This Korean film on Netflix centers around the story of Gu An-na (Kim Da-mi), a researcher desperately trying to save her son amid a catastrophic flood that terrorizes the planet. She must collaborate with a mysterious rescuer Son Hee-jo (Park Hae-soo) to escape and possibly, save humanity.
Sorry, the title isn't subtle at all. In case you couldn't tell, I didn't like this movie. My presumption was that it would be a survival epic, and while there were elements of that, it leaned too much into the science fiction realm for me. As a sucker for a good disaster flick, I excitedly clicked "play" but was disappointed to find my viewing experience slowly ruined by a little thing called the plot. There was so much talk about genetically engineered humans and AI consciousness for my taste. How do those things fit into a movie like this? Well, I saw it and I still don't know. It had so much potential for being a great movie rife with social and environmental commentary, which I know South Korean filmmaking does very well, but it focused on an underveloped individual's journey instead. It was somehow too much but not enough at the same time.
If that wasn't too much, the creators somehow said "yes, let's include a multiple timeline subplot". Essentially, An-na continually relives the loss and search for her son (the reason why is later divulged as the film's ending surprise) but I slipped into a bottomless cave of confusion because of this. I simply didn't know what was going on or why it was happening and the final scenes which were supposed to provide insight didn't pack enough of a punch. There was no "ohhhhh" moment, just "huh?".
Important details, like what actually caused the disaster, were passed over rather than being a focal point. Quickly mentioned in conversation at the beginning made it seem like such a hollow statement rather than being the catalyst of the entire film. Because I believe in the power of spoilers, I won't mention the details, but trust me that it wasn't done well. The minimal casting and limited inclusion of side characters made it difficult to become emotionally invested in these people. I struggled to feel a connection to even the main characters because there was such little background created for them; it seemed like everyone had a 2D personality that was barely thought through. And this goes against everything I stand for because, as my laptop sticker says, I'm "emotionally attached to fictional characters".
