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Film Review: Steel Rain (2017) by Yang Woo-suk

"Steel Rain" is an enjoyable production that will definitely appeal to fans of Hollywood action blockbusters

Based on Yang Woo-suk’s 2011 homonymous webtoon, “” attempts to deal with the scenario of a North Korean coup d’état, through a Hollywood blockbuster approach, for the most part.

Eom Cheol-woo, a North Korean agent, is tasked with an assassination mission, only to become witness to a terrorist attack which is actually a coup d’état, involving an US army helicopter. After the disaster that follows, Eom ends up in the South, along with his injured No. 1. Through a number of adventures including a young obstetrician and a plastic surgeon, Eom ends up with Kwak Cheol-woo, senior presidential secretary for foreign affairs and national security for the S. Korean government, who also happens to be the ex-husband of the aforementioned plastic surgeon. The two of them try to prevent the breakout of a nuclear war on the Korean Peninsula.

The basic idea of the film, of the cooperation of North and South individuals to face a greater evil, although much visited in the Korean industry, is quite good, particularly regarding the political aspect and the way the idea of a coup d’état in the North is presented. However, as the Hollywood blockbuster aesthetics take over, one cannot but notice how far-fetched the story goes, particularly regarding the various coincidences that occur, and the depiction of the North, which borders on South jingoism, through a number of quite pointy comparisons. Lastly, some elements of melodrama could not be missing from here either, as is the case with almost all Korean films that aim at commercial success.

On the other hand, the movie benefits the most from the many and quite impressive action scenes that highlight the budget of the production, along with Lee Gang-hee’s excellent editing, and Lee Hyung-deok’s cinematography. The SFX are top notch, particularly in the scenes that involve nuclear weapons, while the action choreography is one of the film’s best assets, in similar fashion with the “Bourne” movies.

Another very interesting aspect of the film is Kwak Chul-woo’s character, who highlights a man who is anything but a hero, as he is constantly drowned in paperwork, scorned by his wife and occasionally his children, and with a rather strange sense of humor, which comes up at the most inappropriate moments. The fact, however, that he is not a mastermind or a great fighter, gives the film a lighter and somewhat humorous sense that definitely benefits its overall aesthetics. is great in the part, in a role somewhat similar with the one he had on “The Wailing.” On the other hand, is the archetype of the Bourne hero, a man who tries to succeed against all odds, mostly with his fighting skills

Overall, “Steel Rain” is an enjoyable production that will definitely appeal to fans of Hollywood action blockbusters. However, most of the movie’s elements points towards the flick, in a production that will be forgotten as easily as it is watched.

About the author

Panos Kotzathanasis

Panagiotis (Panos) Kotzathanasis is a film critic and reviewer, specialized in Asian Cinema. He is the owner and administrator of Asian Movie Pulse, one of the biggest portals dealing with Asian cinema. He is a frequent writer in Hancinema, Taste of Cinema, and his texts can be found in a number of other publications including SIRP in Estonia, Film.sk in Slovakia, Asian Dialogue in the UK, Cinefil in Japan and Filmbuff in India.

Since 2019, he cooperates with Thessaloniki Cinematheque in Greece, curating various tributes to Asian cinema. He has participated, with video recordings and text, on a number of Asian movie releases, for Spectrum, Dekanalog and Error 4444. He has taken part as an expert on the Erasmus+ program, “Asian Cinema Education”, on the Asian Cinema Education International Journalism and Film Criticism Course.

Apart from a member of FIPRESCI and the Greek Cinema Critics Association, he is also a member of NETPAC, the Hellenic Film Academy and the Online Film Critics Association.

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