[Movie] Revolution troops against dictator in universe

Director Zack Snyder, who led phenomenal action scenes in “300,” “Man of Steel,” and “Justice League,” is ready to release “Rebel Moon - Part One: A Child of Fire,” the story of warriors in the universe, on Netflix this Friday.

The Motherworld is brought under the control of Balisarius, who seizes power. As the new ruler threatens a peaceful moon named Veldt, Kora, a foreign citizen who immigrated two years ago, stands up against the invader. As a former Imperium member, she rallies warriors to fight against Balisarius’ Motherland.

The Part 1 film depicts Kora recruiting and gathering warriors from all over the galaxy, and it features breathtaking action scenes against a backdrop of a vast and barren universe. A series of dynamic scenes of powerful action unfolds as Kora reveals her power hidden deep inside.

The band of warriors also captures attention. The film describes Titus, a former general of the Imperium; Darrian Bloodaxe, who leads warriors; and Tarak who can bond with animals of nature. Among them is Nemesis – portrayed by South Korean actress Bae Doo-na – wearing a gat (Korean traditional hat) and wielding swords in her hands. Appearing as a sword master fighting against a giant spider monster, she comes across as the Angel of Death because of her taciturn and poker-faced impression.

Coming up with this storyline when he was in college, Snyder started detailing a scenario 20 years ago. For the sake of world-building, he drew 4,000 drawings on his own, which turned into movie scenes thanks to massive production and visual effects. The production crew built a village on a site of 22,000 square meters and cooperated with linguists to create three new languages.

The director said that he loves stories where good guys, whom the villains look down on at first, end up doing more than expected, adding that this topic has always been part of his films.


beborn@donga.com