Hope ~ Review

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When you see an incredible action scene in a film, it is electric. The audience leans in, and you feel like you’re vibrating, almost floating on air. In Na Hong-jin’s Hope, about five chase sequences deliver some of the best action filmmaking this year. Of particular note is a sequence near the end of the film: a high-speed freeway chase between a toothy extraterrestrial monster, a police car, and a horse. Between the practical stunts and frenetic camera work, it must be seen to be believed. However, just as the film shifts into its endgame, the story throws two new characters and a whole bunch of lore at the audience. When this happened, my heart started to sink…and I worried that the movie might not actually have an ending. Franchise ambitions doom most films, and Hope is no exception.
 
A strange creature stalks the South Korean village Hope Harbor. It has enormous claws, teeth, and feet, leaving dead cattle, decapitated humans, and smashed buildings in its wake. Police chief Ko Bum-seok (Hwang Jung-min) would rather not deal with a twenty-foot-tall monster stomping through his town, but he’s got a job to do, and he’ll try to do it, even though he’s terrified and completely out of his depth. His deputy Sung Ae (Hoyeon) is a little more willing to charge into the fight, dragging along an M16 and grenade launcher with her. While Bum-Seok’s cousin Sung-Ki (Zo In-Sung) heads out into the woods to see where the creature came from. Eventually, we learn these creatures are not from Earth, and everything culminates in many intense and inventive chase sequences.
 
Simply put, Hope is a lot of movie. The film combines elements of western filmmakers like Spielberg and Cameron, but also has a sly, sophomoric sense of humor. There’s a sequence where a character monologues about how he had to hold in a bowel movement to keep the monsters from finding him, that had me howling with laughter. The biggest problem with Hope is that there are just too many ideas jammed into its story. This creates a lopsided epic that starts laying track for a sequel literally ten minutes before the film ends. Characters start talking about a plot that up until that moment had only been alluded to. So, at the end of the day, Hope became more than a little unsatisfying.
 
That all being said, the film is mostly a blast. Hong-jin’s maximalist filmmaking style gives the movie an infectious frantic energy that pulls you right along for the ride.
 
The acting across the board is very good, but of particular note is Hwang Jung-min, who plays a terrified, inept badass action hero very well. Hoyeon has one of the best entrances in any film this year, and she gives an intense, funny, and heartfelt performance.
 
I had a lot of fun with Hope; I just wish it had ultimately stuck the landing, but hey…maybe there will be a sequel and I’ll finally get an end to the story.
 
Two and a half out of Four Stars