Hwasango

"Volcano High" takes every Anime high school cliche ever made and slaps them all together in a two hour extravaganza of amazing special effects, side-splitting humor, and an intentionally overacting cast. The result is cinematic perfection.

The main story is about Kim Kyeong-Su, a young man who seems to get into fights no matter where he goes - causing him to be kicked out of 8 schools previous to Volcano High. This is his ninth and final chance at success, so he can't afford to mess up. Unfortunately for Kim, Volcano High is a school that thrives on fighting - and Kim, being the new guy, is prime choice. Because of this, he spends a lot of the time getting his hindside handed to him. Once a conspiracy to overthrow the principal and introduce capital punishment to the student body comes into play, Kim realizes he can no longer stand by and let things unravel this way. Therefore, he decides to join the other students in a battle against the newly hired teachers designed to wipe out all of the fighters at Volcano High...

Which is where we, the unwitting audience, bear witness to some of the most insane battles ever displayed on film. The final battle has to be seen to be believed - but that's all I'm going to say! I leave it up to you to watch the movie for yourself. Trust me, it's hard to find, but worth the effort... Especially Hyo-jin Kong as So Yo-Seon!

"Volcano High" ranks up quite high in my list of favorites. See it for yourself, and discover if you feel the same way!

I can understand why this film splits viewers into those who either love it-to-death or those who despise it. To properly enjoy Volcano High, you will need to relax, loosen up and dig up some old skool memories.

Considering this is primarily a fun film, main and periphery characters are well portrayed, and there's a lots of subtle comedy and bombastic drama to keep anyone with a developed sense of humour happy.

However, if you love martial arts movies, you will be disappointed - the martial arts is spread pretty thin. Although Volcano High is Korean, it appears to have gone the way of recent Hong Kong kung fu films, in that choreography is either obscured or entirely replaced by CGI effects. However, the special effects and acting are top-notch, Hyuk Jang especially evoking both sniggers and respect.

Well made and good fun if you don't take your movie-watching too seriously. If, however, you want something a bit more substantial from Korea, try Musa or Shiri.

The main problem with Volcano High is that it is half an hour too long. I felt that the first half of the film worked pretty well. The plot was incoherent, but there was a sense of movement, and the tension was building well. But when the evil teachers turned up, and that naughty kid Ryang got beaten up (repeatedly), the film suddenly stopped moving.

For the first part of Volcano High's the action sequences were amiably ludicrous, but also fairly understated. People flew around but no one really cut loose. At the final confrontation, we were ready for a bit of visual hyperbole, and I was expecting something as mind-blowing as the finales to Storm Riders, or Swordsman II, but instead the film closed with a protracted and very dull punch-up.

Visually, though, Volcano High is tremendous. While the action was derivative of the Matrix, it struck me that the camerawork and choreography had more life and grace than in that film. The comedy was amiably goofy, and the actors were charismatic.

So, not a bad film, but I think that any other persons wishing to make wu xia high school comedies can improve the formula by applying more care and attention.

VOLCANO HIGH is a film with some incredible special effects. The fights, heavily aided by CGI, is quite thrilling to watch. The story itself is a bit bare, but seeing as how VOLCANO HIGH is nothing more than an anime given live-action treatment, it's to be expected.

Of note are a couple of scenes lifted from DARK CITY, which itself lifted the scene from the final showdown in the Japanese animation AKIRA.

VOLCANO HIGH is not altogether a bad film. It's quite nice to look at, and there is enough action to keep just about anyone from being bored.

6 out of 10

(go to www.nixflix.com for a more detailed review of this movie or reviews of other foreign films)

With its comic-book style, eye-candy cast, spectacular visual effects and incredible martial arts wire-fu trickery, Volcano High is a disposable piece of action cinema that, if anything, never fails to be entertaining.

In a Korean high school in the near future, where gangs of students battle against each other for supremacy, the principal supposedly owns a secret manuscript which bestows upon the owner unlimited martial arts skills; naturally, there are those who wish to lay their hands upon the document.

Kim Kyung-soo is a delinquent student with incredible power and fighting skills who is transferred to Volcano High after being expelled from 8 previous schools. He is courted by the top gangs, but refuses to join them, preferring not to fight.

When the principal is poisoned, the school's top martial artist Song Hak-rim is framed for the deed. In fact, it is the Vice Principal who, along with Jang Ryang, leader of the weight-lifting club, has planned to dispose of the principal in order to get his paws on the manuscript; however, they are unable to find what they are looking for, so they call in reinforcements in the form of five leather clad teachers with supernatural powers.

Only Kim Kyung-soo has the power to stop the bad guys from completing their task, but will he join the fight and save the day? A little overlong at 122 minutes, Volcano High is nevertheless a stunning piece of cinema that possesses little in the way of emotive storytelling, but looks fantastic. Viewers are best advised to ignore the lightweight and nonsensical plot, but instead sit back and revel in the top-notch visuals: comic style transitions, lavish CGI enhanced fights, beautifully lit rain drenched settings and a good looking young cast.

*** This review is of the original uncut Korean version of the film. ***