1) Train To Busan (dir. Yeon Sang-ho)
Yup, we’re going to round out this year in horror with another South Korean title that steamrolled Cannes audiences – Train To Busan. This thunderous zombie thrill ride represents the best chapter of World War Z that doesn’t exist. These are zombies of the fast-moving variety, but like 28 Days Later (if you consider the infected as zombies), ramps intensity because of their speed-demon state. It’s a very simple premise, continually hurtling towards a destination that provides little-to-no salvation. It’s all about surviving just to survive, because that’s all we have.
Train To Busan is so much more than “zombies on a train.” A very Snowpiercer class-battle begins once the remaining survivors congregate in a “safe” car. An evil businessman continually gets people killed because of his own selfish nature, but to balance out the bad, our main focal point is a father who only cares about saving his daughter (and the good people who help him).
Action is fierce as the living push their way through cars full of zombies, long takes choreograph brutality with ease and there’s the most thrilling sense about Train To Busan that never, EVER stops progressing forward. It’s high-adrenaline zombie chaos during a dystopian, societal breakdown, in a way that never lets you catch your breath.
You earned this, Train To Busan. It’s been a hell of a year for horror films, but you fought the hardest. Take the title, and hoist it with pride.
Published: Dec 28, 2016 01:18 pm