Peninsula

This year, two films in the official selection of Cannes 2020 had to retain all the interest of genre cinema enthusiasts, Teddy by Ludovic and Zoran Boukherma and especially Train to Busan presents : Peninsula by Yeon Sang-ho. This is a direct sequel to the excellent Last Train to Busan (2016), which established itself as one of the best zombie films seen in cinema for a long time. For this sequel, the screenwriter Joo-Suk Park leaves his place to two new Park Joo-Suk screenwriters, Yeon Sang-ho but the gifted director of the first part is back and to our great pleasure managed to renew himself and avoid an inevitable repetition. Certainly, the oppressive thriller of the first part gives way here to a real South Korean blockbuster with its share of violent and spectacular scenes. What some critics criticize in this second part, starting with its change of course, turns out to be unavoidable to give greater breadth to the story told. Thus, four years after the events recounted in Last Train to Busan, the zombies are more and more numerous and the only hope is a land that is still free and has not fallen under the occupation of the zombies.

The hero of this film Captain Jung-seok is still marked by the death of his elder sister and nephew Dong-hwan who were killed on a ship leaving South Korea. During this drama, he had just enough time to save his late sister's husband Chul-min and continues to keep watch over him. Four years after this drama, in Hong Koing, Jung-seok and Chul-min as well as two other coéens are forced to return to Incheon in the peninsula in quarantine to recover twenty million dollars. This suicide mission will not take place as planned and they will not only face a horde of zombies but also a mercenary unit (Unit 631). Hell is about to break loose and make Jung-seok once again have to act to try to survive. He will be helped in particular by resistants.

Admittedly Train to Busan presents : Peninsula is not as original and successful as the first part because its will to outbid in action scenes makes that the anguish created by the first part is replaced by an action film lorgnant on many American science fiction films. One will also think in particular of certain films by John Carpenter such as New York 1997 (Escape from New York) (1981) but also for his chase scenes in the cinematic saga Fast and Furious. In view of the worldwide success of the first part, it is easy to understand the director's desire to propose a more imposing film but losing its identity in the process. From a simple horrific thriller, we move on to a South Korean version of Mad Max. Unfortunately, Yeon Sang-ho is neither John Carpenter nor George Miller and his film turns out to be more a mechanical marketing product than a true auteur film as was the case for Last Train for Busan.

The fact remains that Train to Busan presents : Peninsula is fun to watch and creates a true apocalyptic atmosphere in which every mistake of the past can affect the present. The last sequence of the film also takes us back to John Woo's best films, that is to say to the best of Asian cinema. Not keeping all its promises, Train to Busan presents : Peninsula remains nevertheless a film event to be discovered if possible, in the cinema...

Train to Busan presents : Peninsula
Directed by Yeon Sang-ho
Produced by Lee Dong-ha
Written by Park Joo-Suk, Yeon Sang-ho
Starring Gang Dong-won, Lee Jung-hyun, Lee Re
Music by Mowg
Cinematography : Lee Hyung-deok
Edited by : Yang Jin-mo
Production company : Next Entertainment World, RedPeter Film, New Movie
Distributed by Next Entertainment World (Worldwide), Well Go USA (United States), ARP (France)
Release date : July 15, 2020 (South Korea), October 21, 2020 (France)
Running time : 116 minutes

Seen on September 5, 2020 at the Centre International de Deauville

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