I've always been a fan of science fiction. The theme of cyborgs especially captures my attention, alongside the arguments for and against their incorporation into society, coupled with the philosophical discussion on whether they can potentially acquire human feelings. Natural City, with its beautiful landscape, detailed effects and impressive vision grabbed my attention, however, the aforementioned ideas above appear fleetingly in a film where they are essentially paramount.
R (Ji-tae Yu) is a member of the police force of 2080; a team of elite troopers, who keep the fragile peace in a post-apocalyptic society, where humans and cyborgs live awkwardly beside each other. Once a revered officer, R has been forced to commit illegalities in order to keep his beautiful cyborg girlfriend, Ria (Rin Seo) alive, pitifully fighting her short life span, that will inevitably consume her. His actions have turned him against his best friend, and fellow officer, Noma (Chang Yun), who tries desperately to keep R out of trouble.
When R is told by the brilliant, but deranged Cyborg specialist, Dr Zero (Jung Eun-Pyo), that Cyon (Jae-un Lee), a beautiful, young working girl, has all the ingredients he needs to keep Ria indefinitely alive, R will stop at nothing to find her. Unfortunately, rogue combat cyborg Cypher (Doo-hong Jung) also requires Cyon to increase his life expectancy, culminating in a violent battle for preservation.
As a lead character, R is difficult to sympathize with. Often aggressive and bitter, the only times he is shown to be compassionate, is in the company of Ria, whose screen time is minimal in contrast with the other characters, despite the pivotal part she plays. Characterization in general is sparse across the narrative, with little back-story, most characters having a very narrow agenda. Ria on the other hand, says several key phrases over the course of the feature that have considerable impact, however, their importance is undermined by the focus on the action-oriented story-line.
Moments of beautiful tenderness, accentuated by the touching musical score, are equally short-lived, though are more memorable than the fight scenes. These are considerably violent, containing a combination of gun battles and martial arts, and though occasionally impressive, these are also handled by using slow motion and quick shots, that do not always result in appealingly fluid moments.
Though Natural City is a film thematically focused around relationships, I couldn't help but notice the distance between the characters, even in scenes when they were barely an inch from each other. Feelings of hopelessness, and the debate on mortality gnaw at you from every angle, until even the sweetest parts of the film seem so utterly depressing. Perhaps I'm a romantic, however, I would have liked a deeper, more passionate focus on R and Ria, which offered a unique perspective to the audience, rather than the clichéd plot concerning killer cyborgs.
R (Ji-tae Yu) is a member of the police force of 2080; a team of elite troopers, who keep the fragile peace in a post-apocalyptic society, where humans and cyborgs live awkwardly beside each other. Once a revered officer, R has been forced to commit illegalities in order to keep his beautiful cyborg girlfriend, Ria (Rin Seo) alive, pitifully fighting her short life span, that will inevitably consume her. His actions have turned him against his best friend, and fellow officer, Noma (Chang Yun), who tries desperately to keep R out of trouble.
When R is told by the brilliant, but deranged Cyborg specialist, Dr Zero (Jung Eun-Pyo), that Cyon (Jae-un Lee), a beautiful, young working girl, has all the ingredients he needs to keep Ria indefinitely alive, R will stop at nothing to find her. Unfortunately, rogue combat cyborg Cypher (Doo-hong Jung) also requires Cyon to increase his life expectancy, culminating in a violent battle for preservation.
As a lead character, R is difficult to sympathize with. Often aggressive and bitter, the only times he is shown to be compassionate, is in the company of Ria, whose screen time is minimal in contrast with the other characters, despite the pivotal part she plays. Characterization in general is sparse across the narrative, with little back-story, most characters having a very narrow agenda. Ria on the other hand, says several key phrases over the course of the feature that have considerable impact, however, their importance is undermined by the focus on the action-oriented story-line.
Moments of beautiful tenderness, accentuated by the touching musical score, are equally short-lived, though are more memorable than the fight scenes. These are considerably violent, containing a combination of gun battles and martial arts, and though occasionally impressive, these are also handled by using slow motion and quick shots, that do not always result in appealingly fluid moments.
Though Natural City is a film thematically focused around relationships, I couldn't help but notice the distance between the characters, even in scenes when they were barely an inch from each other. Feelings of hopelessness, and the debate on mortality gnaw at you from every angle, until even the sweetest parts of the film seem so utterly depressing. Perhaps I'm a romantic, however, I would have liked a deeper, more passionate focus on R and Ria, which offered a unique perspective to the audience, rather than the clichéd plot concerning killer cyborgs.