Jeontoo

First things first: the Japanese are portrayed as quite the evil people here. You may have an issue with how evil they are (supposed to be). Remember overall this is a movie. In many war movies enemies are shown as evil - to a degree where you may question their humanity.

So if you swallow that (suspend your disbelief), there is a war movie here that is quite violent and quite tension filled from start to finish. Also there are some degrees and some shades of grey in certain characters at least. Not the best Korean war movie, but the effort, the effects, the stunts and the acting are all rock solid to say the least.

This is a disgrace to korean movie industry. The story is barely based on true story. Japanese army depicted as a stupid boys playing around in the battlefield. When there is a sniper shooting at them, their first reaction is not to hide and cover, instead they stupidly freeze on the spot and letting the enemy killed them. Ridiculous

Tedious. Another big budget movie overflowing with nationalist, anti-Japanese pride. Japanese are portrayed as one dimensional, evil caricatures.

Lovely cinematography, sets and costumes but I think it could have been a little shorter than 2hours 15 minutes. Lots of testosterone fuelled violence and tension. Nothing graphic except for a couple of fake heads rolling on the ground. No nudity.

Propaganda? Don't know. Factual? Don't know. Does it matter? No. It's a good afternoon movie. Watch it for the action. Yes, it gets pretty gruesome at times, but it's a war movie. Japanese Imperial army vs patriots. Sure it's a bit lop-sided as to be expected when another country invades. There were some unbelievable moments as others suggested, however, watch for yourself. Beautiful countryside, good battles, Fun overall. Only downside for me was the translation to English. It didn't match very well, but I was able to figure out what they were talking about.

What price freedom? Its an individual as much as a collective question. That's the context "The Battle: Roar to Victory" resides within.

This is an unambiguously patriotic film but its clearly defined reason to be, put it head and shoulders, above films that talk about patriotism but fail to explain its purpose.

In this instance, its the Japanese Empires imperial ambitions. Invading Korea and as this film shows, brutally subjugating its people. An historically accurate representation of, at times, harsh policies, that continued into WWII where often forced Korean recruits, were used, essentially, as canon fodder.

This film is, unsurprisingly, not an easy watch. Its visceral at times and that bloodiness extends to civilians, as well as those who have taken up arms. What it does demonstrate emphatically, is why these people fight and what they are fighting for. Of course, what is asked, is how much are they as individuals and a group, willing to sacrifice?

Military action is non stop, frenetic, brutal, interspersed with moments of deeply felt emotion and courage. Cinematic's are remarkable, bringing the battle scenes, that define this film, to life. I found it at times a mesmerising watch that drew me in and held me till the closing credits.

Another film for South Korea to be proud of. 9/10 from me.