CONCRETE UTOPIA is an apocalyptic disaster movie with quite the unique take. Based on the second part of the webtoon “Joyful Outcast” by Kim Sum-nik, Concrete Utopia features a star-studded cast with Park Seo-joon, Lee Byung-hun, and Park Bo-young. Director Um Tae-hwa brilliantly mixes comedic and dramatic moments in the two hour movie to excellent results.
For those who are interested to take a deeper look on the film, the South Korean apocalyptic disaster will appear on Theatres starting on September 20.

WARNING: -MAJOR Spoilers Ahead-
High-Rise Living
Park Bo-young plays Kim Young-tak, an unassuming man who becomes the leader of the group of survivors who live in the last standing apartment in Seoul after a major earthquake ravages much of South Korea. Park starts off as a heroic figure after stopping a fire by himself for the community but his dark past which is brilliantly breadcrumbed throughout the movie is a constant focal point. His good intentions slowly evolve into greedy survival.
Joining him are Park Seo-jun and Park Bo-young who play a young married couple with a much more hopeful outlook in life. Park Seo-jun’s Min-seong is a public servant who tries his best to look out for himself and his wife.
Meanwhile, Park Bo-young plays Myeong-hwa, a nurse who honestly just tries to help out everyone and sees the general good in people. A rift slowly grows between the two as Min-seong questions his humanity in providing for his wife. The humanity of the survivors and the cost of a human life is epitomized by the young couple as they try to survive in this apocalypse.
Even the supporting cast of Kim-sun young who plays a major rep of the citizens also provides a solid layer in creating the conflict of the movie. Park Ji-hu (who is known for her starring role in All Of Us Are Dead) plays Hye-won, a high school student survivor, who recognizes that Kim Young-tak is not who he claims to be. Their roles may be minor but they drive the story forward making it truly enjoyable.

Apocalyptic Euphoria
There is a lot of fascinating symbolism throughout the movie making it actually worth a second watch. First off, while a little on the nose, is that there really can’t be a Utopia in living unless everyone is equal. The whole system the apartment lives by is their contribution to the community directly affects the amount of supplies that they will receive.
As Min-seong belongs to the group that scavenges and acts as guards, he gets a healthy amount of food and water. While older people who cannot contribute as much barely get any supplies. There is no Utopia in Concrete Utopia but there is euphoria in ignorance.
Kim Young-tak holds a strong stance against non-residents who try to live within their walls. He constantly calls them cockroaches and even goes through the extremes in weeding them out. He violently kicks them out and even blacklists residents who help the cockroaches.
Kim Young-tak can take a beating and even survives a homemade explosive hurled at him in the end which he eventually succumbs to. I love how Kim young-tak’s knack for survival and resilience can be attributed to a cockroach. He too is actually a cockroach because he is not technically a homeowner nor resident of the apartment complex.
Actions having consequences are another core part of Concrete Utopia. Korea is one of the countries that adapted to early Buddhism and the concept of Karma has stuck with them since. Min-seong had to get his hands dirty throughout the movie for his survival while his wife, Myeong-hwa sticks to her kindness throughout.
She even ended up smuggling food to other refugees in the apartment. This puts her on Kim Young-tak’s radar but she never relented. In the end, Min-seong eventually died under the gaze of a glass painting of Jesus in a church. Religion was not a core element but it was something very much involved in the core storytelling of Concrete Utopia.
Myeong-hwa was then adopted by a new group of survivors. They found their home around a fallen apartment but it was already looking like it was superior to their old home, an apartment that survived the earthquake and still stood. It was a beautiful final image to a movie that was a joy to watch.
Korean cinema continues to innovate and Concrete Utopia is a solid testament to that. If you love hallyu or apocalyptic movies with a heart then this movie should definitely be on your watch list!
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