Recommend reading about Yi Sun Shin before watching this movie. It's relatively difficult to follow the first half of this movie if you don't know something about him. Do yourself a favor and wiki Yi sun shin. It will give a quick glimpse into the man and back drops of this conflict. All historical accounts indicate that one ship went against superior numbers and he won. There are a lot of dramatic interpretations, but you will experience general gist of how he exploited fear in his own men and Japanese navy which suffered heavy casualties by Yi over 6 years of war. One other note: Korean uses a flat bottom ship. Japanese uses more traditional design. Korean navy has zero turtle iron clad ship in this engagement. That should be enough to enjoy one of the best ancient naval battle captured by this movie.
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HoppingBunny19 August 2014
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"The Admiral: Roaring Currents" is an ambitious, epic and expensive historical action-drama from South Korea. This movie can already be considered a milestone of Korean cinema from several points of view. It became the biggest film of all time at the South Korean box office in 2014, with more than 17 million admissions and the first local film to gross over US$ 100 million. The costumes, set pieces and weapons were designed after extensive research that even Japanese historians were amazed by the reconstructions of the Japanese warships. General Yi Sun- sin is portrayed by the most famous and according to many including myself also the best contemporary actor from South Korea; the charismatic Choi Min-sik who rose to fame with his roles in the spy thriller "Shiri", the mystery-thriller "Oldboy" and the psychological horror movie "I Saw the Devil" among others.
The movie revolves around the Battle of Myeongnyang around 1597 which took place during the Imjin War when Japan tried to invade the Korean peninsula and even parts of Ming Dynasty China. After a disastrous defeat, the Korean fleet only consisted of 13 warships while the Japanese gathered 133 warships and around 200 logistical support ships. The Japanese fleet was headed for the Korean capital Hanyang to support their land's army but general Yi Sun-shin decided to battle the superior enemy in a strait. By using the dangerous currents in the strait and a tactically well chosen emplacement for his fleet, the admiral was able to destroy several Japanese warships and to push back the enemy. The unexpected defeat shocked the Japanese and encouraged the Koreans. Joseon Dynasty's navy was able to regroup with Ming Dynasty's army and the Japanese were expelled out of the Korean peninsula the next year.
The film shows us the weeks before the famous battle, an extensive depiction of the battle itself and its immediate aftermath and a short look beyond in the concluding minutes.
This movie is separated in two almost equal parts. The first hour introduces the viewers to the historical context, the desperate condition of the Korean navy and the inhabitants in general and the most important characters from both sides of the belligerents. I feel that this part of the movie is slightly too long. Instead of focusing on too many characters and a lot of tactical dialogs, the movie could have shown us the origins of the war to get a better idea of the entire context. It would have been a great idea to start the film with Won Gyun's disastrous defeat against the Japanese navy during the Battle of Chilcheollyang and to quickly show how a nearly defeated country arose from its ashes to gather for a final decisive battle. While the set pieces and special effects look stunning, the dialogs on the first hour of the movie are exhausting and the acting is only of an average quality despite the promising cast. Both the acting and the dialogs are somewhat wooden. There is no character one could somehow sympathize with and the acting is not what viewers will retain from this movie.
The movie gets a boost during the second hour that is almost entirely dedicated to the battle itself. Some people might think that almost an hour of naval battle might be overlong and repetitive but that's not the case in here. This is one of the very finest, if not the very best naval battle ever shown in cinema. There are many ups and downs during the battle, several different strategies are used and even the fights themselves vary from cannon fire, over confrontations with bows and arrows and intense sword fights to a few elements of martial arts duels. A few clever tactical tricks from both sides are also added to the epic battle. Acting, choreographies, images, score, sounds, special effects and stunts are reaching one high point after another in the entertaining second half of this movie. The last five minutes after the final battle are a short but nice conclusion closing the circle to the beginning of the film that gives the viewers the occasion to calm down again.
While the set pieces and most parts of the story are faithful to the historical background, some elements depicting the different historical characters and parts of the battle itself might be dramatized to a certain degree. That's why the movie has a slightly patriotic touch but this is only some minor criticism as this film isn't as exaggerated as many contemporary Chinese war movies for example.
In the end, fans of epic war movies will get what they desire. The naval battle is detailed, diversified, emotional, entertaining, epic and intense. It's probably the best naval battle in the history of cinema. This stunning second half pardons for a few lengths in the opening hour that sets the context of the battle in a solid but also slightly dusty and lengthy way. This film isn't the best Korean movie of all times by any means and maybe slightly over-hyped. Still, this is better than any comparable war history movie from the Western world I have seen in the past ten years or more. If you want to see even better Korean war movies, I can highly suggest you "Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War" from 2004 and "My Way" from 2011. -
planktonrules20 April 2015The South Korean film, The Admiral, was an enormous hit in its native land. It made over $100,000,000 dollars--which might not sound like much in a country as large as the US or China, but this means that about 17,000,000 Koreans went to see this film, or, nearly about 40% of the country! It is clearly the most successful film in the history of Korean films. Fortunately, this film is now available abroad, though I was a tad disappointed to see it dubbed into English. Mind you, it's a pretty good dubbing...but I hope that the DVDs will come with the option of playing it in Korean with subtitles.
The movie is about one of the greatest naval victories in history--a battle very rarely talked about in the West. In 1597, at the Battle of Myeongnyang, Admiral Yi Sun-Sin only had about a dozen ships-- against as many as 200 invading Japanese ships...and somehow he prevailed. In comparison, it's much like the victory of the English against the Spanish Armada just a few years previous or the modern Battle of Midway--an amazing and very lopsided victory. But how did Yi do it? How was he able to use his wits, the currents as well as a lot of luck to turn the tide in favor of his demoralized navy? See the film and find out for yourself.
If you find this film in a theater, by all means see it. After all, it is HUGE in scope and does best with as big a screen as you can find. This also means that if you see it on DVD, it's best to watch it on a big screen as well--and perhaps this means taking it to your friend's house if they have a 70" HDTV! It's because the best thing about this movie is its scope--and you just have to see it to believe it. Seeing over a hundred ships (many of which are actually computer-generated--though you won't be able to tell because it was done so seamlessly) is reason enough to see this war film! It also is crammed with everything you'd expect in a film like this--action, blood and lots of heroism. It's the sort of rousing film that I could see energizing the Korean movie-goers. This also is a bit of a strike against it overseas. I know that not everyone cares whether or not the outnumbered Koreans won this battle--and many folks would probably rather see the next Iron Man movie. But, for what it is, it's a heck of a good film and deserves to be seen...and it might just surprise you if you give it a chance. -
nox092 February 2015movie tells us story of the battle for Roaring Currents during the invasion of Japanese to Korea in 1597. the main character of the movie is Admiral Admiral Yi Sun-Shin who fought with 13 ships against 133 ( 330 in movie ) and he really was a legendary navy admiral in real life , on same level with Nelson . the best thing in the movie are the navy battles scenes , its the best navy war movie i have ever seen in my life its just pure joy to watch those massive battle scenes loved it , the battles are similar to some other Korean movies like ( Mu SA or Arrow the ultimate weapon ) . however the movie suffers from character development , there are some cheesy moments that feel totally not necessary. Japanese people look like evil guys without personalities overall i recommend to see it , even if you wont like the whole movie , you will definitely enjoy amazing navy war scenes which are like half of the movie .
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AWESOME MOVIE!! How one brilliant man defeated hundreds!! The battle scenes in this movie are amazing and it's interesting to see how the story develops. An admiral changed the fear in his men to that of courage and defeated the enemy. Even the local peasants watched in awe and helped the admiral. So much detail in the film to resemble the actual clothing, ships and respect for their leader. I just wish I understood the language used in the film since something is always lost when translating. The actors spoke in both Japanese and Korean. Fortunately there were English subtitles. I think I'll go see it a second time since there was so much detail in the film. I loved the costumes everyone wore! One thing I like about Korean films is they use good acting and a strong plot to tell the story. The problem with American movies is there's so much CGI and special effects to help develop the story that a crappy story with a lot of special effects can still be a blockbuster. I'm getting the blu ray when it comes out!! Go see it!!
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KineticSeoul2 February 2015For me this felt like a mix between "Lincoln" and "300". Mainly because it's not as in depth and really realistically done like "Lincoln" but it isn't as over the top as "300" either. Some audiences seem to have liked "War of Arrows" better. But I personally enjoyed this film a bit more. The first half of this movie is basically the build up before the grand battle. Where team Korea has the odds completely against them in battle. But despite the obstacles in their path, the men still go to battle in order to fight and protect their country. The story in my opinion is about perseverance and having the will power to go on even when you feel that the odds are against you...And I liked that. Although if they put more emphasis on the Admirals planning and strategy, it would have made the movie better. Mainly because Admiral Yi is known not only for his courage and willpower, but a amazing strategist. It isn't a superbly well made movie when it comes to the story, character development and direction. But it's a very watchable movie that still has a bit of a impact. So yeah, I recommend this film.
7.8/10 -
bbickley13-921-586645 September 2014Almost seems like the Korean version of 300 with an underdog nation going to battle with a power that's overwhelming, but thanks to their admiral, who shows no compromise, they journey ahead into one of the best naval battles I've seen on screen.
At times the story did get too sappy. For the most part, the filmmakers went for art over realism to make the emotional scenes very dramatic, but those battleship fights were worth the built up of the tactical aspects of war that began the film, which was mostly really great speeches from the admiral to rally the troops.
Not bad South Korea. -
Semisonic6 July 2015There were some mighty promises about The Admiral: Roaring Currents. Like, that it's some sort of Korean 300, based on a glorious page of their own history. A tale of 12 ships that opposed a Japanese fleet of more than 300 vessels and threw it back is definitely worth delving into, even if the modern cinematographic interpretation did it as little justice as Zack Snyder's gore-praising action did to the Ancient Greek legend.
Well, from the very beginning it was obvious that we're not gonna get the same sort of action from The Admiral. The budget of the Korean film was noticeably thinner than one of the Hollywood blockbuster, for which it tried to compensate with a typical Eastern dramatic approach: lots of close-ups of faces lit with such intense emotions it seemed the people whose faces belonged to could explode from within any second. Add some really bravado, albeit pretty generic, music to the mix, and you get a recipe for a Middle Age Oriental Molotov cocktail that can't wait to go boom.
Despite this rather pompous premise, the first act of The Admiral is indeed very promising. Every single aspect of the story is telling us that the remainder of the Korean fleet simply stands no chance. The morals of the troops are below the waterline, with the most pressing dilemma being suicide vs treachery. The main hero is old, his health ailing and even his closest aides have no slightest faith in their mission's success.
At some point you start getting restless to finally have a glimpse of any silver lining at all, because the film doesn't even try to speak riddles to you and make you believe it has something major up its sleeve. So, except some pretty watered-down and vague hints, you're left with nothing to expect. Which is a bit disappointing, because, without any promises of a tour de force by a tactical genius, one usually has to brace himself for a showcase of deus-ex-machinas coming up one after another.
Unfortunately, when the action starts, the worst fears come true. You might be hoping to see something very cunning, borderline diabolical, which would explain how that measly fleet of 12 ships could pull a trick the history tells it did. Well, don't hope for too much. Because what you'll see will make Pirates of the Caribbean an apex of naval tactics in comparison. In other words, "they shoot and miss, we shoot and hit hard", accompanied with the same old close-ups of the Admiral, who seemingly manages to blow up enemy ships and pump strength into his men by willpower alone.
One could hope that it's gonna get better after the first tide of ridiculousness goes down. On the contrary. If at first the film was at least trying to explain its strategic thinking, no matter how insane, then after a certain point it all goes haywire. It's impossible to understand what is going on and why the characters do what they do, but clearly the Koreans have some sort of collective enlightenment channeled from up above, because no matter what the Japanese troops do, they fail at sinking a single enemy ship, while their ranks recede with a terrifying pace. And even the dramatic flashbacks of the Admiral sharing some obscure pieces of war wisdom can't possibly explain this miracle.
The anticlimactic finale of this story that was planned as a suicide mission all along tries to distract the viewer's attention from its utter implausibility by throwing in some social message and underlining the importance of the common people. But no matter how hard those common people bow into the camera, they fail to make up for what was supposed to be a really gritty tale of a dramatic moment in the national history of Korea, but instead ended up a pretty cheap and plain B-movie about costumed men muddying the waters with very tense and heroic faces. -
I stumbled upon this movie without having ever heard of it, and boy was I glad to watch it. It's the movie about one of the most famous Korean generals in Korean history during a crucial battle in the war with Japan. The acting in the movie was solid, even if I didn't understand the language. The naval battle scenes and how Admiral Yi used naval tactics to fight his enemy were realistic and breathtaking at the same time. I'd compare this with the 300: Rise of an Empire movie, with far less CGI, fantasy elements, better acting, and more realistic portrayal of naval battle. It's pretty amazing what they could do with ships back in those days.
The history/characters in the movie is a little hard to follow if you don't know about it beforehand or don't speak Korean/Japanese, but I still enjoyed it quite a bit and learned a little bit of Korean history in the process. -
kevinba9919 April 2015This movie has been hyped up for over a year since it's release by the South Korean media.
Although it's fight scenes were actually very good. The storytelling itself is poor and very predictable. When compared to The Brotherhood of War (also made by South Korea) this is nothing close to it.
The acting by the Admiral character was light and poor acting in my opinion. Watch it if you will but it will never stand up to Band of Brothers, Saving Private Ryan, Brotherhood of War or We Were Soldier.
It is a movie you will watch once and forget which is a real shame as it had all the merits and cast to become an epic war movie. -
trojans727 September 2014full throttle navel action that has to be seen to believe. after a slow but important first half this korean movie goes into high gear with an all out battle film that is very rewarding. totally engrossing and very entertaining.
i have seen my fair share of Asian war epics and this was one of the more enjoyable one, a bit melodramatic but thats fine. as a costume drama its gorgeous and with limited cgi it all looks very realistic.i must say it looks stunning from start to finish
if your looking for something epic to watch and you don't mind subtitle's then this one is for you plus all gaming buffs take not this is how to make a battle movie. -
marquisdepanjadrum8 March 2021If one reads about the actual battle, they would realize that the just following the real life events would have made the movie a master epic. Instead they decided to make a pop story with a bit of romance thrown in for flavour. Disappointed.
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daniyalshamkhalov7 November 2015I stumbled upon this movie as i was reading on who admiral Yi was and knowing his feats in the art of war, this movie made me excited as this is the first movie on this topic I was about to watch. Now, an hour and a half later (didn't finish the whole movie), I just wish that I didn't watch it as it was a complete waste of time. The acting in my opinion was bad at its best, character development was nonexistent, they didn't have more than 1 trait to their personality and the interactions between characters felt very unnatural and forced which made it cringeworthy to watch. I also found the producers attempt to emotionally connect the viewer to the events and characters in the movie pathetic. They completely failed with the task which just made the movie really weird and left me wondering what they were crying over all the time.
I LOVE the idea behind this movie, making an epic movie about the undefeated general Yi Sun, but this movie fails at it...and quite miserably actually. So don't waste your time, just skip this movie. -
paolosalvatore24 September 2015In some parts the depiction of the reactions is a bit over reacted but over all a great depiction of on of the greatest naval battles in history.
Great war scenes and a great detail and research in recreating the ships and costumes that could almost be used as a realistic documentary.
Epic quotes that characterize the oriental philosophy and overview with special effects and a great intensity all along.
An entertaining historic movie that can be watched any time you fell like spearing a couple hours and want to enjoy some well recreated history. -
dworldeater2 June 2015The Admiral Roaring Currents is a very good period battle picture in the same vein as John Woo's Red Cliff. Although this film is quite large in scope, it is a smaller scale epic than the massive masterpiece Red Cliff. Choi Min Sik of Oldboy and I Saw The Devil fame is an admiral who command the small in number naval fleet versus the massive invading Japanese fleet. The few stood against many is a common and effective theme in this sort of film. Forgive my ignorance, but my knowledge of Korean/Japanese history is limited. So I have no idea how historically accurate this movie is. I did enjoy it regardless and in my opinion, I thought this film is very good. The storytelling and acting is solid and the film looks real sharp as well. The battle/action scenes are in abundance and while there is CGI used in the film, it is used well and classier than most Hollywood productions. I did think this film needed more blood as this is a battle picture. However, this is a minor critique as this film is indeed roaring. It also is in my book a very engaging and well crafted movie.
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zenn_mind5 July 2016The job of the critic is to honestly review the movie for the emotional content it delivers. The Admiral is a tearjerker that speaks of a man's principal to not give in even when the odds are stacked high against him.
The story is focused on one of the historic naval battles during Japanese invasion of Korea in the middle ages when Korean navy led by Admiral Lee, our protagonist, managed to thwart off a much larger Japanese Navy. Lee had been a victim of political scraps and was made to step down from his post by the King himself only to be reinstated as he was needed when the situation turned for the very worst.
On mainland, the invasion is threatening to takeover the capital and a reinforcement by sea will surely provide a finishing blow to it all. The Korean navy by this time had been reduced to a fraction of what it had been, with only 12 ships to spare against hundreds of the invader's. Fear is rife for treachery to breed, however, Lee's resolve is to the death so that he may save more people whose lives are at risk should the invasion succeed.
A large portion of the movie is immersed in battle scenes as it unfolds in the roaring straits. There is an urgency when bystanders desperately try to send signals from the shore and loss is felt through the cries from a wife whose husband had to sacrifice himself to stop an enemy boat. People's war is being fought here. Precise detail of the historic accuracy and depth the character are lacking but the movie compensates by focusing on Admiral's determination, which is close to being a death wish, as the motivator for his soldiers to confront the impossible task at hand.
He possibly can't die, though he meets an end similar to Nelson according to history, despite throwing himself in the thick of it all he survives one wave after another as it continues to wring out the tears from grown men as people bleed and pull on the ropes with bare hands to save his warship for the final wave.
There is no order in which chaos is served in war as neither are there boundaries that mark the swell of emotions on choppy waters but it is a fairly well balanced portrayal of nations by any means though it has nothing to do winning than it is do with that gut feeling about a man who stood for something. -
Whether you love it or hate it, you have to admit the movie was an amazing technical achievement. The staging and choreography of the naval battle scenes almost defy comprehension, the planning and execution was extraordinary. Though historical accuracy is put to the test here, the overriding theme of courage and rising above one's fear of death is at the core of the story. Admiral Yi Sun-Shin (Min-sik Choi) rallies his forces to take on an overwhelming adversary, using his wits and knowledge of the elements to take advantage of conditions that were overlooked by a superior Japanese naval force. There was only one scene that defied credibility, that when the dying man on the gunpowder vessel asked his fiance to signal for it to be destroyed. Amid the chaos, confusion and noise of battle, there's no way that the woman would have been able to understand his request from such a distant vantage point. It made for good drama, but wasn't credible at all. Otherwise, the film was gloriously presented, colorful, and exciting to watch.
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It may be difficult to restore the actual situation of the naval battle, so the plot focuses on the scene of the flagship. Unfortunately, the feeling is that North Korea has only one ship fighting. If we can expand our perspective properly, we should have a better plot.
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radioconductor20 July 2019That. Was a badass movie.... WOW... It was awesome.
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wheatley-2023010 January 2023An Admiral that takes 13 ships into battle against 300 and wins without losing a ship? Come on! There were so many shots of the Admiral's heroic visage that disbelief was easy. Plus for much of the battle it was his flagship fighting the enemy on its own.
So I looked it up. This battle did take place and that is what happened. Incredible. Admiral Yi fought 23 battles against the Japanese during the latter's attempts to conquer Korea (or Joseon as it then was) in the 1590's. Every one was fought against superior odds and he won all of them.
He was a naval warfare genius. Being British we think Nelson was unsurpassable, but it seems that Admiral Yi was his peer at the very least.
He did benefit from superior naval technology with Japanese ships carrying much less firepower and their favoured tactic being to take enemy ships by boarding them. So Admiral Yi kept his distance and used his cannons. Seems obvious I know but history is full of examples of leaders that throw away victories they might have won.
So this film is worth watching as an opportunity to learn something new. However, the mythologising of Admiral Yi was still a problem for me. One example - his battered ship is being sucked into a whirlpool but he finds the time to gaze intensely and meaningfully at his blood soaked crew and they to gaze steadily back from a deck that is hardly moving. The whirlpool must have taken a break.
But if I was Korean I would probably mythologise the genius admiral too. -
aminifatimaaa10 December 2018Roaring currents is one of the greatest historical battle films. The sets and costumes were amazing, the acting was phenomenal, and the directing was paced wonderfully. They certainly make Yi Sun-Shin a heroic figure, but not without some faults. He has a hard time with his men, so he instills fear over courage--all part of his tactics. Actor Min Sik-Choi helps make some of his harsh decisions very human. It was just beautifully crafted, it's incredibly intense and the effects are perfect.
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Mara-Jade-Skywalker-235 August 2019"Myeong-ryang" or "The Admiral" is a South Korean action film/historical epic, is a film about the military campaigns and incredible story of Admiral Yi Sun-sin. And this movie is a very underrated movie that shines light on the military genius, who during the Japanese Invasions of Korean, which lasted from 1592-1598, won every single battle without a casualty. And helped in preventing Korea from being taken by the Japanese. In my opinion, an underrated historical figure, this film shines light on the man's life, and does it quite well...
I was very invested in the movie and found it to be quite entertaining and well made. The production value is quite high, and the action scenes are incredible. The movie historically accurate, except for a few areas, which is something I will discuss in the next paragraph. The film also has wonderful visuals and cinematography, and the movie is something to be invested in.
Now, my flaws with the movie are few and far between, but still there. They lie in two things, I will get the minor flaw out of the way. The film depicts the battle with the naval battle with the Koreans only winning with the skin of their teeth. And loosing a lot of ships, when the battles were very one sided as I mentioned before, however I understand the reasoning for this creative liberty. I mean, if the film was the Koreans winning every battle with relative ease, you would loose investment. I mean, if they just won with ease, why care? But it's still a major inaccuracy, and the movie could have still worked without that change. My other criticism are the really cheesy scenes with the Korean people being inspired by the character's actions. They never really happened and it's obvious they didn't. Now, again, I see the reason, the people represent the country's spirit. But it's still very cheesy, and a little unneeded.
Regardless of the criticisms, I love this movie. The praises I mentioned before are all valid, and I think this is some of South Korea's best work in the filmmaking department. It's a great historical epic, and one of the best movies about history. And it's a movie that makes it's changes for a good reason, unlike movies like "Braveheart" that make so many changes 'till it's complete fiction. And it's a movie I highly recommend to anyone. -
taz100416 December 2014The fact check of the movie is completely off history. But it claims it is accurate. In actual battle, General Yi used the meticulous planning and strategy to defeat the enemy with minimal loss. The movie makes it seem like Yi wont it out of luck and courage.
Actual events that are recorded in the historical document aren't even used. All turtle ships were destroyed in the previous battle but the movie wanted to make it dramatic... cheasy drama at that.
Many historical records show that the Japanese fleet was 130 ships. Only one document recorded it as 300 out of mistake according to historians and the movie decided to go with that because 300 is more dramatic than 130 obviously.
And there is no swirling tornado in the water. It was just fast current. The things the movie got wrong are countless. What's worse is that these fake dramas didn't make the story any more interesting. Actual history is far more interesting and dramatic.
General Yi's actual battles and story is one of the most dramatic in world history. And this movie isn't it. This movie is a pure GARBAGE! -
jongbhak27 November 2014I am Korean and biased.
In Korea, where I was growing up, Admiral Yi Sunshin was regarded someone omnipresent in everybody's life. He was not regarded as some kind of deity or a great hero. But he was regarded more like everyday household spirit (as a human). He is special in that way. He is not god, or legendary hero, but he is a person who is taking part of the greatest history of the Southern coastline. It is because he left a war diary that is ruthlessly plain and accurate and almost too dry. He was respected not only by his valour, great tactic, or special war hero characters, but he is so painfully plainly human who is sick all the time, folliwing rules, working so hard, minding other people with respect, and being practical, and tortured by his own people and yet did not give up such basic principles of life. He was respected for his personal quality and the 100% winning battle results was natural against Japanese Amadas.
This movie does not depict much of his personal quality you can glimpse when you read books about him including his own diary. This movie fails to describe the people around that era and people right next to him in my opinion. Much has been altered in the modern Korean people's views. They had a totally different philosophy and view of the world then. The perception of China and Japan by Koreans were different from nowadays.
What this movie succeeded in my opinion is that it for the first time tried to describe the particular battle of Myungryang with some good cinematic foundation. It is a bit corny and not perfect but overall, the battle was well studied and the combat scope was well depicted. Admiral Yi's war will be very hard to describe in pictures as he had extremely well pre-mediated plan/strategy before he engaged any sea battle. He was a perfectionist. So, it is hard to pick out all the critical elements he laied out playing his war game. He was a very serious and sophisticated person showing in military combats. So, it is not about a great hero with great anger and energy rampaging in enemy's territory with powerful fists.
The movie is slow a bit and the plot is not perfect. With some errors incorporated, too. However, the battle scene itself, if you carefully watch, is interesting and the visuals are not too bad. Although, I would have preferred more CGI work.
He used his life philosophy and principles in the battle ahead of weaponry and tactics. He did not give up and even with only 12 ships against over 300 ships, he made his best war strategy(not giving up again) and we can see the strategy there.
It was perhaps the most amazing battle in human history and this movie manages to be close to show it. Not quite but almost. So, my score for the great effort to achieve almost impossible job. -
phoenician-187-96283826 May 2015(Synopsis & Intro) Asian countries have been at war for centuries, and Japan and Korea (or Joseon Dynasty back then) was not an exception. The movie covers the 1592-98 war period, when the Japanese, having unified the land during the Sengoku Period, invades the Korean Peninsula and nearly destroys it. (50%+ population killed)
Myungryang Battle (鳴梁海戰) is one of the battles during the period. The Japanese were close to winning the war, but the battle is a turning point, as the Japanese once again lose control of the sea, and supply routes are cut off.
The movie is quite long, and the first half can be a bit dull, explaining the background. While even grade school kids in Korea will know this by heart, this is probably to give explanation to the Westerners, most who probably will not be familiar with Korean history.
The war scenes later, however, will be satisfying. Though there is some level of exaggeration, the film does try to stay realistic. The naval action scenes are also quite something to see. I've seen some reviews trying to compare this to the film 300's sequels, but don't expect the B-grade stuff.
This film is said to be divided into 2 parts, and the sequel is currently being made, which will probably cover the Noryang Battle (露梁海戰), the last naval battle in the war.
Myungryang(鳴梁) is a strait in Southern Korea. The Chinese character myung(鳴) means the cry of a bird, named for the sound of the fierce waves in the area. It was a sea route avoided even by the locals, and the perfect place to set a deadly trap for foes.
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Admiral YI Sun-Shin is a heroic figure in Korea's history, and hundreds of films / TV shows have already been made. While the subject probably should get boring, every 3-5 years a new piece is made, and gains popularity. Koreans do not forget the blood that's been shed to protect this land.
KIM Han Min (director) previously made "The War of Arrows" also a period film showing action using bows, historically the Koreans' favorite weapon. The time period is after the Japanese War, when Koreans are invaded by the Manchurians.