Alerta Vermelho

So, after the Korean take on the zombie genre, we now get the big disaster popcorn movie. The basic plot is what you'd expect: Big Bad Thing happens, but Even Worse Thing will happen if the heroes and scientists can't save the day by a dangerous mission. Luckily, the movie still provides many of the factors that make Korean cinema so entertaining. There is almost effortlessly good character chemistry(an art big Hollywood flicks seems to have lost somewhere along the way). There are the big sentimental brush strokes. There is a brisk pace and some twists and turns, and the added factors of the US military, North Korea, and some marvelously sleazy Chinese add some complexity and real world problems apart from the volcano itself. The heroes are ragtag and humorously flawed(another fun factor Hollywood has done away with in the age of Dwayne Johnson chiseled supermen), and hurtle along as best they can without ever really being in control of the situation.

Now, being a popcorn flick it obviously won't reach the amazing heights that Korean arthouse cinema spoils us with. Most notably, there are some bits where the editing is a bit rough, and some transitions are so abrupt it's chuckle-worthy. And plot, as mentioned, does not stray too far from your usual disaster movie formula.

But those small flaws doesn't stop Ashfall from remaining entertaining throughout, and isn't that what a good action movie should do? Definitely worth a watch.

Do you have horrible time management and feel overwhelmed with all the movies you could be watching? You're in luck, my friend! Ashfall is like watching 6 movies at once! What begins as a standard disaster movie, with separated spouses and buildings collapsing in San Andreas style, ends with thriller twists, buddy cop comedy and family dramas.

Wow, thanks Ashfall!

A volcano is about to destroy half of Korea and who does the government send? A "special forces" team of completely incompetent idiots who unintentionally fire their guns and panick when a bad guy gives them an angry look. The rest is a barrage of slightly bad to really bad CGI and a neverending series of increasingly uninteresting action scenes to make up for the lack of character and plot development. About halfway through I was looking at the time and wondering when it would finally be over. Don't bother.

If this movie was solely made for destruction and action escape sequences like most of Hollywood movies does with no logic this movie did it bad. i watched this movie solely for the story line and expected a lot but all ended with a whimper.

This disaster plus action movie is exciting from big disaster scene near the beginning to the very end. The effects are as good as any Western blockbuster and the battle sequences are exciting and well choreographed. The characters are funny and quite endearing. The story is more complex than expected with a good amount of humour and some political subplot involving nukes North South China and US. Good use of some big name Korean stars. Worth a watch.