Directed by: Jang Joon-hwan (장준환) Starring: Shin Ha-kyun (신하균), Baek Yun-shik (백윤식), Hwang Jeong-min (황정민), Lee Jae-yong (이재용), Lee Joo-hyun (이주현), Ki Joo-bong (기주봉) Release Date: April 4th, 2003
Save the Green Planet! is by far one of the most memorable films from the early days of new Korean cinema. And in my opinion, one of the all-time-great first-watches of any movie out there. Often cited as the quintessential example of genre-blending that New Korean Cinema was heralded for, Save the Green Planet! contains elements of drama, comedy, horror, sci-fi, action, mystery, and police procedural that set a new bar for the cinematic possibilities within Korean film.
A desperate man plots to kidnap the CEO of a chemical factory whom he believes to be the leader of an Alien race plotting to take over the Earth. Now, just 7 days before the lunar eclipse when he expects the Alien prince to arrive and bring about Earth’s destruction, the man must prove his theory about the Aliens correct and expose them for what they are at all cost in order to save the planet.
Save the Green Planet! shot lead actors Shin Ha-kyun (Room No.7, The Villainess) and Baek Yun-shik (The Art of Fighting, Inside Men) straight to the top of my list of favorite Korean actors after my first screening. Both actors give tour de force performances in their respective roles. Shin Ha-kyun as the obsessed alien fanatic and convinced his theory is correct leaves viewers with a constant sense of unease. In one sense he comes across as a traumatized madman on the edge of his sanity, but his sincerity and love for his mother along with his unorthodox methodology for identifying Aliens leaves a glimmer of possibility that he just might be the evil genius Earth needs in order to save it.
Baek Yun-shik as the abducted CEO being mercilessly tortured by the man as he’s being held captive in his basement is an equally perplexing character. Even as the stuck up and greedy businessman that he’s made out to be, one can’t help but feel sorry for him in his hopeless and painful predicament. But there is also a hint of something much more to the man. Whether it’s his inhuman ability to withstand pain and punishment or the subtle glint in his eyes, the door to a possible alien affiliation is always kept slightly open. Even if the character is pretending to know more than he does to improve his odds of survival, the layers of mystery written into both the characters in Save the Green Planet! is of the highest order.
Save the Green Planet! contains some fun lore of its own as well as an amazing finale that I can’t help but feel inspired future movies like 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016) and others. It’s also got one of the most fitting OSTs I’ve ever heard by composer Lee Dong-june (Taegukgi: Brotherhood of War, Shiri) and the cinematography by Hong Kyung-pyo (Deliver Us From Evil, Il Mare) is to die for. Save the Green Planet! is not only the creme of the crop of my Korean Sci-Fi review series but it’s one of the best Korean genre films ever made.
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