The Front Line (2011)

A drama centered on the Korean War's final battle that will determine the border between north and south.

Director:

Hun Jang

Writer:

Sang-yeon Park

Stars:

Ha-kyun Shin, Soo Go, Seung-su Ryu

14 wins & 22 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ha-kyun Shin	...	Kang Eun-pyo
Soo Go	...	Kim Soo-hyeok
Seung-su Ryu	...	Oh Gi-yeong
Chang-Seok Ko	...	Yang Hyo-sam
Je-hoon Lee	...	Shin Il-Young
Jin-Woong Cho	...	(as Jin-woong Jo)
In-gi Jeong	...	Lee Sang-eok
Seung-ryong Ryu	...	Hyeon Jeong-yoon (as Ryu Seung-Ryong)
Ok-bin Kim	...	Cha Tae-kyeong
Yeong-seo Park	...	Hwang Seon-cheol
Seo Joon-Yeol	...	Tobacco soldier
Seung-min Woo
Min Choi	...	Antiaircraft Army officer
Jo Min-ho	...	2P radio soldier
Rok-kyeong Kim	...	Supplemental soldier

Storyline

Towards the end of the Korean War an uneasy ceasefire is ordered, but out on the Eastern front line of the Aerok Hills fierce fighting continues. A race to capture a strategic point to determine a new border between the two Koreas is the ultimate prize. A bullet is then found in the body of dead company commander of the South Korean army. The bullet that killed the company commander belongs to the South Korean army. Lieutenant of the Defense Security Command Kang Eun-Pyo is ordered to go out into the Eastern front line and investigate the murder. When Kang Eun-Pyo arrives in the Aerok Hills he is surprised to find his old friend Kim Soo-Hyeok commanding troops in the Aerok Hills. Kang Eun-Pyo believed Kim Soo-Hyeok was dead. In their younger years, Kim Soo-Hyeok was a meek student, but he eventually became the leader of Aerok company as a lieutenant. The situation in the Aerok company raises many flags in the eyes of Kang Eun-Pyo. Soldiers wear North Korean uniforms inside due to the ...

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Plot Keywords:

hill | border | korean war | battle | fierce fighting | 

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Taglines:

Last battle of the Korean War

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Genres:

Action | Drama | History | War

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Japan] Official site [United States]

Country:

South Korea

Language:

Korean English

Release Date:

20 July 2011 (South Korea)

Also Known As:

The Front Line

Filming Locations:

South Korea

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$7,188, 20 January 2012, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$11,018, 20 January 2012

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$20,629,645, 31 December 2011

Company Credits

Production Co:

TPS Company,A-Po Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

133 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

South Korea's official submission to the Best Foreign Language Film category of the 84th Academy Awards 2012.

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Goofs

During the first on-screen assault on Aerok hill, Lt. Soo-hyeok apparently uses his unscoped M1D Garand sniper rifle to launch a grenade at an enemy position. However, previously, and in all other instances, his M1D is fitted not with the grenade launcher attachment but a flash suppressor.

User Reviews

Typically gutsy Korean war outing

THE FRONT LINE is a typical addition to the recent wave of South Korean war movies that strive to explore new avenues on a very famous theatre of war. The last two I saw were WELCOME TO DONGMAKGOL and 71 INTO THE FIRE; the former was a politically intriguing exploration of the nature of conflict itself, while the latter was a flag-waving crowd-pleaser.

THE FRONT LINE falls somewhere between the two, refusing to demonise opponents while at the same time providing plenty of gritty war action. The earth-flying battle sequences are by far the highlight of this film as the screen is transformed into a nightmarish and barren landscape of blown-up hillsides, dingy trenches and muddy holes in the ground. This is real warfare, post-SAVING PRIVATE RYAN, throwing you into the thick of realistic action and making you feel like you're fighting at the side of the protagonists.

It's a pleasure to report that the non-battle storyline is every bit as watchable as the scenes taking place on the battlefield. As in the earlier BROTHERHOOD, much of the plot revolves around the developing relationship between two characters whom the war transforms in different ways: one becomes battle-weary and resigned, the other slightly unhinged and with a real killer instinct. It's a poignant, carefully-drawn relationship and one that sustains the running time admirably. Okay, so some of the sub-plots openly copy those of earlier movies (the whole sniper thing in particular) but that doesn't detract from what is a very good recent war movie.