While there’s no doubting its huge ambitions, The Battleship Island turns out to be a disappointing misfire.
The Battleship Island(군함도)
✭ ✭ ✭ Read critic reviews
Korea · 2017
Rated PG-13 · 2h 12m
Director Ryoo Seung-wan
Starring Hwang Jung-min, So Ji-sub, Song Joong-ki, Lee Jung-hyun
Genre War, Drama, Action
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During the Japanese colonial era, by the end of World War II, roughly 400 Korean people were forced onto Battleship Island (‘Hashima Island’) to mine coal in inhumane conditions. This film is about the prisoners --- and their valiant, dramatic effort to escape.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
The New York Times by Andy Webster
Though Mr. Ryoo’s taste for heightened theatricality threatens his story’s credibility at times, there is no denying his skill with a large-scale action set piece.
Los Angeles Times by Justin Chang
The troubling whiff of nationalist sentiment doesn’t entirely blunt the force and sweep of Ryoo’s multi-pronged narrative, even when the story generally proceeds in fits and starts.
RogerEbert.com by Simon Abrams
The heroes of this film are, in other words, selfish, but never in a venal, or ugly way. They're human, and they do what they must to face each successive challenge they're confronted with.
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