![]() ![]() Perhaps others will follows but, if that happens, let’s hope the producers keep the themes local and resist the siren calls of a Hollywood style. ![]() This was the country’s first home-made disaster film. I’m not surprised this broke box office records in South Korea. The lives of local people are being destroyed to pander to the wealthy barbarians from the capital. Hee-mee and her friends from Seoul are equally worthless, and that’s the real irony. People like Dong-chun may be worthless but they are known and to some extent supported in the community. It breaks up communities and destroys their traditions passed down over generations. It can displace the fishing fleet and redeploy workers into service industries. Yet there must always come a time when cities like Haeundae-gu take a moment to reflect. That this will mean continuous redevelopment of the city, sacrificing the old communities to service the needs of the tourists, is a price the current local government thinks worth paying. That it continues to exploit the natural resource in its magnificent beach makes perfect economic sense. The real-world city of Haeundae-gu is exposed to possible danger from its proximity to major undersea fault lines. While Tidal Wave or Haeundae is not the greatest disaster film ever made, it does make a real effort to capture a part of the economic and social dilemmas currently affecting South Korea’s development. All we need is for there to be the right emotional pay-offs as key characters live or die. But, in a sense, the reality factor need not be strong. Other sequences are also illogical like how a woman may almost drown in a lift somewhere around the tenth floor while people on the street outside are floating in about seven or eight feet of water. It’s not clear whether this is ironic or he’s actually reformed. In the end, he wins an award for bravery in rescuing people. Dong-chun is literally put through an emotional mincer as every possible unfolding disaster just fails to terminate his life. The suspension of the container vessel on the bridge is ludicrous but the fall of the containers plays to the theme of retribution. The arrival of the tsunami is, frankly, primitive CGI with models of beach-front tower blocks almost falling over - they need to be vertical again later. ![]() The plot play-off ramps up the guilt element ferociously.ĭong-chun (In-kwon Kim) makes a run for it pursued by his mother The chances of a marriage are very small inherently making the entire episode a test of her power over a naive local. She’s bullying him into a relationship which she knows is never going to survive the status test her parents will apply. The subplot with the spoiled rich girl rescued by Hyoung-sik is quite interesting. There are also suggestions of corruption in the local planning decisions to allow the ambitious plan to be green-lighted. This will mean displacing all the locals who do not enjoy the patronage of the developer. The central hook is the wish of Man-shik’s rich uncle to redevelop the section of waterfront where Gang Yeon-heui struggles to make a living. The tourists may come and go for the beach, but the hard core of working people risk their lives to keep fish on the menu while the air-sea rescue teams keep their helicopters and boats ready for emergencies. But it’s actually firmly rooted in the small community that lives on the waterfront and jetties around the fishing port. Yes, this film is melodrama with the inevitable game played by the writer/director, Je-gyun Yun, as to who will live and die. The fact the city only had ten minutes actual warning of the arrival of the tsunami would not save them (assuming they survived, of course).Ĭity girl (Ye-won Kang) and life-saver (Min-gi Lee) And, because of the nature of the film, the city’s its administrators feel guilt because they failed to cancel the big, politically-sensitive meeting and had no proper evacuation plan to put into effect. Based on class differences, a group of young tourists show active contempt for Man-shik’s younger brother, Hyoung-sik ( Min-gi Lee) who rescues Hee-mee ( Ye-won Kang) one of their group. Dong-chun ( In-kwon Kim), a worthless son, is oblivious to the need to show any kind of respect to a loving mother. He regrets his failure as a husband and father. Kim Hui ( Joong-Hoon Park) is a scientist who specialises in tsunamis. Naturally, the fisherman loves the dead captain’s daughter, Gang Yeon-heui ( Ji-won Ha) but cannot bring himself to confess his love. Jae-ho Song Man-shik’s uncle and the owner of the vessel may also share in the blame for sending the boat out in storm conditions. Choi Man-shik ( Kyung-gu Sol) is fisherman who feels responsible for an accident at sea which caused the death of the captain. ![]() Joong-Hoon Park passes on another warning ![]()
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