This week saw Netflix premiere JUNG_E, the new film from Train to Busan director Yeon Sang-ho, and the film is already a hit on the streaming service. After being available on Netflix for just one day, the new movie has immediately jumped to the top spot on the Daily Top 10 on the service and is the #1 movie on Netflix in the United States (and in the world according to Flix Patrol). The sci-fi thriller marks the second collaboration between Yeon Sang-ho and Netflix following the successful first season of the hit TV series Hellbound.
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Starring Kang Soo-yeon, Kim Hyun-joo, and Ryu Kyung-soo, JUNG_E is described as follows by Netflix: “Earth has been devastated by drastic climate change, and humankind migrates to new shelters in outer space. The civil war that occurs there continues on for decades, and Yun Jung-yi (Kim Hyun-joo) becomes a legendary mercenary and military strategist with countless victories to her name. But one failed mission puts her in a vegetative state. Kronoid, a military A.I. development company, attempts to create the ultimate combat warrior by cloning her brain.”
“35 years later, Jung-yi’s daughter Yun Seo-hyun (Kang Soo-youn) participates in this effort as the head researcher of the JUNG_E project. When little progress is made despite numerous cloning and simulation attempts, Kronoid abandons the research to launch another project. Seo-hyun learns of their plans and resolves to save JUNG_E. Thus begins the A.I. combat warrior JUNG_E’s escape from the research lab…” Check out the trailer for the movie below!
Despite being the top title on Netflix, the critical response to Jung_E has been mixed so far. As of this writing the movie only has ten reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, and only six of them are positive, meaning it has a 60% rating on the review aggregator. Empire Magazine awarded the movie a 3 out of 5, writing that JUNG_E “delivers where it matters: propulsive action sequences, emotive drama and grand existential questions about the human connections that sustain us.” Movie Nation on the other hand gave the movie a 1.5 out of 4, writing that “There’s little human connection to any of it, making for a rare soulless misstep for action auteur Yeon Sang-ho.”
Take a look at the current Top 10 on Netflix below.
#10 – The Bad Guys
#9 – Mission Majnu
#8 – The Wedding Year
#7 – The Pale Blue Eye
#6 – TROLLS
#5 – SING 2
#4 – The Hatchet Wielding Hitchhiker
#3 – Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
#2 – Dog Gone
#1 – JUNG_E
