Above par

Rating: 7/10 (6 August 2007)

The Korean War is somewhat overlooked in cinema i think. I guess it's because it happened between two big and traumatic American wars, WW2 and Vietnam. Seeing a movie made from a Korean perspective is not surprisingly also more interesting than it would be to see an American movie of the same thing. Having said that, the differences between this movie and a Hollywood-production are few except the language.
Korean movies have come closer and closer to western movies both in quality and design. This is a very well-made war movie with high production values and good special effects. The story is pretty straight-forward with two brothers being drafter into the army at the same time. One of the brothers try to gain commendations so he can have the other one sent home to continue his university studies. But somewhere along the way he loses his perspective and forgets why he's fighting.
The refreshing (and surprising) thing here is the way that South Koreans are not pictured as saints. Usually in modern war movies it's common to try and humanize the enemy, but considering that the conflict between North and South Korea is still ongoing (albeit in a "cold" form) i didn't really know what to expect. But this is fairly balanced, although of course told from a South Korean perspective.
The acting is fairly good here, with several faces you recognize from other recent Korean movies. The story is fairly coherent and aside from a few scenes i found impossible to understand this was a straightforward affair. That's one of the larger complaints that i've always had with Asian movies, the fact that the story is often not very coherent. Also the characters often feel illogical in their actions and motivations. But in this movie, they avoid this problem more or less completely.
In the end this is a rather straight-forward war movie that's very similar to most western equivalents from later years. In that regard it might not be revolutionary, but it is well made. Character development and story arc are above par for Asian movies, and in general the movie looks expensive and well done. It's entertaining while it lasts. I rate it 7/10.