Mark Reviews Movies: PROJECT WOLF HUNTING

Project Wolf Hunting, Well Go USA

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Review by Mark Dujsik | October 6, 2022

The blood flows, as throats are stabbed and limbs are ripped and heads are smashed, in Project Wolf Hunting. Writer/director Kim Hong-sun's movie seems to exist primarily for such brutal sights, so in a way, it does exactly what it sets out to do. That isn't much, obviously.

There is at least some cleverness to the premise, as well as some surprise in how none of that initial setup really matters. The plot begins with the idea of a ship filled with violent and extremely dangerous criminals, being extradited from the Philippines to South Korea.

These are cold-blooded murderers and the like. While the movie doesn't reveal anything a protagonist until the third act, of key importance seems to be two criminals: the heavily tattooed Jong-doo (Seo In-guk), who's particularly ruthless in his methods of killing, and Do-il (Jang Dong-yoon), whose kind face and soft manner apparently belie a vicious past. One shouldn't get too used to at least one of them—in addition to almost every other character, regardless of how much or little time the story spends with them.

From the story's explosive start, Kim's screenplay makes it clear that we shouldn't become comfortable with any of the characters or story trappings here. Of course, the semi-predictable happens, in that the prisoners escape and lead a bloody mutiny against their captors. A pair of surviving detectives, played by Park Ho-san and Jung So-min, lead the effort to put a stop to the attack.

All of this really amounts to scene after scene of chaotic carnage, in which Kim indulges in grisly violence and veritable fountains of blood, pouring out and spraying all over the place. The initial shock of some of it is undeniable, but as with anything done beyond moderation, the effect of that violence lessens with every slashed throat or eruption of bullet wounds.

Without any character to connect with (not only because most of them are awful, but also because Kim barely gives them any development beyond their jobs) or idea beyond the violence to carry this story, it's just an assault of gruesome imagery. The big mid-way twist involves a preternatural foe for everyone to fight (or, mostly, run away from), and while this monstrosity certainly changes the course of the story, it's mostly a reason to offer up a more hands-on form of violence. This guy, after all, can rip out a throat without the aid of a knife and cave in a chest without the use of a mallet.

The central issue with Project Wolf Hunting, perhaps, is that, while Kim's screenplay shifts modes—from action to horror—and the focus of the plot, his filmmaking remains locked in the same tone, rhythm, and aesthetic. The former changes might prevent the movie from seeming redundant, but the end result is, nonetheless, wholly repetitive.

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