The only complain I have is that there are quite a few scenes that feel overly sentimental. The early scene introducing the two brothers and the scene where the brothers tried to get the last glimpse of their mother from the train before leaving for the frontline are some examples jumping into mind.
But I also have to say that I found myself crying a little at the last scene, when the elder brother's dead body turned to a set of skeleton. So overall, I think the movie does deliver what it sets out to do. A poignant story complemented with many excellent action sequences that show the war as it was. For ordinary people, it's not about ideology or even national pride. It's an extreme manifestation of deep lying human instincts of violence and survival.