rdoyle29
An animated prequel to "Train to Busan" from the same writer/director, it follows multiple characters through the beginning of a zombie outbreak in Seoul. It's decent, but it's not the film that "Train to Busan" is. Where that film has a solid, driving plot, this film meanders quite a bit, relying very heavily on characters making repeated dumb decisions. Most of the main characters in this are homeless people, which is the source of some well-meaning, but extremely crude political themes. It really recovers it's momentum in the last act with some interesting twists.
kosmasp
While others not only boarded but also ride the Train to Busan (title of the live action picture), we also get this animated feature which plays in the same "universe" as the other movie. Having said that, you do get different characters in the starring roles and a movie that does indulge in what would happen if a zombie epidemic hit a city. Relationships between characters and story-lines begin to unfold, as much as some of the human psyche is.It's a nice little add-on or spin off to Train to Busan, but it's not a must watch to get the other movie or vice versa. It's also very explicit with its violence as is the other movie and we get a lot of action scenes too. It does get a bit cliché here and there (father/daughter story) and has some minor flaws along the way. Even so it is more than entertaining to watch
Reno Rangan
I have mentioned in my review for 'Train to Busan' that it has a prequel, but an anime. This is it, this is the one from the same director. Releasing them in a short time apart has advantages, as well as disadvantages. Like comparison is unavoidable, yet being different format is a big excuse. But both the films going have its fans backing.This is not a high standard anime, but acceptable due to the quality of the narration. Yes the story was good. Like the live-action film, there are many unexpected thing happens. Particularly, you cannot trust anyone in this kind of survival game. It was a slow opening, followed by picking up the pace once the chaos was unleashed and then ended with a nice twist.Once you watch this, you might say it could have made a decent live- action. I thought the same. Prequel or sequel, not bad at all, though it can't be compared to the original. Everything was a one night event, but not entire film takes place at Seoul Station. It all begins there, yet this film as well fail to detail on the source. Like from where it all started. Apart from that, quite an enjoyable anime with a few great tense moments.Like any ordinary day, the Seoul Station was calmly shutting down for the day at near midnight. But for the homeless people, it is a roof over their head. One of them discovers that his brother got injured badly, so he seeks help from the authorities nearby. On the other side of the tale, a father who finally discovered his runaway daughter staying with a young man. So the two rides together to find her who went out. Soon they all come to know the people are behaving weirdly. And after realising the serious threat of it, its now running for life. But would they successfully track down what they're looking for is revealed in the final segment.❝If I had a place to go, I would not have stayed at Seoul Station.❞After watching a very satisfying live-action zombie film, and after learning about this one, I was looking forward to this day. A well made film, particularly after an average initiation, how it developed and ended was excellent. Most of you would enjoy the second half better. Overall, it has a good runtime and the interesting characters.The voice-over looked fine. Since I didn't understand the language, it was not a big deal. Though the visual, I mean the sketches should have been a little better. In some parts, you will know that they used digital backgrounds, perhaps from 3D to 2D, particularly in the running scenes where you won't notice enough. So there should be some negatives and for me it was the connection between these two titles. The two films' timeline overlaps. I mean the final section of this and the opening parts of the other film.Since it took place in the night time, most of the people were not aware of what's going on in the streets. As a daybreak follows, more people on the street, big chaos and we know what happened afterwards, especially from the train passengers' perspective. Like I mentioned earlier, not knowing the origins of this sudden outbreak is the disappointment after watching both the films.You might have heard that 'Train to Busan' is set to remake in Hollywood. If you haven't watched that, you should do now and following, this one too. Because of the connection, yet not compulsory as these films do not share much detail. It was just like 'Cloverfield' and '10 Cloverfield Lane'. Keeping update is worth suppose in the future any follow-up film are made. I liked this one, but a little lesser than the original. The other major difference is, watching the zombies (attack) in anime version is a different experience. Maybe you can say less frightening, those who are easy prey for such film. Anyway, worthy film. I would particularly suggest it to those who saw the previous film.7/10
KineticSeoul
This is another Sang-ho Yeon's animated movie that takes on a dark, nihilistic, skeptical and overly cynical direction. That tries to mainly show the negative, selfish and manipulative side of human nature. How just about everyone does things out of their own motives and agenda. While the good intention people get wiped out very quickly. This is shown in one scene where one guy tries to save a girl hanging on a wire and ends up paying for it. But what makes this film work is that the overly selfish and angry banters works when it comes to the context and scenarios of the setting. And I did find it unique how it delved into status in society and how the poor is treated worse than dogs in Seoul. And how people show their real face depending on the circumstances and situation. To my surprise this animated movie wasn't as apocalyptic and chaotic as I expected. Instead I found it more subtle and plays out more like a drama. Since it's animated I thought Sang-ho Yeon would take advantage of it and would have put in a lot of chaotic effect which would have cost way more for a live action. One of the main disappointment comes from the animation, which looked very cheap. I am not a fan of cel shaded animation and it just appeared like they cut back a lot when it came to the animation. I think I saw better cel shaded animation on a PS2 during cut-scenes when it came to certain parts. Also if you are expecting some sort of connection between this and "Train to Busan" you won't be getting it. Overall, this is a depressing zombie movie that is a social commentary on society's injustice.5.8/10
