Pohwasogeuro

I have been waiting for this movie to be released in the US ever since I saw the trailer on Youtube.com last month and read all the hype. Plus, one of my favorite Korean actors, Cha Seung Won, is one of the four leads. This guy can do it all--comedy and drama, and he does not disappoint as the North Korean commander in this movie. This is the first time I have seen him on a big movie theatre screen and the camera loves him. DVD rentals on my TV are not quite the same--too bad more Korean films don't get US theatrical releases. Also giving excellent performances were Kim Seung Woo and Choi Seung Hyun--two actors who I first saw in last year's Kdrama, "Iris". Rounding out the lead actors is Kwon Sang Woo--another good performance and my first time seeing him in a theatrical film. All the supporting roles were also very well cast. If one likes war movies, this one is not to be missed--especially since it is based on a true incident during the Korean War. Direction, sets, costumes, music--all were well done. This film merits more than one viewing at the movie theatre.

The best Korean War films are made by the South Koreans. Starting around 2010, they started getting really good at creating sometimes remarkable battle scenes. Although the script structure follows (apparently globally) established 'war film' formulae, this is a very well done South Korean, based on a real event, 'Alamo' story filmed in the style of 'Saving Private Ryan'. Anyone with an ongoing list of notable war films should be interested.

I first read about this movie on a Korean site looking up Korean entertainment, it was probably up pretty quick since it has the Korean rapper TOP in it who is in a popular K-pop group Big Bang. Anyways I also managed to watch the trailers on YouTube and it looked promising, and I must say the trailer was better than the actual movie itself after viewing. I felt a lot of the characters went to waste, like the nurse for instance who just treats Seung-hyeon Choi wounds and doesn't appear for the rest of the movie. The movie would have been so much better if it was more engaging and you actually care for the character and you do care a bit but not enough to really worry if they die or live. The film also seems to rely to much on the cinematography since the camera changes constantly but not really effectively. It just constantly switches to TOP's facial expressions a LOT, but I guess it's to please the fan girls while the guys enjoy the action scenes. TOP's acting got better but it's just passable and Kwon Sang-Woo really overdoes it in order to stand out but just comes off as obnoxious, but he did have his moments. Cha Seung-Won did a fine job of playing the charismatic North Korean commander although his scenes are very few, he did a fine job, just not very memorable. I wished it found a way to get more in depth with the characters cause most of them didn't really stand out to me. Another annoying aspect of the film is how the North Korean soldiers fights like retarded drones that is just asking to get shot by running straight into bullets, yeah it's a movie but it got irritating to watch cause of the stupidity. I know they tried to make the final scene all epic, but I couldn't help but roll my eyes. I didn't feel cheated while walking out of the theaters, but was a bit let down. I also noticed there were more girls in the theater seats than guys, I guess TOP makes up for his lack of acting skills in order to get the female viewers to go watch his movie. Like Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner in the "Twilight" movies. Anyways good movie with a average plot and pretty cardboard characters and a lot of stuff blowing up.

7.1/10

I wasn't really sure what to expect, but I do enjoy watching war films, especially true stories, as they generally depict the horrors of war. Right from the start I was hooked, and was not disappointed.

It is a pity films from Korea, Japan, China, and other oriental countries are not included in the Oscars or bafta awards, but then America and Britain wouldn't have so many winners.

This film is typical of this as it has some great acting and is filmed extremely well. It also shows you don't need a budget like that of some Hollywood movies. The biggest thing for me is that it is a true story and is dramatised well. Without being too political, with the ongoing problems in Korea, they could have made the North out to be animals, but they don't.

For a film that probably wont be mentioned at the big ceremonies, it is a loss for film-making. I would highly recommend this film if you haven't seen it yet. Would love to see Britain make films as good as this, but I haven't seen many, recently, that comes close. That is just my opinion though.

As with all films though, don't go by opinion, watch it and decide by yourself, but I think you will enjoy the movie.

A heartfelt and passionate Korean War epic, 71 – INTO THE FIRE marks the epitome of self-sacrifice, brotherly love, and gung-ho soldierly bravery. It's a simple enough tale which, crucially, really happened: 71 schoolboys were tasked with holding back a North Korean division single-handedly during the Korean War in 1950. What follows – their holding-out against impossible odds - sounds too good to be true, but yes, it really happened, and it makes for great movie-making.

The only South Korean war movie I'd seen previously was the superlative BROTHERHOOD, so I had no idea what to expect from this production. I got it all: thoroughly engaging characters, an interesting storyline and typically stylish direction. Yes, it's a slow builder of a movie: it takes an hour and a half before things really get going, but then the climax hits and you've rarely seen anything so intense and devastating in equal measure. Solid performances throughout contribute to the overall feel that this is a great movie.