Director Na Hong-jin’s Latest Film Makes Waves at Cannes
The new thriller ‘Hope’ premiered at the 79th Cannes Film Festival’s competition section, creating a powerful impression during its world debut at the Lumière Grand Theatre on May 17th.
The red carpet event featured director Na alongside cast members including Hwang Jung-min, Jo In-sung, Jung Ho-yeon, Michael Fassbender, Alicia Vikander, Taylor Russell, and Cameron Britton.
The Story
Set in a harbor town called Hopo-hang within the demilitarized zone, the narrative unfolds when an unidentified creature appears. A young local named Sung-ki discovers a dead cow with mysterious claw marks while returning from hunting. He reports this to station chief Beom-seok, who initially suspects a tiger attack. However, the situation rapidly spirals beyond control.
The alien entity is portrayed by Hollywood actors including Fassbender, Vikander, Russell, and Britton.
Critical Reception
Variety described it as “an excessive creature feature mixing crude humor, questionable CGI, and exceptional action sequences.”
The Hollywood Reporter called it “a potential instant cult classic” that “maintains breathless momentum throughout its 2-hour-40-minute runtime.”
The Wrap praised it as “an outstanding monster movie that seamlessly blends action, horror, and sci-fi,” singling out an early action sequence as “among the finest extended set pieces in recent memory.”
Audience Buzz
Social media reactions included:
• “Everyone went absolutely wild. Na Hong-jin just shook Cannes with ‘Hope.’ What did we just witness?”
• “Takes real guts to bring something like this to the competition lineup”
• “Overflowing with audacious ambition”
• “Raw and occasionally baffling—thoroughly entertaining”