Movie Review: Jung_E (2023)

Jung_E (2023) written and directed by Sang-ho Yeon

A couple hundred years in the future, the earth has established colonies in space. A handful of them have broken off and fought a war of independence. One particular warrior, Jung Yi (Kin Hyun-joo), was a famous warrior who almost ended the rebellion single-handedly. Her final mission was a failure, though she was rescued. She slipped into a coma because of her injuries. Now, her daughter (Kang Soo-youn) is building a combat AI based on her mother's brain pattern. The company she works for hopes to win the war by creating a heroic, unbeatable robot army. The only problem is the AI keeps failing that same final mission. They can't sell without success.

The story starts with an extended and exciting action sequence. Then the corporate drama starts, though the focus is mostly on the daughter, who feels guilty about her mom nearly dying. Her mom had signed up as a soldier to pay for an expensive cancer surgery for her daughter. The final mission was the day of the surgery, so mom never knew the results. The melodrama doesn't quite hit the mark and the action sequences, while enjoyable, feel like part of another movie. The film is a conglomerate of other science fiction like The Terminator, Ex Machina, and Blade Runner. It's not as satisfying as any of those films. Some of the acting is very over-the-top, which is distracting if excusable due to plot machinations. Overall, the movie makes an unsatisfying package.

Not recommended.