“Hope,” an epic new South Korean alien/monster film, feels like the second Looney Tunes movie that I’ve seen in the past week or so, after “Coyote vs. Acme.” The title of “Hope” is misleading. The film’s events take place in a village named Hope Harbor, but hope is in short supply as vicious monsters lay waste to the town and its occupants. This movie is wackadoodle. I can’t recommend it to anyone who considers themselves to be discriminating. Nonetheless, I had a good time watching a talented director doing what he likes to do, and doing it very well. And what he likes to do is action that hits like hurricanes and is served up with perverse humor.
The director in question is Na Hong-jin. After some acclaimed short films, Na had international success in 2008 with “The Chaser,” a stylish serial killer thriller. He followed that with a more complex crime drama, “The Yellow Sea.” Both of those films had protagonists who were deeply flawed, police officers who were mostly ineffectual and environments that were violent and sexually squalid. The endings were largely downbeat with the faint suggestion — mostly ironic — that life goes on. Visually, the films were gorgeous. Na demonstrated exceptional finesse with a camera in these movies, creating gripping chase scenes that ranged from foot races through shadowy streets to multiple-car pileups.
In his third movie, “The Wailing,” Na broke free from earthbound crime dramas and took a wild swing. “The Wailing” had an investigation at its core, but the film was a quasi-zombie ghost exorcism mashup, at times bewildering but with terrifying sequences.
With “Hope,” Na continues to follow his muse to unusual destinations. The plot here frequently seems to exist as an excuse for some deliriously extended chase scenes. In the movie’s first act, some hunters discover a steer that has been brutally mangled. Before the police chief in charge has much time to investigate, he finds that his village and its populace are being destroyed by a monstrous creature. For the next half-hour or so, he — often comically afraid — tries to track and destroy whatever is causing the chaos. Na uses the “Jaws” strategy: suspense is built because we get to see the havoc that the monster has inflicted long before we see the creature itself.
The climax of the segment involves a speeding cop car that’s sometimes the pursued and at other times the pursuer. At breakneck speed, the camera frequently overshoots its mark when the police car’s brakes are applied, with the shot continuing down the road while the vehicle leaves the frame as it reverses direction. The technique is the joke, and it’s a good one. A great score by Michael Ables boosts the scene and, as it happens, the movie as a whole.
In “Hope”’s second act, after the initial threat is subdued, the movie pauses for a breather while the characters try to figure out what just happened. It’s not long before they learn the first attacker is not alone. Na indulges in some gross-out and scatological humor; there’s a gruesome autopsy and, in one extended monologue, a character tells how he stumbled upon the alien conclave as he struggled with a bout of diarrhea.
Na also airs his grievances. As in his other films, the police are barely up to the requirements of their jobs. In a running joke, almost everyone has an illegal firearm. The director must be a vegetarian; many of the characters wolf down a carnivorous meal shortly after we’ve witnessed the aftermath of the monster chomping down on a victim. It’s as if Na is saying to the ostensible heroes, “You think you guys are any better than this monster?”
The plot goes off the rails in the third act. Prowling in nearby woods, hunting parties uncover further evidence of murderous activity. Na’s depiction of the monsters mutates, both literally and figuratively, and the director throws in stuff that will jack up the thrills but not garner him many points for consistency. Yet even in the middle of this narrative messiness is an extended, scary sequence of cat-and-mouse in the forest, and that’s followed by a car chase with galloping horses, galloping monsters and stunts and quips that evoke Western movies from long ago. Once upon a time, a theory was proposed that proclaimed chases to be the purest form of cinema. That philosophy didn’t last long, but “Hope” almost convinced me that the notion might be worth re-examining.
“Hope” is not perfect. Just about every scene is longer than it needs to be. The CGI is subpar. The story might have made more sense in an era comparable to the 1950s monster flicks that partially inspired “Hope” because the world beyond the village is largely uninvolved or unaware of the murderous rampage. What happened to the South Korean government? To cell phones? The ending sets up a sequel, when developments in “Hope” will presumably be further elaborated and clarified, but for now we’re left with a couple of head-scratchers.
Despite all this, “Hope” is giddily off-center and exciting. It’s like Spielberg and Mel Brooks teamed up to make a “Predator” sequel with a cranky producer on the set who complains about everything.
“Hope” Directed by Na Hong-jin. Written by Na Hong-jin. Starring Hwang Jung-min, Zo In-sung, Hoyeon, Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander. Rated R. Running Time: 2h 40m.
