[3] In the midst of a deadly pandemic caused by a virus that makes the infected patients violent and zombie-like, which originates from the DMZ and which has already devastated the U.S. and North Korea, a man awakes in a blood-soaked bed at a motel room in Seoul with a cross-shaped scar on the back of his head.

Carter's mission is to rescue Ha-na and bring her back to the North Korean facility where the production of a vaccine is underway.

Carter, Jung-hee, Yoon-hee, Dr. Jung and Ha-na hope to catch a train operated by Chinese government, carrying infected people to Dandong.

Carter remembers that he agreed to this mission in exchange for his family's freedom and that he suggested blocking his memories to ensure that he couldn't betray North Korea.

[15] Kim Bo-ram in her review for Yonhap News praised the director for creatively weaving "breath-taking action sequences of physical combat, gun fights and large-scale helicopter stunts" but stated that the "latter part of the movie, when the true story of Carter's mission is revealed, makes the majority of the parts, including the fast-paced action scenes, almost tiring.

"[16] YTN's Kang Nae-ri stated that the film fails to immerse the audience, and the tension decreases towards the second half, but praised Joo Won for his splendid action performance and digesting title role.

Lee stated that the only good thing about this movie is Joo Won's action sequences but his power lasts less than 20 minutes due to the tattered story and senseless directing.

[20] Writing for Mashable, Sam Haysom described the opening sequence as "dizzying, fantastically choreographed, ultra-violent, and impressively filmed" so that it "leaves you feeling sea sick and a bit drained" and stated: "The quantity and scale of action is both Carter's greatest strength and its greatest weakness.