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From the director of Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War comes My Way, the latest big-budgeted war epic from South Korea.
In this film we follow a couple competing marathon runners (one Japanese, one Korean) that gain local and (almost) national recognition with their skills on the track. A mishap at a Japanese marathon causes a riot to break out, and the Korean and his buddies that were in the riot are forced to join the Japanese military as punishment. The rest of the film basically just details the Korean dude's struggle in the military, and having to deal with the person in charge of the unit, which happens to be his old Japanese competitor. The war eventually takes them to the trenches of Normandy, fighting alongside the Nazis
Friendship, loyalty, and honor are all brought up as the story progresses to conclude in a predictable, but heart-warming way. Simply put, this is no Tae Guk Gi, so if you're expecting that you'll be disappointed. This is indeed a good film, but it just doesn't reach the high standards that were set with Tae Guk Gi. Regardless, it's still an enjoyable heart-tugging war drama.
The only issues I really had with it are how the lead Korean guy is just a little TOO honorable and plays the hero far too easily and far too much. There are situations he's faced with that any normal person would react differently to, but the film makes it pretty apparent that he's no normal person. That's another issue I had with the film -- the fact that the Japanese and Korean guy go through so much, yet somehow survive whatever's put in their way. It's a little unrealistic, but I let it slide for the sake of storytelling.
Negative aside, there are some great visuals and camerawork when the scene calls for it. I especially love the use of the person's POV during parts and only wished they had done it more often. The visuals are especially great towards the end in the Normandy scene. In the end, this is a good South Korean war drama that succeeds in making you really care for the two leads, regardless of how bad there characters are/were and what obstacles they face. Worth a look if you're into war dramas or just want another good South Korean flick to add to you "watch list". 7/10
http://imdb.com/title/tt1606384/
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