Train To Busan, Kingdom, Hyun Bin’s Rampant: How Korean shows, films gave a new life to the zombie genre

However, Korean shows and films have tried to craft something unique out of the dead-humans-eating-brains concept. In 2016 Yeon Sang-ho’s Train To Busan, starring Gong Yoo, was a meticulously crafted and well-paced film that spoke of class rebellion and moral polarization while giving us a pulsating film about zombies let loose in a high speed train from Seoul to Busan. Its message — that compassion is the only light in the darkest of days — has never been truer than during the pandemic. A divorced man is on the train with his estranged daughter when the train is infested with zombies. The characters have to devise new survival strategies, and some will do anything to survive, even if it means sacrificing others. The claustrophobic tension explodes, and it forces you to look inward, as you realise that fear and panic devour most humans, and make them monsters. At first Gong Yoo advises his daughter to watch out only for herself, and he later realises that this isn’t what a child needs to hear. At the end of the film, there is a heartrending emotional sacrifice, subtly explaining what the director left unsaid.

(Photo: Amazon Prime)

Yeon Sang-ho clearly was not satisfied with just one zombie film, and continued to delve further into the genre, determined to see what else he could unearth. In the sequel to Train To Busan, a soldier is caught between zombies, as well as a militia, as he wades through the destroyed Korean Peninsula. Yeon Sang-ho also came up with The Cursed, where serial murders are taking place. The suspects are corpses that have been resurrected and manipulated. There’s a lot going on in the film, including shamanism, apart from zombies on the loose.

Political conspiracies enmeshed with the zombie-genre

Brain-hungry zombies or power-hungry humans, take your pick. In the show Kingdom, which spawned a second season, we find zombies lurking in the era of the medieval Joseon Dynasty. The plague has set in the nation, and the Crown Prince Lee Chang (Ju J-Hoon) tackles political intrigue as he struggles to overcome the army of the un-dead overtaking his land. In the beginning of the show, the king hasn’t been seen for a while, and there are rumours that he is dead. But the truth is, that he isn’t sick. He has just been afflicted with a sickness that is transforming him into a monster.

Meanwhile, the town has contracted this disease and have been resurrected as brain-eating zombies, and roam around at night. The crown prince fumbles as he wonders how to stop the spread, and teams up with a physician, warrior and guard to quell the disease as well as prevent a coup from overthrowing his claim to the throne. The show is enjoyable partly because it is much fun to see people sword fighting with zombies in traditional Korean outfits and there’s a comical romance as well.

However, Kingdom is so much more than just the zombie plot—it’s also a dissection of power hierarchies, and how a blank refusal to see the truth can lead to an apocalypse.

Political intrigue with zombies, set in 17^th century Korea was an exciting opportunity and 2018’s Rampant was another example. Before Hyun Bin played a swoon-worthy lover in Crash Landing On You, he was an exiled king in Rampant, who is forced to battle not just zombies, but a political coup headed by war minister, played by Jang Dong-gun. Had the characters been more developed and the pacing of the film been better, it would have been a far more enjoyable watch—because the political battles began to feel out of place after a point. Nevertheless, with its exotic cinematography and terrifying gore, Rampant is a fun film to watch; a little fast-forwarding at points won’t hurt.

Desires are monsters

 Korean shows, especially the horror ones, always expound on the theme of humanity and compassion. In the series Sweet Home, there’s actually a chance to overcome the monster that resides within us. Song Kang plays a teenager who hasn’t been able to come to terms with his parent’s deaths yet. He moves inside an old house, and soon monsters begin knocking at his doorstep. Holed away with neighbours, Song Kang tries to come up with strategies to evade the monsters—and then they realise, that these are actually people, who have become monsters after succumbing to their sinful desires. Yet, there are those who can battle their demons (literally), and become better humans, themselves. Along with liberal amounts of gore, the show deftly explores the backstories of the residents and how they struggle to become a team in the face of dire danger.  The show has its terrifying moments, as well as its emotional scenes. The ironic title serves its purpose at the end.

All Of Us Are Dead is a high-school zombie story that will release on January 28, on Netflix. It will be interesting to see whether this show would be a refreshing take on the zombie genre.