Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Graphic
- urgent
- paranoid
- propulsive
- political thriller night
- action movie marathon
What critics said
Critics broadly found the film an ambitious, timely Korean geopolitical action thriller with compelling performances and escalating tension, while noting its heavy exposition and uneven political melodrama.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The plot places North and South Korean agents, presidents, military forces, and foreign powers inside a crisis shaped by division and institutional distrust.
The unconscious North Korean leader, referred to as Number One, drives the defection, pursuit, negotiations, and nuclear crisis.
Eom Cheol-woo and Kwak Cheol-woo navigate coups, missile threats, military operations, and presidential decision-making in a contemporary political setting.
The agent's effort to protect Number One expands into a race to prevent nuclear war involving North Korea, South Korea, and the United States.
Films like Steel Rain, and why
The Man Standing Next
shared geopolitical espionage, nuclear brinkmanship, military conspiracies, and tense action-thriller pacing
The Berlin File
shared inter-Korean conflict, covert operations, divided-nationality politics, and grounded Korean action drama
Thirteen Days
shared nuclear crisis, international political maneuvering, intelligence operations, and escalating thriller tension
Joint Security Area
shared coup dynamics, state violence, divided loyalties, and urgent political action drama
Movie Details
- Director
- Yang Woo-seok
- Release Date
- 2017-12-14
- Runtime
- 139 min
- Rating
- 7.1 / 10 (222)
Cast
- Jung Woo-sung
- Kwak Do-won
- Kim Kap-soo
- Kim Eui-sung
- Lee Kyung-young
- Jang Hyun-sung
- Jo Woo-jin
- Kim Myung-gon
- Park Eun-hye
- Kim Ji-ho
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Steel Rain about?
- A North Korean defector and a South Korean intelligence official form an uneasy alliance as a coup and nuclear threat push the peninsula toward catastrophe.
- What is Steel Rain like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Steel Rain as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Steel Rain violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Steel Rain as graphic.
- What did critics think of Steel Rain?
- Critics broadly found the film an ambitious, timely Korean geopolitical action thriller with compelling performances and escalating tension, while noting its heavy exposition and uneven political melodrama.
- Which films are like Steel Rain?
- Films with a similar feel include The Man Standing Next, The Berlin File, Thirteen Days, and Joint Security Area.
- How long is Steel Rain?
- Steel Rain runs 139 minutes.
- Where can I watch Steel Rain?
- In United States, Steel Rain streams on Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads.
