“Project Wolf Hunting” follows dangerous criminals on a cargo ship transported from the Philippines to South Korea as they unleash a sinister force after an escape attempt leads to a riot.
When a cargo ship transporting prisoners turns into a bloody battleground for survival, writer/director Kim Hong-sun’s outspoken blending of “Resident Evil” and “Con Air” is very apparent. In “Project Wolf Hunting,” forty-seven of Korea’s most dangerous criminals are captured in the Philippines and put on a massive ship to be extradited to their homeland. Banking off “Con Air” s prison break formula, “Project Hunting Wolf” goes harder than probably anything this year. Throughout its two-hour runtime, there are many kills per minute – so many – that if you blink, you might miss one. Due to the gore, I heard from some colleagues that many people walked out of its TIFF Midnight premiere. So if that’s not your thing, you probably will not want to see this.
Due to way too many characters to keep track of, in this review, I will avoid using the names of the guards and prisoners for the most part. The two standouts are Gun-bae, the ass-kicking chivalrous youth, and Jong-du, a gangster who, during a fight, eats an opponent’s ear and then defiles his corpse while smoking a cigarette. Another memorable character is a female security officer that is easy to root for as she and other guards take on the endless roster of villains.
After a lot of introductions, about thirty minutes in, the prisoners begin escaping. The chaotic fights unleash geysers of blood which recall the splashing gallons in “Evil Dead 2” and when the “Kill Bill” story moves to Japan. As the bodies pile, we learn that some of these passengers are super-soldiers. One mysterious passenger is a massive deformed man being kept sedated below deck. Of course, as the action progresses, he begins to wake up.
Hong-sun also utilizes a yellow filter over the Philippines and aboard the ship. This is quite similar to American filmmakers who perplexingly use the same look in Mexico, i.e., “Breaking Bad,” “Traffic,” and many others.
Now that spooky season is upon us, fans looking for action horror need to look no further. For most, Hong-sun directs the frenetic combat sequences containing fistfights, gunfights, and knife duels with plenty of shocking moments. I would also say there are some heavy “Universal Soldier” vibes. The few super-soldiers onboard, some of which can rip an arm off a hapless foe before beating him with it, bring another layer of intensity to the already rollicking set pieces. Also, the film throws in some commentary on Japanese imperialism during WWII – which was obvious – but interesting.
“Project Wolf Hunting’s” ending teases a possible sequel. There’s a lot to potentially build on – with its fun plot and surviving characters – it will be interesting to see where the story goes next. For once, I’m looking forward to more sequels.
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