Seoul Station (2016) (DVD) (English Subtitled) (Hong Kong Version) DVD Region 3

After opening with the death of a homeless man from a mysterious bloody bite wound, the film focuses on Hye Sun (Shim Eun-kyung, Hansel and Gretel), a young runaway prostitute living with her useless boyfriend Ki Woong (Lee Joon, TV star and former member of KPOP group MBLAQ) who keeps trying to pimp her out to make money to cover their rent. After another argument Hye Sun wanders the streets, and unfortunately finds herself caught up in the middle of an epidemic whose victims rise from the dead with a taste for human flesh, having to take shelter with a group of homeless people on the run from the ghouls. Meanwhile, Ki Woong runs into Hye Sun's father (Ryoo Seung-ryong, The Piper) who is out looking for her after receiving a tipoff from a friend, and the two desperately try to track her down as the city falls into chaos.

As with his previous films, Seoul Station sees social criticism at the forefront of Yeon Sang-ho’s mind, and though the animation is a 28 Days Later style urban zombie thriller, right from the start it's clear that there's a lot more going on. By focusing on the homeless and the ways in which they and other fringe-dwellers who have dropped out or been forced out by the system are discriminated against, rather than the usual good-looking faux-outcasts, the film has a very different feel – having a prostitute and a wretched would-be pimp as two of the main characters is certainly a statement of intent. Evoking metaphor by way of George A. Romero, Yeon's script takes a very bleak and accusatory look at Korean society, with precious little in the way of hope, and manages to do so while sidestepping many of the usual clichés, giving its themes a freshness and cutting edge, not to mention an air of anger.

This boosts what is essentially a familiar and straightforward zombie outbreak narrative, and the story does recall other recent films of its kind, with several scenes and set pieces likely to be recognisable to fans of the form. Whilst lacking in originality on this score, the film is tight, tense and fast-moving, and Yeon does manage to work in a few genuine shocks and surprises along the way, in particular with regards to his pleasingly ruthless approach to the brutal killing off of sympathetic characters. As the film progresses it becomes obvious that no one is safe, and this adds a welcome element of danger which really pays off during the final act.

As with The King of Pigs and The Fake, Yeon's style here has a rough, almost awkward look that takes a bit of time to get used to, though once the viewer is attuned it proves very effective indeed, giving the film the kind of atmospheric and grounded feel not usually seen in animation. This is to a large extent crucial to the film's success, ensuring that it retains a grittiness throughout and that it avoids ever becoming cartoonish or over the top in a way which would undermine its themes and social aims. It also helps to increase the impact of the film's gore scenes, of which it has many, Yeon going all-out with throwing in the kind of flesh eating and mauling that genre fans expect. The film definitely does work very well on this more straightforward level as well, featuring plenty of action and gruesome carnage, more than earning its stripes as a zombie flick.

Seoul Station is another great offering from Yeon Sang-ho, and though it appears the director is moving on from animation and into live action features, he has unquestionably made his mark on the form. Successful both as a dark piece of social commentary and a horror thriller, the film deserves to find an audience outside the animation crowd, and is an accomplished and exciting hour and a half of genre cinema in its own right.

by James Mudge - EasternKicks.com