Tunnel

A tunnel collapse traps Jung-soo inside his car beneath a mountain of rubble. He manages to dial emergency services, hoping for a rescue, while his wife Se-hyun learns of the crisis. News crews and responders begin to converge on the site, heightening the urgency of the situation.

Rescuers set up a camp at the relatively intact tunnel portal while a local news crew attempts a live interview with Jung-soo. The rescue chief Kim Dae-kyung interrupts the reporters, berating them for chasing ratings instead of respecting the trapped man’s life. The clash underscores the pressure and scrutiny facing the operation.

Dae-kyung advises Jung-soo to conserve the phone’s battery and to ration two water bottles and a birthday cake meant for his daughter. He stresses that careful resource management is essential for survival. A plan begins to take shape around the limited supplies Jung-soo has left.

The tunnel shifts again, threatening to bury Jung-soo and a nearby colleague. They manage to escape the immediate collapse and hunker down, bracing against further tremors. The crew knows the situation is dangerously unstable.

Vibrations reveal the number 3 on a ventilation fan, which rescuers adopt as a key reference point. Dae-kyung uses this marker to guide what remains of the operation, coordinating excavation and drilling toward Jung-soo. The marker provides a fragile beacon amid the darkness.

Teams begin excavating rubble and drilling above Jung-soo to reach him. Engineers monitor vibrations and aim to minimize further collapse while advancing toward the trapped man. The process is slow, methodical, and fraught with risk.

Three days after the collapse, Jung-soo is startled by the presence of a pet dog that accompanies Mi-na, another trapped survivor impaled by rebar. He reassures Mi-na that rescue is underway and keeps her spirits up while the dog offers a flicker of hope. The situation grows more hopeful even as the darkness remains overwhelming.

Mi-na succumbs to her injuries, delivering a crushing blow to the morale of those fighting to save her. It becomes apparent that the tunnel schematics used for planning were mis-mapped, forcing Dae-kyung to restart the excavation operation. The setback deepens Jung-soo’s despair as time drags on with little forward progress.

Public opinion turns against the rescue mission as the wait grows longer. An excavation worker dies in an accident, and Jung-soo’s elderly mother blames Se-hyun for her son’s peril. The tragedy compounds the emotional and political stakes surrounding the operation.

Se-hyun signs an agreement to halt the rescue and proceed with construction of the Second Hado Tunnel. She records a tearful radio message to Jung-soo, expressing love and urging him to endure. The decision effectively shifts the mission from rescue to salvage via a new tunnel.

In a last-ditch effort, Dae-kyung lowers himself through the drill hole using a sound detector to locate Jung-soo. Jung-soo crawls toward Mi-na’s car and sounds the horn to signal his position. Simultaneously, explosives are detonated in the Second Tunnel, and a vibrational blast seems to bury him once again.

Rescuers finally reach Jung-soo and Mi-na’s dog after 35 days trapped underground, finding him barely conscious. Dae-kyung shouts a profanity-filled remark to journalists to shield the moment from the media frenzy. Jung-soo is pulled to safety and stabilized amid the tense relief.

With the operation concluded, Dae-kyung is reassigned to a desk job, moving away from frontline rescue work. He remains protective of Jung-soo, having earned respect and responsibility through the ordeal. The team reflects on the costs of the long rescue.

Jung-soo recovers from his injuries and sits in the passenger seat as Se-hyun drives him away from the site. They emerge into sunlight, a quiet moment of relief after the harrowing ordeal. The film closes on a note of cautious optimism for the future.