If we were to describe the movie “Project Silence” to someone who hasn’t watched it, we’ll say it’s a disaster movie focused on the process of how people try to get to safety while trying to make sense of the absurd disaster situation they’re stuck in. This movie was not only action-packed but also packed with emotions, and food for thought.
“Project Silence” tells the story of various individuals who find themselves stranded on the bridge to Incheon Airport and end up in a life-and-death situation when they suddenly become targets of relentless attacks by the canine subjects ‘Echo’ from the military experiment ‘Project Silence’.
[WARNING! SPOILERS AHEAD]
You can go in without watching the movie trailer or knowing the story because the flow of the movie was planned well so you get all the information you need in the first 20 minutes, with scenes that introduce the background story of the main characters of the movie. We have a government official from the presidential office (LEE Sun Kyun) and his daughter (KIM Su An), a tow truck driver (JU Ji Hoon), an elderly couple (MOON Sung Geun, YE Su Jeong) returning from a trip abroad and sisters (PARK Hee Von, PARK Ju Hyun) who missed their flight.
The introduction of each character was smoothly integrated by making them cross paths with one other and the rest of the story is self-explanatory. Despite the movie having predictable moments since it’s a disaster movie (honestly, how far can we get with low visibility, accidents resulting in multi-collision pile up, toxic gas etc?), unexpected moments such as the introduction of the experimental dogs, how people who were stuck on the bridge thought that they had a chance of survival when they heard they could be rescued and the “UNO Reverse” moment of betrayal when there was no help rendered, added more flavour to the entire movie.
One of the best parts of “Project Silence” would be the cameo appearances of famous South Korean actors who even non-Korean drama fans might find them very familiar with. Despite their short appearances in the movie, the roles that the actors played were crucial to the development of the movie. Some of the actors who made cameo appearances included Ha Do Kwon (from Penthouse fame) and Park Ho San (known for his character in Prison Playbook).
Another thing we appreciated about the movie was that there was plenty of room for food for thought because it touched on topics including love, justice, loyalty, sacrifice, social expectations through multiple scenarios throughout the movie.
But the scene that left the deepest impression was probably the moment when Cha Jong Won’s (played by Lee Sun Kyun) superior Jung Hyun Baek (played by Kim Tae Woo) was confronted by his superior to make a decision between saving the people or saving his reputation as a presidential candidate. This moment where someone is put in a situation where the authority to make decisions will dictate what happens to the others seems to be quite an accurate reflection of the society.
What kind of narrative would you choose? Would you choose to save your reputation or save the lives of others?
We would also like to recognise the effort put into creating the computer graphics (CG) to make the entire disaster scenes possible. And of course, we’d like to give a special mention to late actor Lee Sun Kyun for his stellar acting skills that allowed audiences to be immersed into his character in every part of the movie. Do watch his every expression and listen to his unique, bassy voice while watching him in his very last film.
If the concept of a disaster film reminds you too much of the reality of current world issues and you feel like you might be too overwhelmed by the movie’s resemblance to reality, you can take your time and give the movie a watch whenever you’re ready.
When you’re ready to find out what went on in the movie and be entertained by Ju Ji Hoon’s comical character, be sure to catch “Project Silence” that’s currently airing in Singapore cinemas!
A special thanks to Encore Films for the media invite!
Text by: Wan Ling | Image credits to Encore Films
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