For once the human story is more interesting than the giant monsters, which were all cribbed from an entirely different film. A paleontologist, grieving the loss of his wife and the mockery of his peers, struggles to raise his young daughter while seeking evidence for his controversial theories on a remote island. A pretty Lois Lane type impersonates the housekeeper he sent for in order to get the lowdown on the scientist's research but finds herself growing fond of the little girl. This takes up the first half of the movie and is sweet in a cheesy Hallmark special kind of way.
Things fall apart when the monsters the paleontologist has been warning anyone who listen about finally show up. Seven or eight of them rise from the sea to punish mankind for global warming, or something. But they never interact with each other or with the three main characters. The scientist's remote, rural hideaway is suddenly transformed into a heavily populated urban coast filled with industrial infrastructure and skyscrapers for the critters to destroy -- when they aren't shrugging off endless squadrons of improbably retro-futuristic aircraft. It just doesn't work despite the character reaction shots spliced in among scenes of destruction. I won't criticize special effects in a Korean giant monster movie but better acting on the part of the protagonists would have helped make the blending more convincing.
Things fall apart when the monsters the paleontologist has been warning anyone who listen about finally show up. Seven or eight of them rise from the sea to punish mankind for global warming, or something. But they never interact with each other or with the three main characters. The scientist's remote, rural hideaway is suddenly transformed into a heavily populated urban coast filled with industrial infrastructure and skyscrapers for the critters to destroy -- when they aren't shrugging off endless squadrons of improbably retro-futuristic aircraft. It just doesn't work despite the character reaction shots spliced in among scenes of destruction. I won't criticize special effects in a Korean giant monster movie but better acting on the part of the protagonists would have helped make the blending more convincing.