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When Train to Busan came out in 2016, it was a hit with not just South Korean audiences, but also international cinemagoers.
In Malaysia, it became the highest grossing South Korean flick to date and it saw similar, repeated success elsewhere.
For horror fans, Train to Busan was a respectable return to form for the oversaturated genre.
Though fast-moving zombies have been featured before in films such as 28 Days Later and its sequels, the sheer terror of a horde rushing through an enclosed train was without parallel.
Add to that a scathing commentary on South Korean society and you had a film that was equal parts terrifying, relevant, heartwarming and tearjerking.
Thus, it was always a bit of a tall order to expect director Yeon Sang-ho to replicate the heights his beloved blockbuster reached, especially with his newest offering Colony.
Freaking freaky fungi
Instead of a train, the zombie outbreak takes hold of a classy commercial complex this time around.
And instead of said outbreak stemming from irresponsible companies dumping toxins into the wild just as in Train to Busan, the one in Colony is an act of bioterrorism.
The culprit is one Seo Young-cheol (Koo Kyo-hwan), enraged that credit for his research on mould has been stolen by his former boss.
He thus turns the mould into a bioweapon, beginning a chain of infections that turns its victims into a hivemind of rabid creatures.
As the complex is quarantined by the authorities, a handful of survivors has to figure out how to escape with their lives.
Among them is Kwon Se-jeong (Jun Ji-hyun), a bioscientist who actually has a connection to Seo she does not initially realise.
Also worth mentioning are the Choi siblings, security guard Hyun-seok (Ji Chang-wook) and paraplegic Hyun-hee (Kim Shin-rok).
As is zombie movie tradition, the number of survivors dwindles as the runtime progresses, with the audience left wondering just who will be the one to survive to the end, if any at all.
What’s good
Colony introduces a unique take on the classic zombie, adding a further spin to the fast-running zombies from Train to Busan.
Because of the role of mould in this zombie infection, the zombies are covered head to toe in disgusting white, sticky fluids that would make a germaphobe faint.
That combined with the unnatural ways the zombies contort and manoeuvre make for rather unsettling, inhuman displays of agility at points.
Other than the unnerving presentation of the main threats, the way they operate is also rather novel for a zombie film.
Zombies are typically brainless creatures driven by nothing but hunger, but these mould-infested zombies share a hivemind and are actually capable of working together.
In the film, the zombies are compared to ants and not for no reason. They are capable of learning, recognising and remembering, making them a formidable force to reckon with even outside their unnatural speed and strength.
Thus, the need to constantly switch up tactics when dealing with them adds much tension, as the characters need to be one step if they wish to stay alive.
Also, another point in the movie’s favour is its setting, with the high-rise building adding to the feeling of claustrophobia.
It is already difficult enough to escape a room with a zombie outside, so imagine escaping multiple floors populated by zombies who can communicate with each other effortlessly!
It may seem unfair to bring up Train to Busan when reviewing Colony, but given the former is director Yeon’s claim to fame, it is fair game to make comparisons.
The cast of initial survivors in Colony is far larger, so the audience is given even less time to get to know what is unique about each character.
Some of these characters are purely one-dimensional archetypes, or just characters who are designated to die at the next dangerous moment.
Other than the shock values of their deaths, there is far less emotional value when they are inevitably lost to the horde.
In comparison, the cast of survivors in Train to Busan was better developed, with their traits and quirks better defined and their ultimate fates thus made more impactful.
How is it that the nameless beggar from Train to Busan had a more meaningful end than multiple named characters in Colony?
It hardly helps that some of the characters are purely there to be annoyances, contributing very little to the story other than eliciting grimaces from the audience.
What’s not so good
Admittedly, most people watch zombie flicks for the scares, but the scares are only made better if they are experienced by a hero audiences can root for.
While Kwon is by no means a bad protagonist to follow, her personality is not given enough time to shine.
All we are told and shown is that she is a smart woman who knows more about the infection than her fellow survivors.
If more time was dedicated to her past and to show off her character, perhaps she would have made for a more interesting protagonist.
The same can also be said for Hyun-seok who acts as a secondary protagonist, whose relationship with his sister should have been focused on as the emotional core of the film.
On the same note, Seo at times feels to be a parody of a villain, with his constant smiles and his plans that come with Plan Bs and Plan Cs.
He would not be out of place in a James Bond flick, but in a film with zombies running amok, his presence is a little out of place.
That said, it is still cathartic to see him get his just deserves after being such a smug bastard for most of the runtime. Burn, baby, burn.
Worth a watch?
If you love the zombie genre, Colony is a respectable attempt at trying to shake up things while still retaining the tropes that are synonymous with the genre.
That said, it might pay for Yeon to go further in the future, as Train to Busan still remains a better film courtesy of its stronger characters and plot.
Who knows what other claustrophobic environment he might use as a setting for future films? Maybe a zombie virus on a cruise ship next? Wait, too soon? Oh, never mind then.
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