Reviewed by GREG KING
Director: Ryu Seung-Wan
Stars: Kim Yoon-seok, Heo Joon-he, Jo In-Sung, Kim So-jin, Koo Kyo-hwan, Jung Man-sik, Kim Jae-hwa, Park Kyung-hye.
This fast paced action film from Korea is set in war torn Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia, over the 1990/91 Christmas/New Year period.
South Korea and North Korea are anxious to join the UN, and are involved in delicate negotiations. They need to seek support and approval from African nations that are members. Both countries send diplomatic representatives to Somalia to make overtures to President Barre to aid their cause. While North Korea was willing to join the UN as one country the South Korean government would prefer to remain separate. South Korean ambassador Han Sin-seong (Kim Yoon-seok) arrives with plenty of “inducements”, but he is robbed by pirates on the journey from the airport. Meanwhile North Korean ambassador Rim Yang-su (Heo Joon-ha) and his team arrive to engage in negotiations.
But then Somalia erupts into a bloody civil war as rebels attack Mogadishu in an effort to overthrow the corrupt and repressive regime of President Barre. The military attempt to squash the uprising with force, and blood runs in the streets. The two diplomatic teams seek refuge in their respective embassies. But communications are cut off and they are unable to call for outside assistance. When rebel troops attack the North Korean embassy, their diplomats are reluctantly forced to turn to the South Korean mission for refuge and assistance. They are forced to temporarily put aside their political differences and philosophies as they mount desperate efforts to contact friendly embassies within the city to arrange transportation out of the besieged city.
Director Ryu Seung-wan (Crying Fist, etc), is a veteran of fast paced action films and here he effectively ratchets up the tension. Escape From Mogadishu is based on true events and is based on the book written by South Korea’s ambassador to Somalia at the time. It is set against the backdrop of the chaos, confusion and violence that shaped the city of Mogadishu during these turbulent days. His direction is slick and propulsive, and the action scenes are effectively staged, aided by the superb kinetic editing of Lee Gang-hui. The film vividly depicts the chaos, confusion and horrors of war, and we are given a hellish vision of the streets of Mogadishu littered with burnt out cars, dead bodies and the bombed ruins of buildings. The final nerve wracking and desperate race through the war torn city to reach Mogadishu airport is tense and a highlight of the film.
This is a lavish big budget film and the money is all up there on the screen. The film was actually shot on locations in Morocco which effectively doubles for the war torn streets of Mogadishu. The production design team have done a superb job of recreating the rubble strewn streets and capturing the look of the city of the early 90s. Kim Bo-mook’s production design recreates the claustrophobic interiors for the various embassies. Cinematographer Choi Young-hwan, who has regularly worked with Ryu, gives the material an almost documentary like sense of immediacy and realism. However, the film lacks the relentless intensity and frenetic energy of Ridley Scott’s Black Hawk Down, which was similarly set against the backdrop of the bloody civil war in Somalia, but it gives the drama a more human face. The main characters are well defined, and the ensemble cast bring them to life with solid performances. Early sections of the film contain some humour which lightens the mood.
Escape From Mogadishu has become one of the highest grossing films from Korea.
★★★☆
