Why Kingdom saved and #ALIVE failed the South Korean horror benchmark set by the classic movie, Train To Busan

Before 'Parasite' put South Korea's intelligent film-making out into the world, 'Train To Busan' had given them a taste of it. Many people at first watched it to satiate their curiosity of watching a zombie apocalypse movie and were not left disappointed at all. 

This was way back in 2016. Korean culture hadn't made its way into mainstream audience, it stayed mostly at the borders - it was just starting to grow in India. I guess, some people might still not even know that 'Train To Busan' is actually a South Korean movie. My mom didn't either till I told her I'm going to write a feature on it. With incredible acting by Gong Yoo as Seok Woo, 'Parasite' famed Woo Sik Choi and others, the film directed by Yeon Sang Ho created a whole new benchmark for horror thrillers - especially in Zombie apocalypse. The movie is intense, gives you an adrenaline rush every other minute, is very close to reality, structured greatly and even has a very believable ending. It's jump scary and psychological scary too. 

Three years after this, as the Korean culture love rapidly grew, 'Kingdom' was released in 2019 on Netflix. Different in each aspect that 'Train To Busan', 'Kingdom' (Two seasons) is a period political horror thriller drama. It hits the right amount of gore, horror, horrifying scenes that linger in your memory, action and bloody zombies. A well-crafted series with a detailed storyline, 'Kingdom', written by Kim Eun Hee, is in a league of its own. It's eerie, it's haunting and marvelous aesthetics plus story at the same time. A zombie drama can NEVER get better than this. 

A year later, in June 2020, out came the movie #Alive - with many set expectations and eyes. It checked off the boxes for being an amazing thriller movie - From the land of 'Train to Busan' and 'Kingdom'? Yes. A zombie apocalypse? Yes. Promised horror? Yes. Having said that it failed the expectations, I would also like to say that those expectations were definitely high. It released at the time the world was ridden with the Covid-19 pandemic and being stuck at home. It's about a loner teen boy (played by the charming, award-winning Yoo Ah In) who loves staying alone, and as luck would have it, is now alone in a multistorey building during a zombie apocalypse where the only way to survive (for now) is to stay at home. It hits right at home but as laidback as our lead character is, the story kind of becomes the same. It's more like you're just pushed into the narrative and there's not much to know or do - other than fighting monsters, giving jump scares and of course having one character who's extremely craft-y (played by the talented Park Shin Hye). 

Here's what fails '#Alive' - it doesn't really give us something new. For example, 'Train To Busan' was an experiment that clearly worked - a father travelling with his child to celebrate his wife's birthday, encountering a hoard of zombies and the cat-and-mouse game with proper ups and downs in the story. 'Kingdom' offered us a wholly new taste of the "disease", set in the 16th century ridden with politics and corruption. All three of them did an amazing job with graphics - making it look extremely graphic. '#Alive' did a decent enough job for that too. But while 'Kingdom' and 'Train To Busan' always left us with something to look forward to, '#Alive' was a bit more predictable. Not to say that it isn't a good movie - not at all. In all its aspect, it does a good job in unconsciously reflecting upon the major psychological effects that can appear when one is stuck at home (which many people were, in this global pandemic). But if we were to compare it with the biggest blockbusters that hail from the actual Zombie apocalypse land, it fails to hit the mark by a margin. 

What works for '#Alive' is the mental exhaustion showcased in the movie. For 'Kingdom', apart from the impeccable writing and direction, another reflection of reality - how stupid and corrupt people didn't really care for others. When they could've stopped the "plague" from spreading, instead for their interest (good or bad), let it spread. As for Train To Busan', it probably is the only Zombie movie that will make you shed a tear. 

Undoubtedly, 'Kingdom' and 'Train to Busan' changed the landscape of what zombie thrillers are meant to be like, worldwide.

Also Read: Should Ji Soo have taken financial responsibility for the damages suffered by River Where The Moon Rises?

What do you think of the three zombie horror movie/dramas mentioned above? If you were to rank, how would they rank for you? Let me know your views in the comments below!