Chang-gwol (2018) Reviews

• A swashbuckling period film with demons (hybrid between vampires n zombies). Crispr?

  Fella_shibby2019-02-18

  I love Korean films n Train to Busan is my fav zombie film. Well, this is not as good as Train to Busan but nonetheless it is better than most zombie films produced left right n centre in Hollywood. A prince returns home upon hearing that his elder brother has taken his own life. While the king is busy with his concubines n the minister of military plotting to overthrow the dynasty, our prince has to face assassins, rebels, cries of poor peasants n hordes of demons (hybrid between zombies n vampires). The demons r fast, terrifying n downright creepy. The cinematography is top notch n the action scenes involving the sword fights r awesome. There is tons of decapitations, slicing of arms, legs, etc. but the gore is restrained. The prison escape scene with the demons behind is pretty tensed n frightening.

• Haunting zombie movie meets epic historical fiction and twisted political intrigues

  kluseba2018-11-19

  Two years after the outstanding zombie movie Train to Busan, South Korea comes around with yet another extremely memorable zombie film entitled Rampant. Instead of copying the concept of yore, Rampant walks off the beaten path and mixes gripping horror movie elements with historical fiction and political intrigues. The story takes place during an era when the kingdom of Joseon was controlled by the Qing Dynasty. The heir apparent organizes a revolt against his own father who is manipulated by the minister of military. When his treason is uncovered, his allies and himself decide to commit suicide, leaving his pregnant wife behind. His last wish is that his pregnant wife is brought to safety in China and his estranged brother travels from China to Joseon to look after her. Upon arriving, the estranged brother realizes that a strange plague that originated from a foreign merchant ship is haunting the country and spreading like wildfire. He has the challenging tasks to survive the attacks of the immortals, save his dead brother's pregnant wife and defy the minister of military who wants to overthrow the dynasty and seize power. At the same time, he has to annihilate the hordes of zombies, be a leader for the suffering villagers and ultimately find his own identity. There are numerous elements that make this excellent movie entertaining from start to finish despite a surprisingly long running time of one hundred twenty-nine minutes. The historical context is authentic, complex and fascinating. The settings look at times gloomy or majestic. The special effects are gripping and stunning. The sound effects are even more haunting and best enjoyed at your local movie theatre. The characters have depth and development. The acting performances are diversified and outstanding. The story has numerous twists and turns without ever losing itself in unnecessary subplots. The horror elements are bloody, dynamic and haunting which makes for an excellent mixture. The action scenes includes martial arts sequences, gun fights as well as epic confrontations with archers. The dramatic elements in the film are fleshed out and give this horror movie some unusual emotional and intellectual depth. There is no doubt that Rampant is the best horror movie of the year and follows the contemporary trend of outstanding South Korean horror movies such as the creepy, mysterious and surreal The Wailing. If you don't have the chance to watch this movie in your local cinema that blindly supports vapid Hollywood productions, buy a physical copy of this masterpiece to support everyone involved in this epic project to make sure we can witness movies of similar quality in the future. Even if you don't like horror movies in general or might find zombie films superficial in particular, open your mind and enjoy this film to the fullest and forget endless, predictable and repetitive American series like The Walking Dead that can't compete with this masterpiece.

• South Korean back at it again with another top notch zombie flick

  phanthinga2018-11-10

  Train To Busan is the biggest surprise from South Korea to the zombie genre and horror fan all over the world when it not only got the survive horror element on point but also very emotion and gut wrenching to the point that it makes me literally cry in the end so after 2 years South Korea finally make another zombie flick called Rampant in hack/slash style and let's just say because Train To Busan already set the bar too high so Rampant definitely look pale in comparison but please go and see it cause until the release of Train To Busan 2 the best decision right now is Rampant and nothing else

• Better if watched before new 'Kingdom', 2018 series

  safsurfer2019-03-05

  Better if watched before the new 'Kingdom' 2018 series, shows this movie could have been made better too, but the new series is so good that this movie paled in comparison. I don't know which one came first, but the series ended up the better of the two, by far. Still, it's worth the watch for any zombie enthusiast....and korean zombies even better. So if only have 2hrs to watch then this novie very good choice, but if you have 8hrs then go for the new series, 'kingdom', also korean language with subtitles plus season 2 just about ready I think...close maybe and S03+ not far fetched.

• South Korean Zombie horde attacks Royal Palace looking for a bite to eat

  silicontourist2018-12-02

  I love South Korean films (and a lot of other Asian countries films) and I am a fanatical Film Buff in general; but I am not a critic. With that said, nobody needs to be a self imposed critic of this mass Zombie rampage film! Set in the medeival times of a Josean Korean royal palace/city RAMPANT is a Sword & Horde zombie slasher. It reminded me of the 1974 film, 'Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires', that starred Peter Cushing, David Chiang and Julie Ege; except that dealt with vampires. The film concept is a good idea and what we get to see is a totally enjoyable film that, delivers everything you/me/we expect in Zombie slasher films. Of course its nowhere near as good as 'Train To Busan' (let us be truthful here...will any Korean Zombie film ever surpass that masterpiece?) but, its presenting the Zombie story from a totally different look. There are no oscar winning performances, just good solid acting with bits of humour and lots of frights & bites action. You know how it will end because...well...you just do! The fun is in the watching of everything in-between it all. Simply put this is ...Fantastic Film Fun for Fans of the genre!