Tidal Wave (2009)

Best movie ever!

Not sure how, but this is easily one of the best movies all summer. Multiple levels of funny, never takes itself seriously, super colorful, and creative.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

There is a scene in the trailer where the dialogue is in English. Other parts of the trailer are in Korean. I thought, I do not mind watching with scenes in more than one language. The scene in the trailer IS the only one in English. The rest of the movie is in Korean. The trailer is misleading. I really did want to read for two hours.

If you expect a catastrophe movie with a lot of Hollywood action and many special effects in the key of "2012", stay away from this Korean flick. If you are looking for a slice of life and would like to take a look on different story lines and diversified characters and how they live before, during and shortly after the disaster, you must check this movie out. It focuses on philosophical, emotional and simply human topics such as forgiveness, responsibility, pride, egoism, friendship, love and sacrifice.The characters are introduced slowly and the movie might not be what one expects first but rather a portrait of Korean society with some dramatic touches as well as some humorous passages. This slow paced rhythm though helps to get connected to the characters and will keep you on the edges of your seat when the tidal wave finally hits the surprisingly modern and beautiful city of Busan in South Korea. The acting is great and convincing and the filming modern and accurate.Only the special effects are less convincing but not as bad as many critics would cite. I also regret that the movie didn't show that much of what happened to the different characters after the disaster. In fact, one could have easily made an entire television series with all the engaging side stories. It would have been better than any currently running American soap. The disaster itself is only a detail within the movie because this film is about something bigger than action, adventure or devastation. It shows us a slice of life in South Korea and makes us understand some parts of this interesting society and culture.

The film Haeundae is more than a disappointment. This was just a marketing heist that tries to cover up for a very bad movie. The crappy CGI, the shabby script (full of clichés) and retarded acting makes this the worst Korean movie in recent memory. The director of this film, J.K. Youn, has been notorious for literally copying American comedy hits of the past and 'translating' them into Korean for quick bucks movies. Of course I didn't expect any originality or authenticity from the director J.K. Youn, but this movie just scrapes the bottom of the barrel... I mean this insults my intelligence! As a fan of Asian cinema and Korean cinema I was actually angry after watching this movie. There are great Korean filmmakers such as Bong Joon Ho (The Host) and Park Chan Wook (Oldboy). But when I see a film like this I began to wonder what kind of people make this kind stuff. I read that the production cost for this movie was more than that of The Host. Haeundae is just a waste of resources (as well as your time if you care to watch this) for copycat filmmaker with no imagination and poor visual effects.Haeundae is not a disaster movie, it's major disaster itself!

When I first watched Titanic on the big screen I could only wait for the iceberg so that the film would end quickly. Bring on the iceberg!I said to myself. The iceberg arrived duly! But no! The Titanic refused to sink!With this film (Tidal Wave)I did want the tsunami to arrive quickly. The tsunami did arrive after the cheesy romantic start off and, mercifully, the film did end quickly On the plus side, the special effects were awesome! Most Westerners would think that the acting was woody, but then they have no concept of the inscrutable faces of their Eastern brethren!