BATTLE
OF JANGSARI (2019)
Starring
Kim Myung-min, Choi Sung-Pil, Kim Sung-cheol, Megan Fox, George Eads.
Directed by Kwak Kyung-taek & Kim Tae-hoon. (106 min)
ON
BLU-RAY FROM WELL GO USA
Review
by Tiger the Terrible😽
Just
to give any Megan Fox fans a heads-up: Despite her prominent billing
in Battle of Jangsari, she only appears in a few scenes
and even those feel gratuitously inserted, as if they were shot much later
and included to boost the film’s international appeal.
Her
character is completely inconsequential. As reporter Maggie Higgins,
she provides redundant commentary on South Korea’s decision to send
700 inexperienced student soldiers to divert North Korean forces from
General MacArthur’s Inchon campaign. We don’t need a former Maxim
pop tart to tell us lambs are being led to the slaughter.
 |
| "Look...I carved my initials in the stock!" |
This
true story is interesting enough on its own merits. With an opening
sequence that evokes Saving Private Ryan, scores of these guys –
led by compassionate commander Myung-Joon (Kim Myung-min) – are
mowed down the minute they hit the shore. Against all odds, the rest
manage to secure the beach...at least temporarily. Low on men, ammo
and food as more North Korean troops approach, they go on the
offensive while hoping reinforcements – or at least a rescue ship –
arrive on time.
The
story features three major battle sequences. While not quite as
graphic or visceral as those in Saving Private Ryan or Black
Hawk Down, these scenes still pack a wallop and are the
high-points of the film. In between are familiar-yet-engaging moments
where a few of the young soldiers are humanized just enough for us to
care about their fates.
 |
| "Shit. You sank my battleship." |
Unfortunately,
momentum is broken every time the film cuts away to feature Maggie
bickering with Colonel Stephen (George Eads) over the lack of support
being provided. These scenes could be completely removed and the
viewer would still get the point that sending a bunch kids to serve
as diversionary cannon fodder was terrible & tragic.
Other
than that, Battle of Jangsari offers
a vivid, dramatic depiction of a lesser-known conflict in the Korean
War. While it may or may not be historically accurate, the chaos of
the brutal battle sequences feel authentic, which compensates for the
irrelevant scenes and characters.
EXTRA
KIBBLES
MAKING-OF
FEATURETTE
TRAILERS
KITTY CONSENSUS:
PURR-R-R...LIKE A GOOD SCRATCH BEHIND THE EARS.
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