Film Road to Halloween: Train to Busan (2016)

The road to Halloween is paved with good films. Wherein we countdown to the spirited season with a hundred doses of horror. 91 days to go.

As you may know, I have been slowly making my way around the world in 80 films. I have watched a few horror films along the way such as Deep Red, Possession, Bedevilled and Irréversible. Out of all the horrors I have watched none have been quite as entertaining, thrilling and fresh as Yeon Sang-ho’s Train to Busan. There seems to be a new zombie film released every other week nowadays. And it’s hard to make zombies seem scary when we are being bombarded with content.

Train to Busan manages to bring life back to the zombie horror film (excuse the pun). And as a result, we are left with nightmares. What Yeon Sang-ho rather successfully does is have the zombie outbreak play out in a confined space. In which our protagonists are physically unable to escape from. Death is inevitable, and its as unstoppable as the train the characters find themselves trapped in.

“Train to Busan manages to bring life back to the zombie horror film (excuse the pun).”

The film’s simple narrative is what makes the film so effective, it is essentially a story of survival and fatherhood. The film follows Sok-woo (Yoo Gong), a workaholic father and his daughter, Soo-ahn, who find themselves trapped on a train as a zombie outbreak occurs.

For her birthday, Soo-an (Su-an Kim) has revealed that she wants to visit her mother in Busan. Seok-woo is initially reluctant but his mother convinces him otherwise. And feeling guilty about the lack of quality time he has spent with his daughter, Seok-woo books the next KTX train bound for Busan the next morning.

Early in the morning, Seok-woo drives Soo-an to the station. Only to nearly crash into a flurry of oncoming ambulances and police cars. Seok-woo ponders what could be going on. But this incident doesn’t stop the father and daughter from boarding the train.

The other passengers consist of tough working-class husband Sang-hwa (a delightful Dong-seok Ma) and his pregnant wife Seong-kyeong (Yu-mi Jung). A high school baseball team. The rich but selfish CEO Yon-suk (Eui-sung Kim). And a pair of elderly sisters, In-gil and Jon-gil. A homeless man who seems to be the only one who is truly aware of the zombie situation.

“There’s a high degree of believability to this film and the scenario that’s unfolding.”

The horror of the film emerges slowly. We are introduced to a woman who has been bitten before boarding the train. This woman transforms into a zombie setting off a chain reaction from the back of the train. The horror truly begins when we see Soo-an making her way down the length of the train to use the bathroom.

We fear for her safety as the outbreak spreads, and we are placed into the shoes of her father, Sok-woo. Yeon Sang-ho’s decision to place Soo-an in this immediate sense of danger helps to ramp up the stakes. We also get to witness the outbreak from a young, helpless child’s point-of-view. Which makes the viewer feel well and truly useless.

Unlike the slowly descending and staggering undead of Night of the Living Dead or The Walking Dead, the zombies in Train to Busan are more along the lines of World War Z or the enrage ‘zombies’ of 28 Days Later.

Personally speaking, it’s the fast zombie that truly frightens me, as its the deeply troubling fact that these types of zombies will never tire…they are truly unstoppable. Like the undead from World War Z, these zombies also like to form massive piles of themselves, swarming on top of each other to create a human (or should that be a zombie) ladder.

What makes Train to Busan’s zombies somewhat original and unique is that they have poor eyesight. Which means if the train enters a tunnel they cannot see anyone around them and rely on sound to hunt. The zombies truly look infected. There’s a high degree of believability to this film and the scenario that’s unfolding.

“The most powerful moment in this film comes long before any actual zombie attack.”

However, what makes this film so real and relatable is its story of a father and daughter bonding. The heart of this movie is Seok-Woo and Soo-an. We are truly invested in their survival and we are often left on the edge of our seats as we watch them fight off the hordes of undead.

Yoo Gong gives an amazing performance, truly capturing this awkward, distant father who is thrown into this world of survival of the fittest (and the quickest), and we see the anguish on his face as he must make some truly hard decisions to keep his daughter safe at all costs.

Ultimately, the real MVP of the film has to be Kim Su-an, who gives off one of the best performances from a young child actor that I have seen for a long time. Her innocence and vulnerability help to sell this film.

The most powerful moment in this film comes long before any actual zombie attack. Soo-an’s grandmother shows Seok-woo a video of Soo-an singing during a school assembly only to give up singing in her performance due to social anxiety. At the end of the film, Soo-an sings the same song again, this time she finds the courage to continue. We can all take away something from this moment.

There’s plenty to enjoy here from Yeon Sang-ho’s social commentary, to the cinematography from Lee Hyung-deok, the editing by Yang Jin-mo, the music by Jang Young-gyu and the performances from the cast. Like all great films that just happen to be in another language, there is set to be an English language remake of Train to Busan. Only time will tell whether the remake will be as effective as the original. But honestly why wait for the remake when you can enjoy the original right now?