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      Natural City

      R 2003 1h 52m Sci-Fi Action List
      57% Tomatometer 7 Reviews 45% Audience Score 2,500+ Ratings Engineered to live just three years, cyborgs have captured a lab containing DNA samples that they hope will extend their lifespans. Police officers R (Yoo Ji-tae) and Noma (Yun Chan) use deadly force to tamp down the rebellion, as R considers a personal dilemma. His lover, Ria (Seo Rin), is a near-death cyborg, and R wonders if he should implant her computerized brain into a local prostitute. Meanwhile, he and Noma face an outlaw cyborg who's hatching his own body-snatching plot. Read More Read Less

      Critics Reviews

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      Juan Luis Caviaro Espinof A real pity that this story has not been signed by a more personal and risky director. [Full Review in Spanish] Feb 14, 2020 Full Review Keith H. Brown Eye for Film Rated: 3/5 Dec 7, 2007 Full Review Film Threat Rated: 2/5 Dec 6, 2005 Full Review Film Threat Rated: 3.5/5 Dec 6, 2005 Full Review Film Threat Rated: 3.5/5 Nov 13, 2004 Full Review Film Threat Rated: 2/5 Nov 13, 2004 Full Review Read all reviews

      Audience Reviews

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      john p Good special effects futuristic Asian flick of man, enhanced cyborgs, brain-to-machine transfer, falling in love with Replicant-type-reaching end of lifespan robo-babe and trying to save the rest of humanity. Could have been developed a bit more but perhaps -- the "left-out" bits appeal to Korean sense of reality/culture matrix and not needed for "completeness". Grab a drink and popcorn and steal a virtual seat in a distant Korean theatre from the comfort of your own bungalo. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member To relinquish Natural City to the "Blade Runner" copycat bin, which so many reviews do, and which might seem the obvious and correct thing at first go, does the film something of a disservice. It struck me that while it works off of the same "conceptual fabric" as Ridley Scott's vision of the PKD novel, it was, under the surface, a different film in a number of ways, and offers a dystopean vision that is uniquely Korean with cultural and sociological reference points which understandably Scott and North American audiences do not usually have the experiencial palatte to grasp without a great deal of effort and attention. While east and west have some shared iconography of what a decaying society is like, they also have many that are idiosyncratic. It took me several viewings but it struck me as eerily beautiful in its own right. One simple example is the relationship between R and the cyborg doll Ria. When contrasted with theirs, the dialogue and body language expressed between Deckard and Rachel shows us a rather cold and distant pairing. Korean film is much more emotionally sophistocated than what we are usually fed in North America. I understand the temptation of some reviewers I've read elsewhere, to parse N.C. as an example of what has become a common trend in the film industry of generating endless cheap productions that have titles close enough or Trailers that are visually similar enough to a blockbuster in order to confuse the ticket buyer and video renter (or more appropriately now-video streamer). This production does use the shiny-glossy Ridley Scott marketable window dressing of B.R. but would argue that this is only a veneer that wipes off fairly quickly. Perhaps the marketers did want to generate some confusion, but the creative people behind the film slipped in some herbal flavouring of their own into the audiences bubble tea. Perhaps I am over valuing the cultural ligaments of the film (I watched this in the midst of an orgy of viewing dozens of S. Korean films), but I believe they invest it with enough of a unique vision that it removes the film from the category of "cheap Blade Runner knock-offs" and makes it of value to watch. Perhaps it belongs on a shelf next to the one which holds B.R. rather than on the shelf below it. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/04/23 Full Review Audience Member the year is 2080 but cigarette smoking is as popular as ever in this 'Blade Runner' look alike. As in BR, everything is dark and moody and rather slow and incoherent at times. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Audience Member A clear ripoff of Bladerunner and Cherry 2000 but still worth watching for sci fi fans Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/30/23 Full Review Audience Member Imagine a convoluted Korean Blade Runner knock-off where the human-cyborg romance takes center stage, the cyborg rebellion gets shoved to the margins, and the commentary on what qualifies as humanity is scrapped altogether. What we're left with is a movie of vast potential that falls almost completely flat. The action scenes are unique, though, and I really hate faulting a movie because of its unfulfilled ambition when ambition seems to be lacking in so many films nowadays. So, while it doesn't suck, it certainly doesn't not suck. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/02/23 Full Review Audience Member Worth watching for the visuals, especially if you love sci-fi. The story is cute and entertaining. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/15/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      Movie Info

      Synopsis Engineered to live just three years, cyborgs have captured a lab containing DNA samples that they hope will extend their lifespans. Police officers R (Yoo Ji-tae) and Noma (Yun Chan) use deadly force to tamp down the rebellion, as R considers a personal dilemma. His lover, Ria (Seo Rin), is a near-death cyborg, and R wonders if he should implant her computerized brain into a local prostitute. Meanwhile, he and Noma face an outlaw cyborg who's hatching his own body-snatching plot.
      Director
      Min Byung-chun
      Screenwriter
      Han Jae-rim, Min Byung-chun
      Production Co
      Jowoo Entertainment, Tube Entertainment
      Rating
      R (Brief Nudity|Violence|Language)
      Genre
      Sci-Fi, Action
      Original Language
      Korean
      Release Date (DVD)
      Oct 29, 2014
      Runtime
      1h 52m
      Sound Mix
      Dolby Digital