Concrete Utopia is a thrilling dystopian drama that observes the complexities of class warfare and those who aim to manipulate it.
8/10
South Korea is a country whose cinema has been steadily delivering some of the best films of the last couple of years. Who can forget the iconic moment hearing Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite announced as the winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture at the 92nd Academy Awards? Last year we saw the release of Park Chan-wook’s Decision to Leave which made my best of 2023 list. As always I make it a mission to watch as many submissions for the Best International Feature Film category at next year’s Oscars Ceremony. Well, that’s where Concrete Utopia stumbled upon my radar and instantly its premise reeled my curiosity in. The film is a well crafted dystopian drama that examines the relationship between social classes as they are put against each other after a devastating earthquake destroys their city.
Concrete Utopia is directed by Tae-hwa Eom (Vanishing Time: A Boy Who Returned) and written by Tae-hwa and Lee Shin-ji. The film stars Park Seo-joon (Parasite), Lee Byung-hun (Joint Security Area, I Saw the Devil, Squid Game), Park Bo-young (The Silenced), Kim Sun-young (Broker), and Park Ji-hu (House of Hummingbird). The film is being distributed worldwide by Lotte Entertainment and is currently undergoing a theatrical release in the United States. The film made its North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival and made its premiere in the US at the Chicago International Film Festival.
I will admit that Concrete Utopia starts off slow and with its 130 minute runtime it feels a lot longer than it should. Yet, I found myself completely engaged in the film as we navigate this dystopia our characters are bound to. We primarily follow Min-sung (Park Seo-joon) and Myung-hwa (Park Bo-young), a couple who live in an apartment complex where after a devastating earthquake is the hotspot for shelter. When the people of the complex select Yeong-tak (Lee Byung-hun) to be their delegate they begin to keep “outsiders” out of the complex. Yeong-tak is not the person he seems at first and thus begins this journey of manipulation, classism, and loyalty in the midst of a harsh winter claiming innocent lives without anywhere to sleep or eat.
The cast and crew of Concrete Utopia are the strongest aspects of the film. The film’s visual effects are not perfect but are polished enough to create the necessary atmosphere of this dystopia. Tae-hwa Eom and Lee Shin-ji’s writing is so cleverly crafted with some intense scenes. I couldn’t help but feel that what holds this film from being great is its pacing and if the film was edited down a bit there would be a great film in here. That’s not to say that what we have isn’t good. I thought that the second half of the film is riveting and takes you through so many twists and turns that you’re anxiously awaiting the conclusion of Concrete Utopia. The film’s ending leaves you with a look into what the other side of this conflict thinks of those in the complex. It’s a reminder that we’re not different at all. We are fed information about others but it is up to us to help each other. We are humans after all and we need each other to survive. Though I am not completely in love with this film, I still recommend you all watch it at your local cinema if it’s playing. I hope to see this get some love in the category at next year’s Oscars or at least make the shortlist.
The Nerd Corps 