Synopsis
A renegade Korean submarine threatens to nuke Japan in this high-octane suspense drama. After getting court-martialed and sentenced to death for slaying a deranged superior officer, protagonist Lee Chan-suk (Cheong We-seong) finds himself sentenced to life on the Phantom, South Korean's first nuclear sub. Branded 431, Lee leaves port under the command of an old, hoary captain assigned to investigate reports that the Japanese are building their own nuclear sub. On the way, crazed first mate 202 kills the captain. Arguing that the desperate act is needed to restore Korean pride after a century of Japanese colonization and American exploitation, he plots to launch a nuclear strike against Japan. In order to accomplish his dastardly plans, however, he needs both launch keys, and one was entrusted to 431 by the captain just before he died. 431 prudently hides somewhere in the sub's bowels while 202 resolves to nuke Japan by any means necessary. Phantom, the Submarine was screened at the 1999 Pusan Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide