My quick rating - 5.9/10. The Great Flood lands on Netflix as what initially looks like a fairly straightforward disaster thriller, but it quickly becomes clear that this isn’t just about water levels rising and people scrambling for higher ground. Directed by Byung-woo Kim, the film opens with a global flood event that has pushed humanity to the brink, narrowing its focus to a single apartment building and a mother’s desperate attempt to save her child on what may be the final day on Earth. I went into this one dubbed, having seen a trailer weeks earlier that did a solid job of selling tension and scale, and it definitely got my attention.
Kim Da-mi plays An Na, a mother pushed to emotional and physical exhaustion, and the film wastes no time putting her through the wringer. Her child is, frankly, a whiny little nightmare, but that’s very much by design. The kid isn’t written to be cute or charming; he’s stressful, demanding, and often infuriating, which only amplifies the sense of panic and responsibility hanging over every decision An Na makes. Parenting under normal circumstances is hard enough - parenting during the apocalypse is something else entirely.
What fascinates me specifically about The Great Flood is that it refuses to be purely a survival tale of a natural disaster. Clearly, more than one thing is going on beneath that surface, and much is quietly hinted at in these first moments. So long as you're paying attention, you'll notice that something is “off” well before that point at which the movie ceases being coy about that. It is, in this specific case, things like minute details of clothing that suggested something was amiss long before that point.
At its core, this is a story about motherhood: the bond between parent and child, the sacrifices involved, and the emotional journey that never really ends. That thematic shift is ambitious, but it’s also where the film becomes divisive. The tonal and genre pivot - drifting into more abstract, sci-fi territory - can feel abrupt and may discourage you if you signed up for a more conventional disaster flick. The film also doesn’t clearly communicate its internal rules, which adds to the sense of disorientation.
As far as what it looks like in the world around them, it has been well-realized with effective visuals that convey just what kind of “chaos” represents “water in all the wrong places.” Kim Da-mi is a strong performer who holds everything together well with a credible performance in which her tolerance level for such a mischievous kid borders on heroics.
The Great Flood is a story that does require patience and an openness to think rather than be shown answers to all the questions that may be floating around as you watch. I would've been far more into this had the story not gotten so convoluted towards the end. It may not be to everyone's taste, but in any case, it is one story that lends something to everyone who may be keen on following this flick until the end. Especially Mothers.
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