Stranded on the airport bridge on the verge of collapse, people find themselves struggling to survive against an unexpected threat. A film by Kim Tae-Gon, starring Lee Sun-Kyun, Ju Ji-Hoon, Kim Hee-Won, Moon Sung-Geun, Ye Soo-Jung, Kim Tae-Woo, Park Hee-Von, Park Ju-Hyun, and Kim Su-An.

During the government meeting where the National Security Council discusses options for rescuing the captives from the hostile terrorists, Cha Jung-Won (차정원 portrayed by Lee Sun-Kyun), the Deputy Security Director, suggests that they should wait for the terrorists to make contact to confirm whether the captives are still alive. He argues that sending a rescue team would be unwise, as it could damage the administration’s image, especially with the upcoming election approaching. His suggestion infuriates the Minister of National Defense (국방부장관 portrayed by Jang Gwang) but impresses his superior, Jung Hyun-baek (정현백 portrayed by Kim Tae-Woo), the Secretary of Security.

On his way to drop off his teenage daughter Kyung-Min (경민 portrayed by Kim Su-An) at the airport, Jung-Won stops to fill up his tank at a gas station. There, they encounter Joe Park (조박 portrayed by Ju Ji-Hoon), a supposed employee who refuses Jung-won’s credit card and insists on cash payment, claiming the card reader is broken. Jung-won grows suspicious when he notices several keys, including a master key, dangling from Joe Park’s belt. He points out that Joe Park is a tow truck driver impersonating a pump attendant in an attempt to steal money from unsuspecting customers. However, Joe Park insists that he works at the gas station, but Jung-Won doesn’t believe him. Instead, Jung-Won tells Joe Park to inform the owner that he will pay for his gas on the way back from the airport and then drives off.

Due to the unusual weather, the airport bridge becomes shrouded in heavy fog, significantly reducing visibility. Despite the thick fog and poor sight lines, a social media influencer decides to perform a daring stunt for his followers – speeding along the bridge. His reckless driving causes an accident that quickly snowballs into a massive pile-up, with cars crashing into each other and blocking all lanes. Hundreds of people, including Jung-won and his daughter, now find themselves stranded in the middle section of the bridge.

Adding to this series of unfortunate events, a military vehicle transporting experimental canines modified to attack designated targets using voice recognition somehow conveniently break free from their cage and are now prowling the bridge among the innocent civilians stranded there.

Directed by South Korean filmmaker Kim Tae-Gon (김태곤) who co-wrote the original screenplay with Kim Yong-Hwa (김용화), PROJECT SILENCE (탈출: 프로젝트 사일런스) is a disaster thriller featuring a promising premise but ultimately failing to engage viewers with its narrative and, most importantly, to make me root for any characters to survive.

The film is populated with too many supporting characters that are irrelevant to the narrative, with each serving mostly one or two key moments. As a result, these characters are either underdeveloped or just annoying.

The main protagonist, Cha Jung-Won (차정원), is one of the most inconsistent characters in the film. For instance, in one scene, he warns everyone not to breathe while rushing to the bus because the air might be filled with toxic gas. Yet, in the very next scene, he talks continuously on the handheld transceiver. In another moment, he violently forces the creator of Project Silence to leave the bus, despite being told that the dogs wouldn’t just go away and that it would be better to stay inside. Shortly after, the dogs attack and kill several people. I can’t tell if this protagonist is good or bad, but he is definitely stupid, which results from lazy writing.

Aside from an unimpressive screenplay and the predictable plot, the film also suffers from poor CGI, which includes unrealistic movements of the murderous dogs, the explosions, the collapsing bridge, and gravity-defying stunts. These elements weigh down the film to the point that it feels more comical than life-threatening.

I don’t understand how this film’s budget could exceed that of the 2016 film TRAIN to BUSAN, yet it miserably fails to achieve the same level of realism. PROJECT SILENCE is probably one of the worst films of the year.

PROJECT SILENCE premiered at Festival de Cannes on 21 May 2023.

탈출: 프로젝트 사일런스 was theatrically released in South Korea on 12 July 2024. It grossed over 6 billion KRW (approximately 4.8 million USD) in South Korea against a production budget of 18.5 billion KRW (approximately 13.4 million USD).