A series of devastating earthquakes have laid waste to South Korea – and, perhaps, the world – and survivors are living a tough, hand-to-mouth existence amongst the ruins and devastation. Tricksy scientist Dr Yang Gi-su (Lee Hee-joon) has set up a refuge in an undamaged apartment block and offers some normality for families with teenage children as he carries out his own secret experiments. Local scavengers Nam-san (Ma Dong-seok) and Choi Ji-wan (Lee Jun-young) set off to rescue Su-na (Roh Jeong-eui) when she is kidnapped from their village, but on their way, they encounter savage mutants and immortal warriors and eventually link up with other fighters who suspect that something deeply sinister lays at the heart of Dr Gi-su’s experiments.
Badland Hunters is insane, no-holds-barred stuff; refreshingly unsubtle, but it’s another slice of high-impact, ass-kicking South Korean fantasy. The numerous fight scenes are savage and wince-inducing – watch out for numerous decapitations and disembowellings – and underneath the patina of what appears to be a routine post-apocalyptic action flick lie some rather chilling and disturbing ideas and sequences depicting ruthless experimentation on children and the terror and despair engendered in their desperate parents. The film pivots deftly between these rather queasy scenes and raw, vital and balletic action set pieces that are heart-poundingly thrilling and the odd sequence where mutated soldiers rabidly charge at Nam-san and Choi as they infiltrate the facility even verge on horror. Running for a nippy 100-odd minutes, Badland Hunters doesn’t hang about and gives the audience what it wants and expects – bone-crunching brutality and stunningly-choreographed fights – with a breathless and almost exhausting energy and vitality and a dark heart beating underneath the violence.
BADLAND HUNTERS is streaming on Netflix
