Ever since the movie announcement at Cannes, I’ve been curious what the return of Yeon Sango-Ho to the international market was going to be. After the internationally produced Peninsula (sequel to Train to Busan), he left us wanting for more Korean peninsula horror stories. So, I was excited to see Colony on the program for Fantasia 2026!
The Stakes Are High
Colony introduces us immediately to the bad guy, bio terrorist Suh Yeong-Cheol (Koo Kyo-Hwan). He has released a bio-chemical weapon in a building in Seoul, and has informed the police that he himself is the cure for it. Meanwhile, we are introduced to our lead Se Jeong (played by K-drama legend Jun Ji-Hyun). She is a shunned but brilliant scientist who leads a lonely life. She is even urged by her ex-husband to find friends and work during a conference.
Yeong-Cheol infects a CEO during the conference, and from there, things progress fast into a fungal zombie-infection situation. However, these infected are not dead, and seemingly have a collective intelligence and information exchange. What follows is an action-packed movie with similar beats to Train to Busan, [REC], and even Dawn of the Dead (both versions) in a locked, quarantined building with a race against the clock to find the bio-terrorist and the vaccine.
Yeon Sang-Ho’s movies are largely character-driven, and so is Colony. From archetypes such as the Scientist, the Cop, the Bully, the Bullied, etc., you instantly know where you stand with certain characters. We get an immediate introduction to the main character and their backstory. This saves time further along for more of the action. That doesn’t take away from any connection or depth of the characters, regardless of the archetypes. They are written in a human way and less like caricatures (which often happens in American movies). Se Jeong doesn’t suddenly see the light and become nurturing. She instead finds friends and allies by being who she really is.
Sometimes Less Is More Though
There is a lot of information shared with the audience during the film about the scientific thinking behind the virus, including how it operates and can be manipulated. Because of the smart set of people present, there is quick thinking, making the first act great, and the third act awesome and fast-paced. However, it also causes some repetitive scenes and moments in the middle, seemingly only to beef up the runtime. There is an amazing ant-whirl sequence in the third act that would have hit that much harder if the ‘road’ there was a bit less repetitive.
This movie would have been an instant hit for me if only it were 20 minutes shorter. However, I had a good time nonetheless. The idea around the fungal virus with collective intelligence was refreshing. Although most of the action was the same as in Train to Busan and Peninsula. I was happy to see Se Jeong find herself a girlfriend, and they girl bossed their way to a possible sequel?
For fans of rage-virus/zombie movies, this is a good one to add to your watch list. Even if it is to see Koo Kyo-Kwan’s very punchable face lose. 😛
