I watched Colony expecting another outbreak movie where people would run, scream, hide and somehow try to survive until the credits rolled. What I got was something much stranger.
The movie began with Jun Ji-hyun (Kwon Se-jeong) a biotechnology professor who found herself trapped inside the "Doongwoori Building* after a rapidly mutating virus turned a scientific conference into complete chaos. The authorities sealed the building, leaving everyone inside to face whatever was happening on their own. And whatever was happening was terrifying.
The infected weren't your typical slow-moving zombies. They changed. Their bodies became increasingly disturbing, their movements were unpredictable, and there was always this uncomfortable feeling that they were becoming something more than just infected humans.
Inside the building, Ji Chang-wook (Choi Hyun-seok) became one of the people desperately trying to keep the survivors alive. As a security guard, he knew the building better than most, but that knowledge became even more important when he found himself responsible for protecting his older sister, Kim Shin-rok (Choi Hyun-hee).
Kim Shin-rok was paraplegic, and watching Ji Chang-wook struggle to protect her while fighting his own fear gave the story a surprisingly human side. He wasn't some invincible action hero. He was simply a brother who refused to leave his sister behind.
Outside the building, Shin Hyun-been (Gong Seol-hee) was desperately trying to understand what was happening. When she lost contact with her husband, Go Soo (Han Gyu-seong), who was trapped inside, she became involved in the investigation.
I actually liked ** Shin Hyun-been** part of the story because she wasn't just standing around waiting for someone to save the day. She was trying to understand the outbreak from the outside while the people inside were fighting to survive it.
And then there was Koo Kyo-hwan (Seo Young-cheol), this man brought a completely different energy to the movie. He's a brilliant biologist connected to the outbreak, and Koo Kyo-hwan played him with the kind of calmness that made him even more unsettling. While everyone else was terrified of what the virus was doing, Young-cheol seemed almost fascinated by it.
That was one of the things I enjoyed most about Colony. The movie wasn't only asking, "How do these people survive?" It also made me wonder, "What exactly are these infected becoming?" The tension worked because nobody seemed completely safe. Even when the characters found somewhere to hide, I never felt like they were actually safe.
My Verdict: I wouldn't call Colony perfect. There were moments when the story became a little complicated, and I sometimes wanted the movie to slow down and spend more time with the characters rather than rushing back into the outbreak. Some emotional moments could have hit harder too.
But the atmosphere? Absolutely unsettling. The infected were easily the most memorable part of the movie. Their strange movements, disturbing transformations and unpredictable behaviour gave the film an identity of its own.
And thankfully, Colony didn't simply try to become another Train to Busan. It took the outbreak idea in a different direction and leaned heavily into biotechnology, evolution and the frightening possibility of an infection that doesn't just kill people—but changes them.
By the time I reached the end, I wasn't thinking about zombies anymore. I was thinking about what happens when something designed to change humanity ends up becoming something humanity can no longer control.
My Rating: 85/100
Colony wasn't perfect, but it was creepy, unpredictable and different enough to keep me interested. If you enjoy Korean thrillers with horror, survival, science and a little bit of madness thrown into the mix, this one is definitely worth checking out.
Rating: 85/100