OPERATION CHROMITE (John H. Lee). 111 minutes. Subtitled. Opens Friday (August 12). See listing. Rating: NN
Produced in South Korea – where it’s already a massive hit – John H. Lee’s Operation Chromite dramatizes the covert preparations for the amphibious invasion of Incheon in the fall of 1950, three months after the start of the Korean War.
The story takes place a week before the invasion, when Gen. Douglas MacArthur sent a handful of South Korean soldiers across enemy lines on a mission of reconnaissance and infiltration. Their primary goal: a map of Incheon’s mined harbour.
In a strange echo of this summer’s other major war picture Anthropoid, Operation Chromite pours all of its craft and energy into elaborate battle sequences, leaving the cast stuck mouthing generic homilies about patriotism and duty whenever things get quiet. (There’s also a lot of talk about how important this mission is, which is presumably there for an audience born decades after the Korean War rather than for the characters – who’d be well aware of this.)
Lee Jung-jae gets to flash some charisma as squadron leader Jang Hak-soo, but only briefly. And while he’s prominently featured on the Western posters, Liam Neeson is in full cheque-cashing mode as MacArthur, barking at subordinates and staring down experts who dare suggest his scheme might fail.
He’s seen this movie before. So have you.
