Pandora

I must be honest, the repetitive dialogue by just about everyone about the possibility of something happening at the power plant kind of ruined the possibility of something happening. Yeah, off course we knew it was going to happen because that's what the film is about, but it would have been more effective if the characters were unsuspecting. When the disaster did come, it was a roller coaster ride of excitement and suspense. The earthquake scene was very well done, as well as the explosion of the reactor. The pacing was really great with never a dull moment during this 136-minute film. The highway scene as everyone fled the villages was not very credible,though, as people were running away from the nuclear plant as radiation spread, and then suddenly they were running towards the plant again, with no sign of the radiation clouds that threatened them minutes before. It did get a little too sentimental towards the end, but it was all good and a thoroughly entertaining disaster film. The visual effects were very good.

"Pandora" is a disaster movie from South Korea that happened to stay low enough on the radar to avoid my interest up until now in mid-2017. So when I found this 2016 movie in the Asian section, I was naturally interested and after having read the synopsis, I decided to give the movie a go and went to sit down to watch it.

It is the thrilling storyline that really keeps the audience at the edge of their seats, because writer and director Park Jung-woo really managed to construct a very realistic and compelling story that deals with an interesting topic. And the storyline is really helped along quite nicely by an interesting character gallery.

I will say that the storyline worked out on multiple levels, because you are equally interested in what happens to the power plant and on a national scale, but at the same time you have an equal interest in the characters throughout the movie. So this was a great accomplishment for writer and director Park Jung-woo.

While mentioning the characters, then it should be said that the people they had cast for the various roles and characters were quite nicely cast, and they were performing quite well with these roles and characters. Now it was generally an entire cast of new faces for me, so I was more than happy to see new talents on the screen, especially when they performed as nicely as they did here.

The special effects and CGI in "Pandora" were quite good and quite convincing. I was especially impressed with the explosion when the power plant exploded, that just looked very cool.

A disaster movie like this is naturally enhanced by a great music score, and the music they composed for "Pandora" was quite good. It had excitement, yet it was still subtle enough to serve as background music. It most definitely added a good layer of suspense and thrill to the movie.

There is a great sense of urgency and panic throughout the movie, and that really helped to cement the realism that permeated the movie. And I was especially impressed with how the various characters went about dealing with the situation, ranging from ordinary residents to high ranking government officials.

"Pandora" is a rather compelling story, and I must admit that I was genuinely surprised with how exciting and interesting director and writer Jong-woo Park had managed to make this movie. Especially since there is a very realistic feel and atmosphere to the movie. If you enjoy disaster movies and if you are a fan of Asian cinema, then you definitely owe it to yourself to sit down and watch this movie.

Honestly, I watched this movie without any expectations whatsoever. It turns out to be an incredibly emotional ride til the end. The plot, acting, graphics and ambiance are reasonably realistic. The last time I watched a movie feeling this emotional was when I was watching "What's Eating Gilbert Grape". I know that the acting and script are a bit Asian (well, this is an Asian movie), but all in all, this is a good movie. I admit that I watched it twice already.

This movie is nothing new about the script, even the story is striking familiar with the Japanese people. This movie retell the story of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Powerplant disaster with Korean adaption. However, the actors/actress and director deliver a emotional, heartbreaking story with a sense of reality. The heroism acts is not just random actions, it is a sense of responsibility, love and a clear mindset. I believe, this movie should pay tribute to Fukushima 50, the name of the group of volunteers that stay and handle the situation within 20km zone around the Fukushima Daiichi plant.

My opinion---

Pandora is a catastrophe film, written and directed by: Park Jeong- woo, even if there is not an original scenario, the film is still very well realized, we feel well the idea that wanted to develop the Director with this film mainly making attention to the serious nuclear accident of Fukushima Daiichi "Japan" in March 2011. In staging this reconstruction of the facts he wanted to make the attention that with all the nuclear power plants of his country , That such a catastrophe could one day come if we did not take all the resolutions of security and prevention for maximum protection of the people of South Korea. It is frightening to see all the damage and consequences that such catastrophes can have on the inhabitants and even on the whole human race. Even if the special effects do not live up to the film, it is nevertheless a very good film witnessing this kind of accident and these serious consequences.