Friday, April 6, 2018

Along with the gods


DIRECTOR: Kim Yong-hwa  LEAD CAST:  Ha Jung-woo, Cha Tae-hyun, Ju Ji-hoon & Kim Hyang-gi  SCREENWRITER: Kim Yong-hwa  PRODUCER:  Kim Yong-hwa & Won Dong-yeon  EDITOR: Hye-jin Kim, Zino Kim & Na-young Nam  MUSICAL DIRECTOR:  Bang Jun-seok   GENRE: Action/Sci-Fi/Adventure  CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Kim Byung-seo  DISTRIBUTOR: Lotte Entertainment  LOCATION: South Korea  RUNNING TIME: 139 minutes
Technical assessment: 3.5
Moral assessment: 4
CINEMA rating: V 13
MTRCB rating: PG
When firefighter Kim Ja-Hong (Cha Tae-hyun) dies in the line of duty, he is greeted by a trio of guardians and their boss reaper. They become his escort to the after life. Since he died by saving someone else’s life, he qualifies to the so-called paragons—and could possibly reincarnate  within 49 days should he be acquitted at the seven trials of seven different levels of hell. In the same way, the trio of guardians will be granted reincarnation too, so they would do all their best to guide Kim so he will be acquitted. Kim should not be found guilty of sins of betrayal, violence, indolence, etc. However, a certain angry spirit will come which would make it even harder for Kim to pass the seven trials.
Along with the Gods gives a different take on what happens to a soul in the afterlife. It combines Buddhism’s law on karma and reincarnation and the Christian belief in eternity and the concept of seven deadly sins. However it is put, the treatment is very much an existentialist view on life. The film is technically superior using GCF (computer graphics), green screens and with superior actors in the cast. The story is dramatically woven with bits of fantasy, adventure, and at some point, horror without losing its core of heart wrenching human drama.
Along with the Gods makes one reflect on the most significant virtues and values that human beings should strive for in life—kindness, forgiveness, heroism, generosity, compassion, love—as all these and more would make one accountable in the afterlife. The body dies but the soul lives on and whether one has been good or bad would determine the fate of the soul. Although the complexities of human weakness is shown in the film, still, the film challenges each one to rise above weakness—to sacrifice if need be. All good deeds and good intentions will not be left unnoticed. In the end, one’s heart will be judged as to how much love it was able to give while living on earth. The concept of sin may be too much for the very young audiences so CINEMA still recommends that children should be accompanied and properly guided in watching this film.