Directed By Sang-ho Yeon

Starring – Dong-Won Gang, Jung-hyun Lee, John D. Michaels

The Plot – “Peninsula” is the next nail-biting chapter in this post-apocalyptic world. Jung-seok (Gang), a soldier who previously escaped the diseased wasteland, relives the horror when assigned to a covert operation with two simple objectives: retrieve and survive. When his team unexpectedly stumbles upon survivors, their lives will depend on whether the best-or worst-of human nature prevails in the direst of circumstances.

Rated R for scenes of intense violence involving gore, and adult language.

POSITIVES

– Expansive world-building. While none of the survivors from “Train To Busan” grace us with their presence in “Peninsula”, this very much feels like a naturally aged world of the South Korea landscape that we were treated to with its predecessor. Aside from the barrage of urban decay that decorates over the buildings and automobiles like an airborne plague, the politics that have weighed heavily over closing down the source of the infection feels very prominent with realistic strategies when faced with what could be the end of the world. What’s refreshing here is it’s very much not Armageddon on a global scale, just this peninsula in this South Korean town that became the source for the mayhem, giving us optimism and hope outside of its walls that still breeds within the ideals of its residents. While inside, the intricate sound design washes over us like a finely illustrated stroke of isolation, and the psychology of its inhabitants constantly feels a step behind on communicative interaction, cementing its disconnect from a world that has forgotten about it.

– Enhanced production values. My problems with the movie’s over-abundance of computer generated properties and lifeless greenscreen backdrops are almost enough for me to take it out completely on the movie’s detailed special effects, but thankfully the combination of practical make-up and zombie wardrobe prove just enough time was spent on the believable elements that matter. What’s unique to me is the decomposition on the zombies here feels every bit faithful as it is revealing to their circumstance, matching consistency in a way that stitches the movies together with more than just identical plots. On the wardrobe side of things, there’s a vast variation of colorization and saturation used to distinguish the varying stages of each zombie’s infection, without any two of them ever rubbing together similarly to save a few bucks. It helps to better fight off some of the more unintentionally cheap renderings delivered from artificiality that unfortunately dominates the movie’s second half, but does offer a lot for the hardcore zombie movie lover looking to spot intricacies left by a director in love with his created environment.

– Stirring social commentary. Speaking of Yeon’s magical touch, it’s perhaps his most rewarding element of filmmaking when he breaks down the walls of fiction in favor of sociology for the way he sees our own world. What turns up is especially revealing, particularly in the way he documents humans as the very same vicious monster captors on the other side of the fence. It’s realized through a lot of different ways, but particularly in the way we tear each other down in our most character defining moments, harvesting an almost animalistic rage that drives our greed for any semblance of edge to get ahead. It proves that antagonists don’t just move in the form of the living dead, but also in the neighbors that walk among us, and similar to what develops in the movie, for better or worse, commands the strings as our film’s primary conflict in an already dangerously spontaneous world where anything can and often will happen.

– Supercharged pacing. Almost right off of the bat, “Peninsula” roars to the screen with an action sequence that not only perfectly sets the precedent for what’s to come in the next two hours, but also doesn’t blow its engine in favor of a series of thrilling set pieces that amplify the movie’s intensity. Character exposition is unfortunately exchanged to keep this consistency, but if you’re someone who needs visual carnage and character uncertainty to sell a movie’s finer points to you, then this one will drive right up your alley. Matching said compliments is also the multi-layered angles of the story that never leans as heavily on one specific setting like its predecessor, and instead covers the unfolding drama from as many as three respective characters simultaneously. This enhances the psychology of the objective between them naturally, all the while never stalling or halting the movie’s progressive with a lone arc that could easily grow tedious with a two hour presentation. Even with as many problems as “Peninsula” has creatively, it’s never a boring watch, and consistently catches the attention of its audience with a narrative that constantly puts the pedal to the medal.

– Masterful cinematography. Easily Yeon’s most valuable decision for the presentation of his film was the decision to bring back his energetic cinematography, Lee Hyung-Deok, to convey urgency in the approach of his craft. What Lee does almost as good as anyone I’ve seen is the intricacy with his visual storytelling that grooves in and out of character proximity with the fluidity of a roller-coaster without sacrificing the detection of the scene. Long take sequences certainly play a prominent role in this accomplishment, depicting the movie’s stunt choreography in a way that you can’t help but appreciate for its memorization. However, it’s Lee’s desire for a handheld prominence that really captured my attention, and breeds urgency in a way translates seamlessly to the audience watching at home in their safe zone. It grants us an immersive quality that visually elaborates these duo of films in ways zombie epics haven’t attained, and garners a shot composition that challenges without alienating.

NEGATIVES

– Thinner characterization. The most noticeable absence from this sequel is in the flat, uninteresting characters that don’t earn a shred of interest or empathy from this critic, because of the lack of time and development shared on them. For something that was such a pivotal piece to “Train To Busan”, the lack of depth here is concerning to say the least, translating not a single protagonist who I cared about even half as much as a supporting one in its predecessor. It’s especially difficult in the climatic battles, when the movie so obviously leans so heavily on the dramatic tones and desperate musical score to sell a heft that it truly didn’t earn. It never musters up even half of the emotional resonation that it needs to sell a lasting impact, and makes this the most obvious of disappointments in a movie that is easily my biggest disappointment overall of the 2020 movie year.

– Conveyor belt sequel. Instead of continuing to reinvent the genre like its impactful first chapter, “Peninsula” derails on a series of tropes, timely predictable aftermaths, and horrendous dialogue that is borderline satirical for its obviousness. Long gone are the days of a tight budgeted independent zombie thriller that succeeded on the elements of its subtleties and nuances, in favor of an overly bloated explosion buffet that feels to desperate to naturally sync in as a cohesive second chapter. Some scenes feel like they were lifted from “Mad Max: Fury Road”, while others feel lifted from “Land of the Dead”, without offering even a shred of originality that justifies its existence in the face of its anticipation. As for the dialogue, the movie commits the cardinal sin of movies post “Terminator 2: Judgment Day”, in that it includes the “Come with me if you want to live” line that made me cringe so hard my face got stuck for ten whole seconds. When your movie feels like stitched together parts from entirely different, obvious other movies, it keeps yours from ever taking on a life of its own, and writes “Peninsula” into an uphill climb that it never overcomes in the barrage of zombie epic cinema offerings.

– Contradicting tones. This movie never feels like it truly understands what it wants to be. One second it’s an action tumbler with a barrage of chase sequences, destruction, and cluttered artificiality in its special effects. The next, it’s a dramatic tearjerker intersecting these intentional and unintentionally hilarious moments of concentration-breaking that undersells every ounce of heft that the movie manages to attain. What’s weirdest is there’s very few moments of evidence dispersed for horror, whether it be absence of blood or dread, that cement its purpose. In “Train To Busan”, the horror is certainly there, but underlying in a way that allows its suspense to build until the moment of therapeutic release within the psychology of its audience. Here, it’s a hodgepodge of contradicting directions that never blend together seamlessly, nor find their way to compliment the most important element; the horror.

– Strange bi-lingual choices. This movie’s obvious intention to cater towards an American audience garners some surreal moments of translation that is unlike anything that I’ve ever seen. Most of the movie, as expected, is spoken in Korean, but there are the few moments of outbursts that are oddly spoken in English that I wasn’t expecting, and made for some uninspired line reads that come across as these horribly forced moments of cultural inclusion. At first, I thought this was done with audio dubbing because of how bad it’s rendered, but I soon realized a group of actors asked to communicate in a language that doesn’t come natural to them creates more problems than the ones that initially meet the eyes. In doing this, the movie feels like it doesn’t remain true to its geographical designation that got it to the dance in the first place, and instead breaks character and believability in a way that is unnecessary above all else.

– Minimal vulnerability. As to where “Train To Busan” is an off-the-rails thriller that maintains danger at every corner, “Peninsula” is very much a predictably bland screenplay with very few moments of character vulnerability that comes at the expense of four years into this new world. It’s beneficial that a group of people adapt to a circumstance that have defined the most recent moments of their lives, learning to fight it with confidence and creativity in a way that quickly defuses each situation. However, there are very few moments of claustrophobia in the film that limit a protagonist’s spontaneity, giving us a series of situations that rarely, if ever, feels over their heads. It tries to create dramatic tension during scenes where it feels so unnecessary, particularly during the film’s closing moments where a character contemplates suicide, never attaining a shred of empathy during the moments we should be on the edge of our seats.

My Grade: 5/10 or D+