Review of Train to Busan (2016) by Lau H — 28 Apr 2018

Train to Busan is a fantastic take on the zombie subgenre. I haven't seen a zombie movie in years like this where I felt totally invested in the main characters and for the story to be so character and emotionally driven.

The action pieces are extremely intense and will put you on the edge of your seat with some really intelligent choices as to how the characters fight back - one of my favorites included the lead character being attacked by a zombie only to find a book laying next to him, rather than swinging the book wildly at the creature's face, he shoves it right in it's chompers to prevent the bite! It's smart moments like that where Train to Busan reallys shines.

The claustrophobic setting of the train combined with some really ominous music are also worth mentioning here as they really help set the tone and keep you worried for the survivors. It's not as scary as one might have hoped but the films intention doesn't really seem to be to scare you, it wants to shock you for sure and it wants to make you think about the characters and their interactions with each other.

Some of the translations to English seem a little silly but that is to be expected and it doesn't really detract from the overall story or feeling of the movie. To sum up, this movie is awesome and anyone who considers themselves a fan of the zombie film will find this interesting for it's underlying social commentary that zombie films are really made for and the action and character drama (brought to life by great performances - even the little girl holds her own here) will keep you in suspense throughout.