Seobok: Project Clone - Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

Seobok: Project Clone



Movie:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score:


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Movie
The idea of cloning has been around for decades and decades in science fiction. I still remember being a teenager when Dolly the sheep was cloned back in the 90s, and it’s been a huge staple of science fiction authors/filmmakers for the better part of 50 years. The idea of making a modified human with our OWN two hands instead of that of nature or God is intoxicating. Also the “what ifs?” of genetic modification and the resulting powers that could possibly be unlocked is another mind bender. We’ve seen stuff like this from X-Men has pretty much making it mainstream, and now Korea is in on the action. This time with a tragic tale of man playing god and the devastation we can create in the process.

The film sets up the plot in a fairly obtuse set scenes that hint at a government agency finding out about a top secret project cloning facility that has actually created SOMETHING. Also, we get introduced to Ki Heon (Gong Yoo), who seems to be a drug addict on the run from his secret agent prior life. Turns out, Ki Heon is dying of a brain tumor, and he’s offered a last ditch effort that could save his life. Act as security for a young “boy” named Seobok (Park Bo-Gum) who is human kinds first genetically cloned being. A being that can not die by any natural means and holds the secrets of humanity’s search for immortality in his DNA. In return they can offer a clinical trial using Seobok’s harvested cells to hopefully cure Ki Heon’s brain tumor.

However, things go sideways when the transport truck housing both Ki Heon and Seobok is part of a double cross by the same spy agency that recruited the dying agent, and the two are forced to go on the run. Now it’s a game of cat and mouse as the ex agent and the naive genetic clone have to figure out what makes themselves tick, and hopefully get out of this mess alive.

I actually didn’t really catch that this was going to be a drama from the trailer. Everything I had seen of the cover and the trailer had me thinking this was going to be just another Korean sci-fi/action flick. Instead what we got was a seriously heart felt dram that, while punctuated with action, was really delving deep into the classic sci-fi trope of “what makes something human?”. In fact, I got a heavy dose of Akira meets The Fugitive for most the film, culminating in what is almost a horroresque action sequence at the very end as the chickens come home to roost.

The movie is fascinating, a bit sluggish, but ultimately a rather entertaining sci-fi romp. It may not be able to hold up to Blade Runner or even Akira, but the Korean action/sci-fi flick actually does a solid job at eliciting an emotional connection between the dying special agent and the kid who doesn’t really know what he is. Some of the beats are taken from other movies, so you’ll recognize some of the twists, but overall it’s a pleasantly satisfying film for sure.




Rating:

Not Rated by the MPAA




Video:

The digitally shot film comes to Blu-ray with a stellar 2.39:1 AVC encode for us to enjoy. The film is given that typical blue/gray look that so many Asian films gravitate towards, but is filled with tons of richly saturated colors (such as Seobok’s red/blue/yellow outfit) and TONS of details. You can actually see the stubble on Ki Heon’s face and the slight creases and lines across Seobok’s young face. Deep dark blacks that showcase smokey environments bring out the typical Well Go USA banding, but it’s VERY minimal this time around. You can see it in harsh environments, but it doesn’t become obtrusive or overly noticeable either. Blacks are solid, with deep inky portions, and some that show some minor grain spikes. All in all, a great looking 1080p transfer.









Audio:

Like usual Well Go USA sports dual pairs of audio mixes, with there being an English and a Korean 5.1 DTS-HD MA lossless mixes, and a companion Dolby Digital 2.0 downmix in both languages as well. Listening to both back to back it’s pretty clear that sonically both tracks are very very similar, but the English dub just isn’t on the same emotional wave length as the Korean track (big surprise as I AM slightly biased towards original language mixes if you’ve read any of my previous foreign language flicks). It’s a boisterous and really impactful track, with tons of action sequences to fill out the surrounds and give us that deep and heavy bass we so crave. However, the film’s long dramatic scenes tend to be more reserved, even though there is still pinpoint precision with dialog and the ambient surround usage (such as when Seobock pulls in all of the rocks at the beach. You can hear them scrape on the ground behind and beside you, as well as shifting directionally up into the forefront of the room as well).










Extras:

• Theatrical Trailers
• Well Go USA Previews
• Making of
• Characters

Final Score: ​

Seobok is a classic style sci-fi actioneer that asks some age old questions of what it means to be exist, to be human, and to BE something. Sure, some of the beats are borrowed from older flicks, but the end result is a highly satisfying dramatic flick with some really neat action scenes. The Well Go USA Blu-ray looks and sounds great, though it does come with the typical anemic extras that we’ve gotten used to. Worth checking out is my final recommendation.


Technical Specifications:

Starring: Park Bo-Gum, Gong Yoo, Jang Young-Nam, Woo-jin Jo
Directed by: Lee Yong-ju
Written by: Lee Yong-ju
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 AVC
Audio: English: DTS-HD MA 5.1, Korean DTS-HD MA 5.1, English, Korean DD 2.0
Subtitles: English
Studio: Well Go USA
Rated: NR
Runtime: 121 minutes
Blu-Ray Release Date: February 15th, 2022

Recommendation: Check It Out

 

[tripplej]

Thanks for the review. Never heard of this movie.. Will check it out.