Je-gyun Yun's TIDAL WAVE (HAEUNDAE)

Movie review by Dennis D. McDonald

As disaster movies go this one is pretty good. We get to  know an odd group of people and wonder, of course, which will survive When The Big One Hits.

And hit it does - a humongous tidal wave smashes into a skyscraper-bound resort town on the South Korean Coast and, man, does it make a mess.

There are acts of heroism, of cowardice, and of self-sacrifice. There’s also a lot of drunkenness, screaming, and hitting while we wait for the disaster to happen.

Many of the characters, in my opinion, are designed to be weird and unbelievable. They’re like no other Korean movie I’ve seen. But on the whole this one is worth seeing. It’s not the same old thing we have in the West and there are Korean cultural references spread throughout that provide a fresh and different perspective. 

But when all is said and done this is a disaster movie. We know the authorities will ignore the warnings of The Good Scientist, we know the Evil Capitalist will have a change of heart, and we know that when the tsunami hits most of the characters we started out with will be gone. 

If you’re looking for a good popcorn movie, check this one out.

Review copyright (c) 2010 by Dennis D. McDonald