Director: Pil Gam-sung
Starring: Jo Jung-suk, Lee Jung-eun, Cho Yeo-jeong, Yoon Kyung-ho, Choi Yoo-ri
Country of Origin: South Korea
Running Time: 1h 53m
Don’t be misled by the title.
This is not a schlocky, blood and guts, B-movie despite the throwback name – although in Korean it’s Zombie Daughter which somehow sounds better.
Regardless, it’s a film which does indeed feature zombies, including one with a definite beating heart, proving that even in a subgenre that appears deader than dead there are still flickering signs of life.
The set-up seems overly familiar, but any early preconceptions quickly fade away.
When a zombie virus rampages across the planet tiger trainer Jung-hwan (Jo Jung-suk) desperately attempts to flee the South Korean capital of Seoul with his dance obsessed daughter Soo-ah (Choi Yoo-ri).
Despite their best efforts Soo-ah becomes infected.
Instead of abandoning his child Jung-hwan carefully avoids the authorities – as a nationwide order instructs that all zombies must be disposed of – and drives from the big city to his mother’s house in the coastal village of Eunbong-ri.
Away from the frenzied masses the caring father perseveres with his daughter and uses unconventional methods inspired by his zookeeping job to gradually coax the zombified creature back to a version of her former self.
Keeping Soo-ah’s condition a secret proves challenging for her grandmother Bam-sun (Lee Jung-eun).
The formidable granny doles out discipline with a trusty backscratcher and cooks her granddaughter’s favourite meals, while Jung-hwan’s old school friend and local pharmacist Dong-bae (Yoon Kyung-ho) recovers from the initial shock of finding a biter in his presence to help his pal.
The same cannot be said for the doting dad’s former high school sweetheart Yeon-hwa (Cho Yeo-jeong). A kumdo expert who killed her own fiancé after he contracted the virus, she won an award for detecting zombies and will not stop before they are all eliminated.
Bam-sun’s orange tabby Meowmeow (what a name) observes it all with human-like curiosity and even appears to aid Jung-hwan as he attempts to bring Soo-ah back to life.
An unanticipated family backstory radically shifts the pathway of a film which often teeters on the edge of ridiculousness before finding a balance between outright farce and the grim reality of a global outbreak.
A big laugh involving a granny and her false teeth sets the tone early on, as the father and daughter mimic the walking dead to find a path through the rabid hordes.
It’s nigh on impossible to take any of it seriously when one of the main characters is shown trying to train a tiger while gleefully moonwalking.
There’s a playful frivolity as the village beach becomes the backdrop for segments which could easily provide an alternative title of ‘How to Train Your Zombie.’
Music plays a big part as Jung-hwan endeavours to make a connection with his defiant teenage daughter by copying the dance moves from BoA’s “No. 1” in an opening scene.
There are K-Pop references spliced throughout, mostly for comic effect as elderly grandmother Bam-sun busts out moves in a wondrous montage to the 2NE1 classic “I Am the Best” while also name checking solo artist Sunmi.
A pointed reference to smash hit Train to Busan (2016) – which is frequently overused to make lazy comparisons to other movies – hits the mark despite the plot shift at the half-way mark.
Rather than maintaining a relentless gag reel, director Pil Gam-sung takes the bold step of zooming in on the broken-down relationship between a father and daughter.
Although it could be interpreted as an obvious move, Pil uncovers hidden layers of emotional depth in an incredibly gripping final third.
This is only possible thanks to a magnificent cast, led by the incomparable Jo Jung-suk.
He’s an absolute master of physical comedy and can make audiences laugh with a mere raised eyebrow, pained flinch or exaggerated double take. Don’t mistake him for a one-dimensional performer though as he switches from silly to serious under Pil’s direction without a single misstep.
It’s probably going too far to say that Jo has single handedly revived the South Korean box office in extremely challenging times, but he does seem to have the magic touch.
My Daughter Is a Zombie – which was adapted from a Korean webtoon (digital comic) – has already been watched by more than 5 million domestic cinemagoers and is the hit film of the summer.
Take a glance at his filmography and it’s clear Jo carefully selects his roles. It’s no coincidence that the comedies Exit (2019) and Pilot (2024) were big successes – he was also superb in My Annoying Brother (2016).
Lee Jung-eun – terrific as the strict but lovable village granny – and Cho Yeo-jeong – brilliant as a merciless zombie hunter who develops a softer side – reunite to great effect after starring in Bong Joon-ho’s masterpiece Parasite (2019).
It’s also worth noting that an actual cat called Geumdong-i featured in many scenes as the anthropomorphic Meowmeow. This is a considerable feat as it’s quite difficult to tell if and when CGI was used to depict the feline star of the show.
As the title character Choi Yoo-ri has a lot of live up to but delivers a fantastic performance while caked in layers of make-up, while Yoon Kyung-ho – a very familiar face from numerous films and dramas – is excellent as a friend ready to go the extra mile to support his old school mate.
Every character is an essential component in a film that is in equal parts preposterous, hilarious, and devastating. It’s an ingeniously crafted modern-day classic, just don’t buy too much into the title.
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Stephen Kasiewicz 