Disaster movie released at perfect time

A still from “Pandora” / Courtesy of NEW

By Park Jin-hai

When Korea was hit by the strongest earthquake in recent history, the shock shook the entire nation and still remains in people’s minds. Disaster blockbuster “Pandora” brings the specter of the earthquake and aftermath of the collapse of a nuclear reactor.

Directed by Park Jung-woo, whose latest sci-fi horror thriller “Deranged” attracted 4.5 million moviegoers, “Pandora” is a large scale disaster film, which was made with a budget of 15 billion won ($13.2 million) over four years.

The movie, starring veteran actors Kim Myung-min, Jung Jin-young and Kim Nam-gil, features a disaster at a nuclear power plant following a massive earthquake. It shows the government’s ensuing response and the struggle of families to survive.

Kim Nam-gil plays a nuclear power plant worker who strives hard to save his family, while Kim Myung-min portrays Korea’s president and Jung plays the chief of operations at the plant.

“After experiencing that the fictional situation in the movie could happen in the real world, Pandora couldn’t be coming at a better time,” said Jung at a press conference in a theater in southern Seoul, Wednesday.

Director Park agrees. “It is a shock for me that the situation we portrayed in the film bears much similarity to what we are witnessing now in Korean society. It is a scenario that I first started to write four years ago,” he said.

The film took a whole year to complete its screenplay and another year for shooting. Until now, the finishing touches on computer generated imagery, which take up nearly 60 percent of the film, are underway.

Park said that since he took up the subject of a nuclear disaster, which could be politically sensitive, he studied the subject to make the film more realistic. “I’ve visited a now defunct nuclear reactor in the Philippines and made a huge set, a life-size replica of nuclear reactor facilities based on our studies.”

Actor Kim Nam-gil said “Pandora” is not just a disaster movie. “The subject of the film is a nuclear disaster, but it also shows how that develops into a man-made catastrophe due to the selfishness of people who have power and money,” said the actor.

“Pandora” is not a movie to plant horror and frustration but it is rather about hope, the director said.

“If the movie doesn’t suggest a solution and an emergency exit, the movie will be one just made to scare audiences. But, I think that we are not late to think about the issue (through the movie). When a nuclear disaster actually happens, it is nearly impossible to return to the state we were before, so we must act now to prevent it,” Park said, explaining the message he wanted to deliver. “The movie is not to instigate the public but to raise alarm and pay attention to the issue.”

The movie will hit the local theaters in December.