'Reawaken Man: The Red' defies death, gravity in bold action gamble

"Reawaken Man: The Red" is action through and through.

Koo Kyo-hwan, an actor who has moved fluidly across genres, takes on a new challenge by diving headfirst into action in "Reawaken Man: The Red." At a time when Korean action films have increasingly emphasized realistic combat and visceral impact, the film makes a bold choice by building its spectacle around a decidedly unrealistic premise: resurrection.

Based on the popular webtoon of the same name, "Reawaken Man: The Red" follows Seok-hwan, played by Koo, an unemployed job seeker who discovers that he comes back to life 72 hours after dying. That extraordinary ability soon makes him the target of a relentless pursuit.

The story builds on the idea that an ordinary man becomes increasingly powerful each time he dies and returns. At a relatively brisk 101 minutes, the film compresses its narrative into a fast-paced package that rarely slows down.

Action is what gives the story much of that momentum.

Because Seok-hwan's unusual ability is revealed through a cycle of death and resurrection, how the filmmakers translate that premise into action is crucial. Conventional action movies often create tension by having their heroes evade danger or fight their way out of seemingly impossible situations. "Reawaken Man: The Red" takes the opposite approach: Its protagonist can die, return and grow stronger in the process.

The result is increasingly surreal action as the film progresses. Each resurrection gives Seok-hwan greater power, allowing the movie to escalate into more technically demanding and physically impossible set pieces in its latter half.

To portray Seok-hwan as he develops powers that increasingly defy the laws of physics, Koo took on wire-action sequences. For some of the most demanding scenes, the filmmakers also used a digital character created from a 3D scan of the actor.

By combining live-action footage with the digital double, the film seeks to give its fights greater speed and force. Detailed visual effects work helps blend the two so that the transition between the physical actor and his digital counterpart feels seamless.

The approach runs somewhat counter to a recent trend in action cinema, where filmmakers have often emphasized physical movement and the palpable impact of punches, kicks and falls to heighten immersion.

"Reawaken Man: The Red," by contrast, places an impossible phenomenon — returning from the dead — at the center of its story and makes it a fundamental part of its action. Rather than maximizing realism, the film embraces the freedom of movement and expanding possibilities afforded by its superhuman premise.

That is also one of the movie's distinguishing strengths.

By aggressively incorporating abilities that could never exist in reality, "Reawaken Man: The Red" creates action spectacle that sets it apart from more grounded films in the genre. Koo's characteristically offbeat, playful screen presence also mixes with the fantastical premise, giving the movie a personality distinct from conventional action fare.

Yet the same quality could prove to be its weakness.

With audiences increasingly accustomed to action grounded in physical realism, superpower-driven combat risks feeling too detached from reality. Much therefore depends on whether the film can make its impossible abilities convincing within its own fictional world and whether its action gives viewers enough reason to accept the premise.

Whether audiences will embrace that gamble remains to be seen.

"Reawaken Man: The Red" opened at No. 4 at the box office on its first day, a somewhat underwhelming start that puts greater importance on positive word of mouth in the days ahead.

Rather than treating its fantastical premise as merely a narrative gimmick, the film attempts to turn resurrection into a different grammar for action cinema. The question now is whether the distinctive identity created by that gamble will resonate with moviegoers strongly enough to give "Reawaken Man: The Red" a chance to bounce back.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, was translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.