Quartile rating: 6/10 · 1 rating
Carter, who awakens two months into a deadly pandemic originating from the DMZ that has already devastated US and North Korea. He who has no recollections of his past finds a mysterious device in his head, and a lethal bomb in his mouth. A voice in his ears gives him orders to avoid getting killed and he's thrown into a mysterious operation while the CIA and North Korean coup chase him close.
Carter (2022) is a South Korean action film directed by Jung Byung-gil, notable almost entirely for its relentless, technically audacious one-take aesthetic — a bravura piece of cinematography that earns genuine recognition for its ambition and execution even if the seams occasionally show. The plot is a messy, convoluted amnesia-action scaffolding that serves mainly as a delivery mechanism for set pieces, with thin characterization and logic gaps throughout. Acting is functional at best, largely overwhelmed by the film's breakneck pacing. The one-take gimmick is distinctive enough to push Novelty above average, but the underlying story beats (amnesia, double-cross, pandemic MacGuffin) are well-worn. The ending is rushed and unsatisfying, failing to cohere the chaotic narrative into anything meaningful. A technical showcase that overreaches its storytelling.