Project Wolf Hunting (2023).
My…god.
Okay, Project Wolf Hunting starts out akin to a water-locked Con Air. The Philippines and South Korea have worked out a deal to extradite criminals and there are a bunch of them that are heading back home for their proper punishment. A cargo ship is essentially emptied out in order to transport the goons, locked two to a room in shackles. There are plenty of guards on board, a police captain, two doctors, and a handful of crew members. As the ship leaves port, a special unit of police take over the boat’s communication center in order to monitor the ship. All seems secure.
Once the boat is out to sea, we realize a few things. First, these criminals really are the worst of the worst, and we know it’s only a matter of time before they get loose. It’s the name of the game. Second, there are some people on the boat who aren’t who they say they are. Finally, as bad as the criminals are, there’s something on the boat that’s even worse than them.
As the criminals are freed, we get our first taste of bloodshed in this film, and let me tell you - it is explosive violence. We see a guy get hit in the head and blood just starts spraying, and the blood really doesn’t stop until the credits roll. I’m talking cartoonish levels of violence to the point that by the end of the film, you’re kind of desensitized. This could be the bloodiest film I’ve ever seen. Limbs are ripped off, jaws dislocated, I lost count of how many throats were slashed and geysers of blood created. A man gets his head caved in with his own arm. Another has his head slowly crushed under the weight of a foot. It’s a ballet of gore. Look, I think by this time in my review, you’re either in or you’re out based on that description alone.
There are some twists and turns throughout the film as certain parties are revealed to have less than noble intentions, but the whole boat ride is such a spectacle that I found myself unattached to the characters. Good thing, too, because there aren’t many survivors when the film is over. The people who I thought would be the main good guy and bad guy were dead before the halfway point, so I guess if nothing else, the film will keep you on your toes. On the flip side, pretty much passenger, chivalrous or evil, is a one-dimensional object. There are no relationships formed, no backstories (with the exception of one guy, who happens to be the least charismatic person on the boat), and little to no personality, save for one terrible prisoner who’s only personality trait is “let me see how bad I can appear”. If you’re looking for rich, multi-layered characters, this isn’t that film.
Side note: the police in this film are so inept that at times, I was wondering if the person who set the boat ride up put the worst officers on the ship on purpose so that mayhem would eventually break loose. These guys are quite possibly the worst law enforcement officers I’ve ever seen in a film. There’s a scene where they’re in the boiler room with a high-point tactical advantage on the criminals, and instead of using it, they walk down the stairs and then get into hand-to-hand combat instead of using their guns because…movie?
In closing, this is an ultra-violent siege-film-turned-monster-movie where things continuously go from bad to worse. It’s so bloody that it almost gave me gore fatigue, but I can’t help but admire the commitment by writer/director Kim Hong-sun because he never lets off the gas. The monster, Alpha, is memorable - he’s got a great look, but unfortunately he’s also got very few rules, turning less powerful depending on who he’s fighting and he takes his time with those characters who have had more screen time. You know the trope - “oh, this is a main character, so I’ll throw him over a table or two before I try to kill him as opposed to the NPC I just ripped the throat from.” This is an easy recommendation for those people who love gory cinema, and it would be a blast to see with a crowd.
