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Review

Director Kim Ki-Duk’s agonizing drama set in and around North Korean army outpost takes a simple premise and elevates it to an almost unbearable level of emotional intensity and psychological complexity. In a place vulnerable to spies, the killing of any enemy intruder is considerable worthy of the highest military honor. When an overzealous soldier accidentally kills a civilian, the lives of the soldier, the girlfriend of the victim and ultimately the entire platoon are ripped apart by guilt, confusion and insanity. Taking as its subject a group of men schooled in violence confronting a violent situation that they have not been schooled in, The Coast Guard is a gripping, provocative and haunting piece of work.

 -- David Greenberg