Michael Fassbender's 'all-time great new action film' can be watched this week

Michael Fassbender stars alongside his wife, though their roles are shrouded in mystery.

Hope, the much-anticipated new action sci-fi thriller starring Irish Oscar-nominee Michael Fassbender (The Agency, Slow West), finally lands in cinemas this week.

The movie is from acclaimed South Korean writer-director Na Hong-jin (The Chaser, The Wailing). The story centres around a mysterious discovery made on the outskirts of Hope Harbour, a remote town near the Korean DMZ, that plunges the area into chaos.

Movie Title	Hope
Where to Watch	In Cinemas
Cast	Hwang Jung-min, Zo In-sung, Jung Ho-yeon, Taylor Russell, Cameron Britton, Alicia Vikander, Michael Fassbender
Length	157 minutes

"The residents find themselves in a desperate fight for survival against something they have never encountered before."

Fassbender stars in Hope alongside his real-life wife, the Oscar-winner Alicia Vikander (Ex Machina, The Danish Girl). The pair don't appear in the film's trailers, with their roles in the action flick shrouded in mystery.

Watch the trailer for Hope right here:

The movie's cast also includes Cameron Britton (Mindhunter), Hoyeon (Squid Game), Hwang Jung-min (The Wailing), Taylor Russell (Bones and All), and Zo In-sung (Moving).

Hope premiered earlier this year in the main competition category at the Cannes Film Festival. This is the event's most prestigious strand, where movies compete for its top prize, the Palme d'Or.

The reviews of the film from Cannes were incredibly enthusiastic. Many critics have compared the action sci-fi thriller to Oscar-winner Mad Max: Fury Road.

Hope's first hour has been singled out for particular praise. The BBC called it "a breathless, non-stop rollercoaster ride" and "nothing but adrenaline-fuelled, tyre-screeching, gun-blasting momentum".

Likening the movie to Steven Spielberg's work, Sight & Sound added: "The first hour of the film is essentially a chase scene of pure action cinema.

"Unrelenting, pounding and beautifully filmed by Parasite (2019) and Burning (2018) cinematographer Hong Kyung-pyo, the light of early morning slanting through car windows as the chase tears through different environments."

Reviewers seem more divided on the rest of Hope's 160-minute runtime. That said, the movie still holds a high 78% Rotten Tomatoes score.

You can read a sample of some of those glowing write-ups for Hope below:

Publication	Quote
BBC.com	"One of the most expensive Korean films ever made, it races from modern-day western to action thriller to horror film to science-fiction epic – all while retaining the full-throttle energy and sweaty cult-movie atmosphere of a 1970s exploitation flick."
Little White Lies	"The jaw-dropping scale of it all puts most blockbusters to shame."
Mashable	"I didn't just laugh, gasp, scream, and squeal watching this movie. I was thrust full-bodied back into what it was like being a kid seeing a Godzilla movie or Jaws for the first time."
Screen International	"The latest picture from The Wailing director Na is a pedal-to-the-metal slaughterfest that barely lets up on its breathless pace, gallows humour and wall-to-wall guts and gore."
Sight & Sound	"There is nary a moment of boredom, and its numerous peaks of exhilarating action are often undercut by a laugh-out-loud payoff. Brilliantly crafted and beautifully shot, we can only hope this wild film gets the follow-up it so richly deserves."
The Travers Take	"Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander star in this blast of K-terror that doesn’t land with half the visceral pow of its liftoff. But when it’s cooking, this monster baby is on fire."
The Wrap	"Hope, the all-time great new action film from writer-director Na Hong-jin, is a glorious genre romp that contains more magnificent moments in its opening act than most do in their entire runtime."
World of Reel	"Watch— a decade from now, this will be known as one of the greatest action movies of the 21st century. Some of the stunts here are flat-out jaw-dropping. I haven’t felt this much thrill watching action sequences since Fury Road screened 10 years ago at Cannes."

How to watch and where is it streaming?

Hope is out in Irish and UK cinemas on Friday, 25 September. The action film is already out in US cinemas.

Movie Title	Hope
Where to Watch	In Cinemas
Cast	Hwang Jung-min, Zo In-sung, Jung Ho-yeon, Taylor Russell, Cameron Britton, Alicia Vikander, Michael Fassbender
Length	157 minutes

Publication	Quote
BBC.com	"One of the most expensive Korean films ever made, it races from modern-day western to action thriller to horror film to science-fiction epic – all while retaining the full-throttle energy and sweaty cult-movie atmosphere of a 1970s exploitation flick."
Little White Lies	"The jaw-dropping scale of it all puts most blockbusters to shame."
Mashable	"I didn't just laugh, gasp, scream, and squeal watching this movie. I was thrust full-bodied back into what it was like being a kid seeing a Godzilla movie or Jaws for the first time."
Screen International	"The latest picture from The Wailing director Na is a pedal-to-the-metal slaughterfest that barely lets up on its breathless pace, gallows humour and wall-to-wall guts and gore."
Sight & Sound	"There is nary a moment of boredom, and its numerous peaks of exhilarating action are often undercut by a laugh-out-loud payoff. Brilliantly crafted and beautifully shot, we can only hope this wild film gets the follow-up it so richly deserves."
The Travers Take	"Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander star in this blast of K-terror that doesn’t land with half the visceral pow of its liftoff. But when it’s cooking, this monster baby is on fire."
The Wrap	"Hope, the all-time great new action film from writer-director Na Hong-jin, is a glorious genre romp that contains more magnificent moments in its opening act than most do in their entire runtime."
World of Reel	"Watch— a decade from now, this will be known as one of the greatest action movies of the 21st century. Some of the stunts here are flat-out jaw-dropping. I haven’t felt this much thrill watching action sequences since Fury Road screened 10 years ago at Cannes."

Michael Fassbender’s ‘all-time great new action movie’ can be watched this week

Home movies & tv

Michael Fassbender stars alongside his wife, though their roles are shrouded in mystery.

Watch the trailer for Hope right here:

How to watch and where is it streaming?

Michael Fassbender’s ‘all-time great new action movie’ can be watched this week

Home›movies & tv

Michael Fassbender stars alongside his wife, though their roles are shrouded in mystery.

Watch the trailer for Hope right here:

How to watch and where is it streaming?

Home movies & tv