JSA was the best movie I have ever seen this year not only because of the story, but also because it triggered me to think back that maybe all the truths I have been believing may have been just the rationalization from my perspective and my schema. The impossible truth of 4 soldiers (two from North and two from South) caring for each other was effectively shown to the audience by comparing the "reports" by each government to the actual truth. Since the emotion of each character and broadly the emotion of two countries, were so important, middle shot, close shot and extreme close shots were used. Especially extreme close shots were effective in showing the objects, which symbolized the division between two countries, such as a land mine and the line on the bridge, which was supposed to divide the one country into two. Even though the ending seemed like the movie showed a negative possibility of reunification since 3 out of the 4 soldiers died, this movie definitely gave the audience the hope of reunification by focusing on the 4 soldiers as people rather than their countries, and also by ending the movie with a scene with all 4 soldiers doing their own jobs in relevant countries, but still together at a same place.
“JSA: Joint Security Area” portrayed a story about soldiers from North Korean and South Korea forming friendships. The movie starts out with an investigation to find out how the shooting occurred, but through a series of unexpected events, it is revealed that the shooting was not due to hostility between soldiers, but misunderstandings. This movie shows that friendships can form even from people who are pit up to be enemies. Even though there were deaths and people were hurt, the movie ended with a scene of all four soldiers in one picture. Before watching the movie, I thought it would be an intense action movie, but it was actually slow-paced. The shots were medium-length and more medium to close shots. Rather than focusing on the action and gory aspect of wars, this heart-warming movie showed the camaraderie and unexpected formations of friendships from two different sides.
I was really impressed by J.S.A both by the story and how it was taken. The long take of the owl not only created a mysterious tone to the start of the movie, but also gave a hint about the main plot. Owls have the ability to turn their head 180 degrees and have really good eyesight. This helps hint about what the story will be since the Swiss Army Major Sophie attempts to find out the truth about what had happened in the N. Korean border house. Another scene that I was liked was when Sophie was looking at Sergeant Lee Soo-hyeok’s disposition for the first time. As Sophie turns the page of Sergeant Lee Soo-hyeok’s disposition, the film transitions to the sergeant’s experience. The transition was really smooth, almost like some kind of sweep but in this case follows the turn of the page. This take was really creative and better than if she were to read out his disposition. There was only one part of the film where I was confused and that would be the photo with the four main characters present at the end of the movie. When was the photo taken?
I have seen 'Joint Security Area' when this film released. This film was a box office hit, so it was not very difficult to see the film. 'JSA' is a story of soldiers who work in Joint Security Area the Korean Peninsula. This film shows a friendship between South and North soldiers. 'JSA' is producted by Chanwook Park who is very famous director in the world. Park became to be famous by his next film 'Old boy'. 'JSA' and 'Old Boy' is very different in a style of storytelling and atmosphere. I enjoyed comparing two films which is made by one director during the screening.
There are two countries which are in contact to Panmunjeom. And, there is Joint Security Area beside it. JSA is the most dangerous place in the Korean Peninsula because soldiers of two countries protect their countries each other. Two south soldiers and two north soldiers become friends in JSA and form a deep friendship. However, in the end, they are enemies. They shot and kill each other. This film starts like a mystery drama. Sophie, a military officer of Switzerland follows evidences that they were friends. And the film shows the past how they became friends and played together. 'JSA' is very different from the other movie which deal with the division of Korea into north and south. North Korea was not only evil, North Korea soldiers were not a bad guys. This film did not handle the war between North and South. 'JSA' just dealt with the friendship between humans. There was not the ideological conflict, was just four men's humane friendship. The reason Youngpil, a north soldier tried to keep a secret was for South soldiers, and the reason Soohyuk, south soldier made a suicide was also due to a guilty which he killed Woojin. It is because they were real friends. The film showed the reality that they are enemies in the issue.
This film was very interesting. I think there are definite reasons to become popular. It was popular but not that light. I think this film went down in history of the movies which deal with the division.
Joint Security Area is a film released in 2000 and directed by Chan-wook Park. It focuses on unveiling the mystery behind murders that involve two pairs of soldiers from North Korea and South Korea who learn to disregard their countries’ history of political animosity. Throughout the film I have to admire the use of camera placement. There are scenes in the film where the group of soldiers are hanging out together and the camera pans around in circles with each character’s face in frame as they speak to each other. This makes the conversation seem natural as if the audience is there listening and turning to each character as they speak. Whether it was for the same reason, the sequence reminded me ones seen in the television sitcom called That 70s Show, which is usually done with comedic effect. There are also scenes that remain focused on inanimate objects while actions are going on out of frame, such as the one where Soo-hyeok tries to convince Seong-sik to cross the bridge. The camera here only frames their boots with the border line dividing the two sides at the center. By doing this, it really conveys how significant the border is to Seong-sik as he hesitates while at the same time it shows how irrelevant it is to Soo-hyeok as he has already crossed it multiple times. I think there are even more scenes with similar framing, like the seemingly trivial scene where Sophie mixes up the despositions, which also suggests the trivialness of the division between north and south.
Another mention I want to make is how the film goes about revealing the truth of the matter. JSA follows Sohpie as she tries to unravel the mystery by connecting evidence and gathering each character’s stories. The tension and uncertainty created by viewing multiple versions of the incident increases curiosity and pays off when the truth is finally revealed by flashback. The ending of the film is even a flashback to a picture taken that viewers witnessed earlier themselves. I thought it was a nice touch by showing one more surprise of a happy coincidental moment with the four soldiers.
I had heard a lot about this film so I was very eager to watch it. I know that the North/South division has been the popular basis for many recognized films within South Korea; these films tend to be very emotional and well-made from my general experience. I think this expectation placed JSA on a pedestal it did not quite reach (in my mind). It had its moments of brilliance, but failed to leave a lasting imprint. I did not appreciate the flashback method by which the story was told. Initially it was very confusing. Also by this process, Lee Young Ae was kind of turned into a 밉상 character. She is someone that is representative of neutrality and good but ends up becoming an aggressor that aggravates the delicate situation.
Everything in the story just happened so fast. I really enjoyed the comraderie shared between the Northern and Southern soldiers in the basement. These scenes were very heartfelt and tapped into a sensitive topic of nationhood/brotherhood that has been affecting Korea into the present. The actors portrayed their respective characters very well. The movie made me aware of the current enlistment laws that sanction Korean men to serve two years; it put this service in a different light.
Like "Welcome to Dongmakol" JSA does not corner the North as inherently "bad". Rather, by the end of the film, the sacrficial qualities of Kang Ho Song (north korean solider) come to light and a more negative aspect is placed on the South Korean soliders who acted instinctually in the situation. The film is a very interesting and heartfelt take on a topic that has haunted Korea for over 50 years.
This movie is a story of tragic friendship between North Korean and South Korean military at the Joint Security Area. I think the most important theme in this movie is the fear. People talk about how monstrous North Korean and South Korean are but i feel like it's not the people but the idea of war; everything comes from the fear of the war. These armys hold on to their trigger to protect themselves because they fear, but deep down their mind they want to let go of the guns and reach for peace. We fear but we are all same, holding on to same tension. Perhaps all these war movies are trying to indoctricate the idea of peace or set people at ease, relieve public anxiety. The tears these people shed represented their fear in most frankly way but at the same time it had layers of meaning to acknowledge. Soo Hyuk cries and yell out for help when he stepps on the landmind. his facial expression, tone in his voice spoke of how much he fears death.This was where Kyungpil helped him out and became friends eventually. Woojin weeps when he gets his birthday present because he's happy to get present but at the same time he feared because he knew it could be the last chance to see each other when they part. Soo Hyuk cries again when he face Kyungpil at Panmunjeom, maybe because he couldn't stand their tragic situation or maybe he wanted their friendship back. Then Kyungpil kicks him cruelly as if he's heartless but it was all to protect Soo Hyuk. Kyungpil didn't cry but it felt like he was crying from the inside.The meanings of these cries almost narrate their tragic relationships. I thought it was interesting to see how there were different characteristics to the fearful weapons. Although the weapons are usually used to kill the opponents, it was used in a slightly different way in this movie. When Soo Hyuk is left alone with landmind under his foot, Kyungpil, Woojin comes and save him by disconnecting the mind from the trigger. Kyungpil hands over the dead mind to Soo Hyuk as a souvenir. When the defcon 3 was announced with the explosions of landmind, troops from bothsides of the borderline watched it blow up as if they were watching fireworks. Although the landmine was originally barried in the ground to kill eachother, it was depicted as a gift and an entertainment. Bullet is another weapon that had dual sides; at one point bullets were used to play Gongi but eventually ended up killing and hurt each other. This shows the importance of the purpose of using these weapons. Overall in the movie JSA depicted longing and fear of death through tear and showed the fear of double side of the weapons when it was used as a weapon or as a tool to get closer.
Korea is an only country that divided into two separate sovereign states. The war isn’t end yet; it is taking a break now. I was young, I went to the Lee Seongbok’s memorial hall that has story about 9 years old boy, Seongbok said “I hate communist party” to army communist gruella in Pyungchang. I was scared of North Koreans and thought they are monsters and enemies we need to kill. Many people were raise with negative mind about North Korean like myself. But ironically, movies about the agony between North Korea and South Korea has always been popular and eventually started to change people’s mind. The movie JSA, Joint security area, is one of movies about North Korean and South Korean that changed my mind. The movie is about friendship between North Korean and South Korean that shows tragedy circumstance. I think the cigarette and photo contain many meanings that show humanness. The cigarette was used to break the wall between people’s mind. When North Koreans armies and South Korean armies met in the snowfield, they didn’t fight each other but their captains met in the middle to smoking together. In that point, even they didn’t speak out any words, they greeted each other by smoking. They have same habit and looks similar. Suhyuk gave a zippo lighter as a gift to Kyungpil so that he couldl use it everyday. But Kyungpil gave it back to suhyuk with a message saying that he’ll quitting somking, implying a meaning that their relationship is over. Also Sophie smoked only one time in the movie and that was when she was talking with Kyungpil about truth. This almost shows how much they are close enough to share the truth. The photo has humane points through showing 4 lovers of the soldiers. When they gather in the basement, they showed family and girl friend’s photos to each other. The Photos show that they have same attachment that have own family who wait for them. Sophie looked like cold-hearted woman at first, but after she saw her family photo in her wallet, she seemed like a warmer person just like any other solders who longed for their family. Movie ends with a photo that foreign tourist took in the earlier part of the film. In the photo, coincidentally, there were all 4 soldiers in Panmoonjum. It was only one and last photo that had everybody in it. It almost looked like a family photo, which implied an idea that North Korean and south Korean are both same nation and human.
The movie JSA was truly a sad movie. A story of four soldiers’ friendship that ended in a tragedy was heart touching. Especially, with the 60th anniversary of Korean armistice last weekend, the plot of the movie seemed sadder. The movie itself can be taken lightly with its feature of comical scenes, but the movie’s setting and Korea’s tragic past arouse uneasy feeling. The friendship between two South Korean soldiers and two North Korean soldiers is a pure fantasy and mere imagination, because South Koreans and North Koreans are inevitably enemies. At times, there were talks of reunification. It is more sorrowful to know the fact that the movie was introduced during the time when the tour of Mountain Geumgang, meeting of separated families, and improved relationships between the South and the North Korean governments brought people to think of peaceful reunification was near and could be possible. Therefore, the movie reminds the audience that Korea is still a divided country and reveals heartbreaking reality.
Clearly, more than anything, the movie seemed to be an illustration of the tragic reality of the divided country. The movie uses multiple objects to show this tragic reality: the “Bridge of No Return,” lines, and cigarettes. The “Bridge of No Return” serves as both the frontline of divided nation and the connector of the two countries. It is a place that is heavily guarded and crossing of it signifies the start of war, but it also allowed the four soldiers to meet with each other. South and North Korea are so close to each other, but are divided by a “line.” Throughout the movie, lines appear to show a clear boundary between the South and the North. The line on the bridge and the line on the Panmunjeom draw a line that divides the nations that once was one. Along with the bridge, these lines also emphasize the tragedy of Korea. Moreover, cigarettes seemed to play a role as a connecting link between the South and the North Korean soldiers. In many scenes, where the South and the North Korean soldiers encountered each other, they lighted their cigarettes together. Cigarette smoking is an intercultural behavior and it allowed the South and the North to bond over their common behavior. I thought that this showed the similarities of the South and North Koreans and that they are no different from each other. It was also fascinating how the director pieced everything together through a smooth and clever transition of the scenes. The movie started and ended with the same scene where a photo of the four soldiers was taken by a foreign tourist. The significance of the last picture of the four soldiers is that these four soldiers are all brothers. Although they are in different uniforms, they cannot deny the fact that they are brothers. It is another sad depiction of the divided country and its people.
When I first heard about Park Chan-wook’s JSA, I thought the movie was going to be a war movie that shows the views of South Koreans on the North Koreans, especially since this week theme is about the division in Korea. Surprisingly, the movie was not what I had in mind; I thought the movie would have more intense, violent breakout of a war between the two sides. I heard that JSA was another blockbuster movie that beat Shiri, the first blockbuster from Korea, in terms of viewings, and I can see why. Unlike Shiri, the movie doesn’t show the North Koreans being desperate, harsh, or inhuman because of isolation, diseases, and hungry. Instead, the North Koreans are more humanized than the South Koreans would have thought. This is depicted through the scenes where the North and South Koreans have bonded and became brothers through games, drinking, and smoking. Although the North and South Koreans are on different side, they actually have more in common than they think. However, this brotherhood cannot overcome their country difference and go against their country regime by confessing the truth. This can be seen by the ant crawling around on Sergeant Oh’s hand toward the end. Ants are symbolically important in Park Chan-wook’s movies, like Oldboy. In this particular movie, the ant shows how the North and South Korean soldiers are powerless to their own respective country. Individuals cannot break away from their country or their countries’ scheme.
In this movie the characters from North and South were in two sides of identity. First one was the country that they are living or have citizen. "Country" this word have strong power in this world or society. People living with identity of one or two country. It means Human needs group to live and they have their own rules. Depends on what rules are, some groups collapse each other and fight. North Korea and South Korea have same situation. In this situation, people trying to keep their country identity and makes an effort to increase the level of people's life. At the begining of the film, both North and South protect their territory by army. If we see broadly, every army must in their side. However, in JSA, the army acted personally. I think both identity of country and personal are crashed each other and they are trying to solve the problem as both beneficial solution. The soldiers of North and South grow the friend ship in this movie and showed the humanity of people. Even Korea is still in the war, people of Korea are wanted to be a friend and can be a friend. They helping and sharing their culture and food such as chocopie. Through these activities they are getting closer and closer. However, at the almost end of the film. They have a problem of collapsing of identity. Thus they had to shot the gun to their friend and made a happening or story to make others and their country's pride safe. This movie have powerful message. Even it is not the situation of Korea, similar happening can occur near by us. When we are in this trouble, this movie gave us a parts of the soultion and examplify the conclude.
In this movie, the overlay two scenes and move it to the right to left. This effects showed the dizzy of soo hyuk's vision. It was un usual so i feel like fresh. They used the long shot when soo hyuk was escaping from the North and it gave me more nervous. Also i liked the screen through the screen. It means swiss soldiers recording the video. While they are record it, i could see the face of soldiers' different angle through the screen. Thus i could see two different face in one screen. Extreme close shots when they zooming in to the mine, i could feel friend ship of North and South. North Koran soldiers helped to remove the mine from a South Korean soldier and when soo hyuk sacrifise himself they zooming in to the mine. This scene made me think why he died and what was strong point of the mine. Thriu this mine can be connect person to person and kill all of them. Anyway, the movie was great.
Kelsey Savoy Park Chan-Wook’s film, JSA, explores the existence and nature of neutrality during division. The film employs many repetitive medium to long shots that are perfectly balanced. Shots of the area where South Korean soldiers and North Korean soldiers stand face-to-face have an almost mathematical composition demonstrating how rigid the division is between each country from the outside. Yet when the four soldiers become closer their scenes are not composed so rigidly showing their natural ability to get along regardless of nationality. The film perpetuates division but also illustrates the similarities of the soldiers as humans. When Major Sophie Jean is trying to get the deposition of the two living soldiers, each ignores her in the exact same fashion. A low angle shot shows each Oh and Lee, in their respective scenes, turning over in their hospital beds and ignoring the “neutral” agents towering over them in comparison denoting the soldiers’ powerlessness in the situation. Interestingly, Sergeant Oh’s deposition is played out like a propaganda film as a medium shot portrays Oh smiling and getting along with his comrades with a perfect hairdo, makeup, and most importantly without his facial scar. The lack of the scar within this scene illustrates how Oh is trying to hide his own violent past as a soldier, specifically for the sake of his country. While Lee’s deposition portrays him as a brave hero who singlehandedly took out a room of soldiers who kidnapped him erasing any sense of mad violence to his character. Personally, I felt that this film evoked a more emotional reaction from me than both of the films watched during melodrama week. Instead of a tragic romance, this film illustrated a type of tragic “bromance” and was more successful in making me emotionally involved with the characters’ friendship and brotherhood. The last scene in the movie,which shows the four soldiers coincidentally all in the same photograph, leaves the audience questioning the actual ability for neutrality and friendship to exist between divided people.
There are many interesting points about JSA. First I would point out that typically Korean movies involving North Korea tend to lean towards a Good vs Evil plot. The good, capitalist South Koreans/Americans vs the evil commie north. Often the North Koreans are depicted unhuman-like as if they were pure evil. This is likely due to the tradition that was caused from early film makers receiving training from the american Information Services. This is not the case in this film though. The North Korean soldiers are shown to have a heart. This is first exemplified in the rescuing of Sergeant Lee Soo-hyeok. In a traditional movie the north koreans would have killed him, or left him for dead or captured him. This wasn't the case though. It showed how these soldiers are really family after all. They are people with a common origin, language and goal, the re-unification of Korea, albeit under different forms of government. The friendship they develop shows that reunification could be possible as long as they put aside their differences and learn to deal with others. Despite residing on different sides of the line, they still come together.
Lines are another motif of this film. We often see lines framed on screen. There is the line at the border between the two blue shacks, and the line on the bridge of no return. At both of these locations we are forced to focus on the line, the division while some dialog or other actions take place. This is done to point out the division that is in Korea today. The scene at the guard point with the spitting symbolizes the skirmishes that have taken place there. In the end the spit is just wiped away and both sides laugh and carry on with their lives. I found the line that was the trip wire to be the most interesting one in the movie. Sergeant Oh Kyeong-pil initially appears on the same side of the "line (trip wire)" as Sergeant Lee Soo-hyeok. This is where he takes his weapon. Then when he comes back to save him. He disarms the mine from the other side of this line. I feel that this cross-over foreshadowed the fact that they would eventually have to pick a side to be on, and that in the end they chose opposite sides.
I loved the way that the director started the movie, “Joint Security Area”. He started by showing the result of the incidence and intrigued the audience. Music added onto the suspense in the beginning. In addition, there were sudden changes of atmosphere when there were shifting between present and past; it was solemn and heavy during present scenes but it was rather light and comic during past scenes. I was thrown by the scene where Soo Hyuk and North Korean soldiers first encountered. It was funny how they were alerted by each other’s presence at first, but then they slowly trusted and approached. They treated each other as if they were not enemies. The intimacy that they build throughout the movie made the audience forget where they come from. However, this intimacy became meaningless after they get caught.
I believe the hardest thing of being divided is that South and North Korea once was one country. Yet, as soon as the line was drawn and became two separate countries, families, friends, and lovers were then forced to become enemies. In this movie, it is unfortunate because the four characters themselves know that their friendship is forbidden and that they would have to point each other with guns if they were to have a war. The movie “Joint Security Area” reveals a tragic reality of divided countries, South and North Korea.
The film "JSA" gave a take on the relation between North and South Korean soldiers as there was a bond formed between four of them. I thought that the film was well made as well as good with drawing emotions out through the acting and length of the shots.
I noticed that throughout this film there were two reoccurring cinematic ways of filming. The first was Point-of-View shots. In the very beginning when Sophie Jean walks up the stairs to the Swiss building it is as if you can see what she sees that is her point of view. Another example was when Lee awoke from being unconscious the camera blurred objects and the camera was tilted to convey his view.
Another camera method that was used more than once was handheld camera. This is a way to shoot a scene by holding a camera so the shot appears to be a bit shaky and also gives a realistic and sometimes eerie feel. An example of this was also in the beginning as Jean is about to embark on her mission of trying to reason why the shooting occurred. All in all I think that the film was more emotionally drawing due to the circumstance and the acting job as they made it so believable that the soldiers cared about one another.
I don’t know how many of people know that this film is based on ‘DMZ’ the novel. I came up with the idea of why Sophie (Lee Young Ae) is chosen as a spectator who delivers the story. This movie is more male oriented movie, precisely for Korean males who have been to army or who are eligible for going army. However, I think by setting Sophie as a spectator brings neutralized perspective toward the two ideologies between North and South Korea as she represents. In this perspective, it worked well mitigating conflicts in brutal men-oriented society; military and separation of the nation. According to the book ‘DMZ’ it shows similar feelings toward her father. She came to Korea as an investigator and her father is Korean who left both side of Korea denying ideologies. When she finished investigating, she opened the picture frame that her father’s picture was folded on the backside. This shows relief of her ignorance and hatred toward Korea.
However, this only continues until the real story of how the murder happened. When Sergeant Lee, of south and Sergeant First Class Oh of north develops the narrative, her voices faded away and didn’t appear for long time. At the end, when four of soldiers who are related to the case met the tragic end, that was implying orders and investigation or persuasion can’t free them from forcefully trained ideology.
So this leads to question of how people are adapted in classical conditioning also know for Pavlov’s Dog toward the separation of nation. That’s why Sophie’s role was important to imply the ignorance or indifference that not many people would feel seriously about the condition. Anyways, Koreans are accustomed to the situation of separation that the result is derived in same feelings same reaction. This should not have to be political. That’s why it has several panning shots and dialogues to remind the difference between two sides. Overall, I guess the source of typical Korean male melodrama consists, military and friendship.
During the film, I noticed how the director would use long shots between the North and South soldiers to portray a disconnection between the two. An example of this would be when the two groups of soldiers meet in the snow. An extreme long shot is used to distance the soldiers from each other but the North Korean soldiers are standing in front of a forest while the South Korean soldiers are standing with open land behind them. I thought the forest behind the North Korean soldiers was appropriate for the scene, portraying a sort of mysterious representation of the soldiers and the forest representing North Korea, a place shrouded in secrecy and darkness whereas the open land behind the South Korean soldiers represented a supposed freedom and openness of South Korean society and also capitalism.
However, when filming the 4 soldiers together, even when they are divided by the border and spitting at each other in Panmunjom, the director used close-ups and rapid moving close pan shots between the soldiers to portray a sense of brotherhood. The rapid moving pan shots between the soldiers reminded me of "that 70's Show" where there would be a similar shot/scene during a conversation between friends. The technique gave me the point of view of who the soldiers were talking to, putting myself in a position where I am the friend he is directly talking to.
The director also seemed to use bird's eye view shots frequently. Particularly when filming the soldiers at Panmunjom. They also used the particular angle when filming major jean towards the end of the film when she is discharged due to her father's ties with North Korea. I thought the director used this angle to portray the soldiers and Major Jean as "puppets" of their respective nations and governments. In these bird's eye view angled shots, the camera was always in a medium distance, showing more than one person (except in the scene with Major jean) and portraying a sort of disconnection that is similar to the extreme long shot in the film emphasizing the division between the two sides.
JSA is my favorite film shown in class so far. The tragic story of a brotherly friendship abruptly ended and disguised as a standoff between North and South Korean soldiers during tense times was a refreshing twist from the usual suspenseful, international war theme centered on the division between North and South Korea.
The movie 'Joint Security Area JSA' handles divided country's tragic reality. This movie shows how people live inhumane life because of cutoff of Korea due to the ideology dispute even after the war ends. The movie added some fun scenes such as the scene about Choco Pie to treat these serious theme not too seriously. Actor's acting was awesome so that it could make us feel the pain of the reality we faced more realistically. About structure of the movie, instead of remaining in present progressive form only, the director chooses to cross the present and past freely to show the theme effectively. The end of the movie is very tragic and also leaves an aftertaste. At last, all 4 friends end up terribly, which emphasizes the sacrifice of individuals because of group's dispute. Particularly the final scene of the movie which is the scene Lee Soo Hyuk self suicides shows his feeling of guiltiness toward his friends and also means resistance to the reality. The movie gives us a question that how could relation between person and person become guilty just because their ideology is different. After I saw this movie I was really sad about Korea's current north and south division reality. I was also kind of skeptical about all that ideology that transcend individuals. I wish we, Koreans could at least have some time to share emotional interchange.
Several Korean movies which have succeeded in the past include one of the most nationalistic themes that cannot possibly be ignored in Korean society: the separation and the conflicts of North and South Korea. For instance, Swiri (1998), JSA (2000), and Brotherhood (2003) all include melodramatic situation where two lovers (or brothers) have to point their guns at each other because of their identities. We, Koreans, sometimes call ourselves as “one nation”, but the reality seems nowhere close to this notion. However, these movies fulfill certain desire within Korea toward the idea of reunification, and JSA portrays the tension as well as secretive love-hate relationship between North and South Korea.
I remember watching this movie with my family when I was in elementary school without acknowledging how stylish the movie is; however, when I re-watched it today in the class, the movie seemed as if it can be released in any time now in theaters. It does neither contain brilliant computer effects nor technological adjustment, but the plot and the protagonists’ acting ability made it possible for us (our classmates) to laugh and concentrate at a right time. It also is true that all of the protagonists and the director himself became immensely successful after the release of the movie. We laughed when Lee Soo Hyuk cried, seeking for help to the North Korean soldiers when he stepped on a mine. We also got serious when two brothers, Lee Soo Hyuk and Sergeant Oh, had to face each other on the opposite side and read their fake report that was written in order to protect one another. Although this movie is categorized as war movie, I would say that the mixture of humor and seriousness also indicate that Park Chan Wook can create hybrid-genre as well. Lastly, the photos in the movie indicate captured moments that cannot be retrieved again. They exchange their uniforms and take last photo before the incident. Another photo in the last scene of the movie represents four brothers in one.
“Joint Security Area” has become one of my favorite movies. It presents us with such a sad story about the division of North and South Korea in a very profound way. The division creates mistrust and hostility between the North and the South people; yet it cannot cut out the deep connections between them. The saddest part is to see how the brutal reality of politics and ideologies severed the pure and simple friendship built between the four soldiers. The short bridge between the North and South border house symbolizes the division of the people. Yet at the same time, it is also used to connect the two sides. Soo-hyeok and Seong-sik crossed it to meet and spend time with Sergeant Oh and Private Jung. The tragic cross shooting also happened over the bridge. This bridge just keeps reminding me of the painful reality of how easy and difficult at the same time it is to connect with the other side.
There is a sharp turn of atmosphere from warm and happy to rigid and dangerous when the North Korean officer discovered the four’s meeting. Such contrast awoke the fact that the two sides are still enemies in spite of the four’s close friendship. The relaxed music accompanying the four’s meeting came to a sudden stop as the Officer put out his gun, symbolizing the start of hostility. When the Korean pop music sounded from the cassette player, the officer tried to reach out for his communicator and was shot down by Seong-sik. It was reasonable to think that the officer was trying to turn off the communicator so that the other North Korean soldiers would not hear the pop music from it. However, mistrust between the two people caused Seong-sik to shoot and led to the tragic shootings afterwards. This shows the deep impact of long-time division has on the people, which are the most tragic aspects of the division.
The film tells the story using flashbacks and re-enactments of both countries’ reports of the incident. This creates a sense of suspense and is really effective in drawing the audience into the story. Since it is a very sentimental story, medium and close shots of the characters are used to convey strong emotions. When Seong-sik jumped off the building in an attempt to suicide, there is an extreme close shot of Soo-hyeok’s eyes, showing his astonishment. When the North Korean officer appeared outside the door of the border house, each character was given a close shot of his face. We can see their expressions changing from smiles to terrified.
Overall, I think “Joint Security Area” is a terrific film, leading the audience to reflect on the North and South division and its impact on the people.
Chan-wook Park’s JSA: Joint Security Area is a film that examines the relationship between the communist North Korea and the western influenced, South Korea at both an individual level and a national level. Throughout the film director Park uses scenes of military exercises and equipment in addition to a patriotic soundtrack to convey a sense of seriousness about the conflict at the DMZ between North and South Korea. However the film delves far deeper than the national level of conflict to the individual level. Through the lengthy flashbacks, director Park unveils the mystery behind the deaths of the North Korean “border patrol.” After a two North Korean soldiers save a South Korean soldier’s life, the South Korean attempts to make contact to the people who saved his life. Eventually he gathers his courage and crosses the DMZ and becomes friends with the North Koreans. Because of the instability between the North and the South this is unheard of, however director Park chooses to show this in order to show to the audience that in order to overcome adversity it starts with an individual. Although the two nations are at war the South Korean soldiers and North Korean soldiers are able to befriend each other. Director Park takes us back to reality when a North Korean general catches the group hanging out and a Wild West shoot out occurs. The once uplifting hope between uniting two nations is crushed when the South Korean soldiers killed their close North Korean friend. However director Park reignites this hope through the last scene in the movie that shows the picture of all four Korean soldiers. In the picture, nobody except the four soldier friends are looking at the camera and a sense of happiness can be felt.
Unlike predicted, JSA depicted a heart-warming friendship bond between the North and South Korean soldiers which was nearly impossible at that time. I liked that the movie did not focus fully on the cruel war story. The extreme long shots are used to present the separation of the North and South in scenes of showing the bridge that cannot be crossed or the DMZ line. Another frequently used shot is the extreme close shots. Extreme close shots of eyes or mouth show the emotions of the actor Gangho Song to the fullest. The rotation shot of the four soldiers is good way to show that the four soldiers are no different and they have a close bond to each other. Even though there was a distinct separation between North and South soldiers, in the end scene showing the photo taken by a foreign traveller, the four soldiers were seen in clearly in one photo. All four actors` acting was awesome. They showed their tragic moments very well and expressed the cute friend relationship to the greatest. The ending was cruel and unfortunate, but overall the movie was very well made and was favourable.
“JSA” is a film primarily about the friendships between four soldiers from North and South Korea. I really love the way how director, Park Chan-wook, tells the whole story. In the beginning of the film, we could only know that there was something happened between North and South Korea. But in the process of Sophie’s investigation, the friendships between the four soldiers were gradually revealed.
In the end of the film, we see the picture of the four main characters. This is in fact the first picture of four of them. I like that in the film, director first used the bird’s-eye shot in the scene that Sergeant Oh picked up the girl’s hat, so we could find out in the end that the four characters were actually there in that scene. In the picture, Sergeant Oh and Jung seemed very relaxed, in contrast to Sergeant Lee and Nam, who looked more serious and nervous. This might indicate that in the friendship between these four soldiers, Sergeant Lee and Nam seemed to be the ones who bore more pressures. I think that it may be because they did not completely trust Sergeant Oh and Jung. Likewise, in the memory of Sergeant Lee, we saw that PFC Nam kept telling him something like they really need to be careful or this might be a trap and that PFC Nam was the one who cruelly killed PTE Jung. However, we found out in the end that Sergeant Lee was actually the one who killed PTE Jung. Therefore, I think it showed that Sergeant Lee did not really trust the other two soldiers and he just tried to rationalize his suspicion by making PFC Nam the one who warned him all the time in his memory. I believe this also caused him to commit suicide since after Sophie pointed out that he was actually the one who killed PTE Jung, he could no longer deny the truth and he then needed to face the guilt. To me, the ending of this film is very sad that they paid too much for doing nothing really wrong.
I was somewhat surprised when I saw JSA today because it was not what I expected at all. I learned about the movie from another class and knew that it was about the tensions between the North and South; I expected this movie to be tailored more towards bloodshed and war, but it was actually about bridging the gap between the two nations torn by war. Hearing about the recent threats made by North Korea also made me question the realism behind the film because the characters representative of the North and the South seemed to get along rather easily, which probably doesn’t happen in the real world. Some other things I noticed about this film include the extensive use of close up/extreme close up shots along with a dizzying 360 degree pan with the camera put on a pivot (I haven't seen this technique used in the past Korean films we've watched in this class).
One particular scene that stuck out to me was when Sgt. Lee was retreating back to the South’s side of the bridge (of no return?), just after he and Private Nam killed the two North Korean soldiers. Lee fell down while he was halfway across the bridge and lays on the ground, staring into the sky. The camera focuses on a close up of his face before it begins to rotate counterclockwise while panning out, ultimately achieving a bird’s eye view, medium shot of Lee being carried away. From this pan we are able to see bullets fly through the air while debris falls on Sgt. Lee as he lays motionless on the ground. In this moment very moment, the audience is able to see Lee in shock because it took merely a minute for these soldiers to transition from laughing friends to the sworn enemies their countries predisposed them to become. I thought this scene was epic because both parties sacrificed their lives in attempt to achieve unity between the North and the South. Their failure in the process just goes to show the strength of the feud between these two nations and how they’d rather take each other out than fix the division that’s torn them apart.
There is certainly a lot going on within JSA but one of the central themes that the movie explores is the possibility of unity between North and South Korea. This is symbolized through the friendship between South Korean soldiers Soo-Hyeok and Sung-shik with the North Koreans Kyung-pil and Jeong Woo-jin. At first Sung-sik is particularly apprehensive about meeting up with the sworn enemy but shortly after being introduced to the North Koreans by Soo-Hyeok it doesn’t take long at all before all four are merrily drinking together, showing off photographs of their loved-ones and even eventually exchanging addresses.
At the same time as the movie explores the appeal of unity though, the tension of ideological differences always linger in the background and at several key-points throughout the film we see the soldiers lamenting over the fact that the ever present difference in ideology will most likely always serve as an obstructive barrier between the two nations. One great scene that illustrates this is when Soo-Hyeok hands over a Choco-Pie to Kyung-pil. Whilst Kyung-pil is enjoying the delicious taste of the common South Korean treat, Soo-Hyeok works up the courage to ask him if he would ever consider heading South and jokingly adds that Kyung-pil could then eat as many Choco-Pies as his heart desires. The atmosphere turns heavy almost instantly as Kyung-pil gives Soo-Hyeok an intensely cold and serious glance, remarking that he only dreams the great communist state will open up factories one day to produce the finest Choco-Pies that would make its citizens proud.
Another interesting point to make about JSA is that the depictions provided of the characters from the North and South are incredibly complex. Even though it is a South Korean movie, the North Korean Kyung-pil is in some respects depicted as even more ‘human’ to his South Korean counterparts. This is best illustrated in the scene when Soo-Hyeok first gets to know Kyung-pil and Woo-jin. Soo-Hyeok unknowingly ventures into Northern territory during a routine patrol and accidentally makes contact with the trip-wire for a mine. With no means of escape, he is left standing stationary. After some time Kyung-pil and Woo-jin turn up and after hearing out Soo-Hyeok’s desperate pleas Kyung-pil clearly shows that he actually has some compassion as a human-being as he decides to deactivate the mine and save his enemy’s life. Needless to say, it is mainly for this reason that Soo-Hyeok starts to look up to Kyung-pil and explains why Soo-Hyeok was so open to becoming friends with the two North Korean troops.
The overall theme seems to point to the superficial divide that lies between North and South Korea. The maintenance of the divide appears redundant and contrived; just an order from the higher authorities. The composition in shots accentuates this theme; in most of the shots, things were distinctly placed side by side, or separated by fine lines. For example, there was a scene when the shot exited the frame by moving upwards. This created a sort of line and divide between that particular shot and the next, thus appearing to divide the North and the South metaphorically. However, this divide appears artificial, soldiers at the DMZ befriend each other, or have fun at work (teasing each other/spitting games). This makes the film sentimental; soldiers who could have been friends are being separated by a mere political divide. However, the film also showcases the futility of trying to close the divide. This can be demonstrated by Lee Soo-hyeok’s words of ‘we are enemies, after all’; even true friendship is still overcome by different political ideologies. The scene where Major Sophie appears to take a side by heading towards one end of the crossroad from a bird’s eye shot is also made ironic by the fact that her father was a North Korean general. Even though individual soldiers might want to close the divide, they are still bound by their political and national roots.
I also find that scenes of sad or dangerous events to be eerily poetic and beautiful. For example, the opening scene where the subtitles appear after the owl flies away is quite artistic, but we know later on that it was where the bullet shot through the wall. Also, when Nam Seong-sik fell out of the window in slow motion, the shot is also morbidly beautiful; the arrangement of the broken shards of glass and Nam Seong-sik was beautifully arranged. I also feel that the film ended on a hopeful albeit sad note. In the last scene, Sergeant Oh Kyung-pil returns the American her cap, and both the North and South Korean playing the spitting game were in the frame. In this shot, there were no clear lines dividing the North and the South; instead, the North appears to be marching towards the South. However, we know that Lee Soo-hyeok, Nam Seong-sik, and Jeong Woo-jin, comrades in trying to close the divide, had all died; thus symbolising that while hopes to unite are present, it is still a futile dream.
As I am one of the Korean citizens, the movie Joint Security Area: JSA made me feel sorrowful about history of my own country. This movie is a mystery thriller film that depicts friendship between two separated North and South Koreans through investigating a shooting incident. One of the most significant things about this movie was how the movie was composed. Unlike any other movies, this movie repeatedly goes back to the past before the incident happened and comes to the present where the incident is being investigated. The back-and-forth between the past and present follows the order of how the investigation is processed. This could help audience not to lose the tension and curiosity about what actually happened and who killed two soldiers of North Korea until the end. Moreover, director of the movie uses many close-up shots and extreme close-up shots in order to convey the emotions of characters in detail. Through closing up to their faces and eyes, audience could realize how they are feeling.
Compared to other movies that Park Chan-wook have made, “Joint Security Area” is less violent though the blood were shed during the movie. This movie depicts the definite division of the North and the South through many objects such as ‘the bridge of no return’ and just one imaginary line drawn at ‘panmunjum’ without any barriers. Also, the owl comes up few times symbolizing the alertness and the surveillance along the both sides in one country. However, Park Chan-wook tries to illustrate the neutrality through four soldiers, two from the North and two from the South. He captured emotions from those four main characters through serial middle shots, close shots, and extreme close shots of their faces and eyes. Despite the history, those four continued their friendship across the border. Moreover, what I found interesting in this movie was that Park demonstrated the South soldiers more childish like babies when faced hardships while the North as competent, calm, and brave. I think this could be the reversal part of this movie.
Film, JSA was very touching movie, to me personally. The movie elaborates on inner conflicts that were happening between the soldiers of North and South. At the Joint Security Area, where there shouldn't be any feelings of attachment and warmth, there were two Northern and Southern soldiers who felt brotherhood and attachments to each other. But, repeatedly through out the movie, the long take of showing the Panmoonjum line, emphasizes the point, that they were still enemies. A camera composed a frame with a line and in between spaces, and the angle was looking straight from above to the ground. This kind of take was shown a lot in between the scenes. This take explains how North and South cannot be friends even though, they share common enjoyment and feelings of brotherhood. In addition, the long take of the bridge that divides North and South indicates that North and South are divided and still present in war (even though they agreed a truce) It was very tragic to see how Northern and Southern soldiers were connected and felt brotherhood.. and after one of the northern soldiers was killed by Southern soldier, they both were suffering from the fact that they had to hide their precious memories because, they are indeed, enemies, not brothers. The last shot of the film that composed of these four soldiers was very touching at the same time, tragic. That picture holds the whole inside story of the film and all the feelings are in the shadows of their smiles. The film to my thoughts, was very successful of depicting not only the time period and history of that era, but also this sort of humanness and warm feelings.
Joint Security Area takes place in Korea, the only one divided country in the world, especially in Panmunjom, the demilitarized zone. The movie describes the rigidity and irony of war, which eventually leads friends killing each other for no good reason. Is the ideology that important? So that friends have to aim their guns each other? What if it is not their ideology, but the each government’s? In the movie, the soldiers first call one another “the enemies” but later on, they call each other “brothers”. In front of war, they have to obey the order— to remain vigilant and to kill each other, although they think each other brothers. War was occurred in order to pursue each ideology of each part of Korea, to pursue their happiness. However, ironically, those men have to aim their guns and eventually kill one another due to the order. In the movie, there are many scenes that shows lines, which metaphors the division, just like what "the bridge of no return" means. Also the cigarette is a symbol of the brotherhood, since they used to smoke together greeting each other without saying something. Also when the brothers get along together after saving one’s life from mine, they exchange things from each country. Before they finally aim their guns each other, they probably knew what is could be happen eventually that their memories are too cruel.
Hyungkwon Lee The film Joint Security Area portrays not only portrays the dual contrary aspects of capitalism and communism, and of the North and South Korea. JSA itself represents an area that reflects coexistence of contrary ideologies. However, it is also visible to discover the step toward reconciliation by portraying the friendship of the soldiers of both nations. Regardless of the wills of the protagonists, they thoroughly have to threaten each other and the tension at Panmunjom is at peak. However, the portrayal of the reconciliation suggests a humane especially in that they call themselves brothers and give birthday gifts. Even though they unwillingly had to discriminate and marginalize each other, the brotherhood of one root that shares the same history and ancestors enhances the sorrow and wound that has long been forgotten. The strong bond was especially emphasized through the scenes where Lee Byunghun decides to kill himself in order for Song Kwangho not to be in danger However it is also emphasized that their regained brotherhood and affection could not eventually overcome their barriers, which significantly enhances the ideological tension and hardship in thoroughly integrating them into one society. Such portrayal was enhanced through the long take and extreme close shots (when they sacrifice themselves for the sake of counterparts).
“JSA” is a film that analyzes deeply complex and multi-faceted issues stemming from Korea’s history. However, its message is clear. By humanizing the North Korean soldiers, the film reveals its anti-war sentiment. While criticizing the current relationship between the two Koreas, the director also highlights the hostile history between them. As I was reading up on the film, I came across the story of the Poplar Tree Incident where two US soldiers were killed by North Koreans in the JSA. I found out that the director used this tree to border the left side of the frame in a scene depicting the Bridge of No Return. In this way, the director reminds the viewers of the past hostility between the North and the South. This is truly a brilliant and very overlooked detail of the film in that it juxtaposes the harsh reality of the North-South relations and the blossoming friendship of the four soldiers. The dark tree looms over the bridge, foreshadowing the inevitable tragedy to come.
Another scene that I really appreciated was when Sergeant Lee convinces Private Nam to cross the border and meet his friends in the North Korean bunker. All that can be seen are the two soldiers’ combat boots and the small concrete line that divides them. While Sergeant Lee’s feet are grounded and steady, you can see Private Nam’s hesitation as his boots wriggle around and sway. This scene was effective in the way that it showed both the physical and mental hesitation in Private Nam. He is unable to confidently cross the line since he understands what it might mean; he is an enemy of South Korea. Whether Nam understands what he is fighting for or not, he does know what he should and should not do. Private Nam’s unwillingness to cross highlights that in the end, these four men are soldiers for their respective countries with strict orders they must obey. Although it was humorous to see Nam’s cowardice, there is a definite underlying tension in the scene. In these ways, the director creates a humorous but an also contrastingly serious and tense atmosphere that he never fails to remind the viewers about.
Joint Security Area - My grandpa longed for the reunification of the Koreas. Korea’s history is very heartbreaking because the same nationality is divided -my grandpa never got to see his family ever again... North and South used to be one, one family. Because I grew up knowing about my grandpa’s plight, I feel closer whenever talking about North Korea -I have cousins that I’ve never met there...
While watching this movie, I teared up in many scenes because it reminded me that the Korean War is not over and that it’s a real tragedy. One recurring word is: “hyung.” In Korea, it is a title used to show respect to older boys or a more accurate translation is older siblings (for guys). When hearing this word, I thought of two ideas. 1) the characters understand each other because they are using the same language 2) they are brothers. 같은민족: same nationality
North Korea is geographically close yet politically so separated from South Korea. All Koreans grow up with the fear of North Korean military aggression. In the movie, this idea was shown in the extreme closeups -in their eyes and the sweat... Although North Koreans share the same language, similar features, and same history as the South Koreans, the two countries are living different lifestyles. The South Korean soldier brought foreign goods for North Koreans which shows how some North Koreans are aware of how “better” it is on the other side. Ex: The North Korean soldier tried to send his dog to South Korea because there are better things to eat on the other side.
I was happy to see the 2 North Korean soldiers and 2 South Korean soldiers hanging out but it was sad because whenever they talked about war, it got really emotional. Would they have to shoot each other in battle? There seems to be no answer to this tragic story. --Was the director on North Korea's side? Was the director on South Korea's side? It seemed to be neutral... Because, the problem of this story was: the 4 soldiers were at peace. Why? What happened? Or the question I want to ask is similar to my grandpa's. When will there be reunification?
The movie ‘Joint Security Area JSA’ is a my favorite film shown in this class so far. The JSA is story of tragic friendship between North Korean and South Korean military. The saddest part was shooting each other even though they trust and love each other, but they had to kill each other due to reality of politics and ideologies even though they had such a strong friendship. It was very sad situation. The scene that Lee su-hyuk tells the truth to Lee young-ae to save the guy from North Korea was very touching. In addition, a scene that north Korean guy hit the table, yelling at Lee su-hyuk with anger when Lee su-hyunk and north korean met to compare their statement was questionable. I don’t think that he yelled to lee su-hyuk because he is really mad. I think he wanted lee su-hyuk become stronger and do not feel guilty to him. He also behaves for south Korean, lee su-hyuk. It was also very touching scene. I also loved how this movie starts. In the very beginning of this movie, the director shows us the result of the incident. This story line attracted my attention. Overall, this movie was awesome and now I want to watch more this kind of movies. I long for the unification of South and North Korea soon!
The movie JSA begins with the sound of gunshots and a close-up long shot of an owl flying away. This creates a mysterious and gloomy atmosphere of the movie. I think the fact that the director used an owl in the beginning was to show the role of Lee Young Ae, being a general who came from Geneva as a case investigator. Like an owl looking over from one of the highest points on the mountain to keep an eye of what is going on around, she was there to silently investigate. She remains neutral to both sides of Korea, but it was ironic that her father was a North Korean general and her daughter visits Korea for the first time in her life as to investigate an incident between the two Koreas being completely neutral to both.
Despite the personal relationships one might have with another, the soldiers at the DMZ are being separated into two, the South and the North just because of the political tension that exists between the two nations. It does not only reflect the soldiers of South and North Korea being enemies, but everybody from each side of the peninsula forcefully lived as enemies to each other since the division.
Mainly the movie was about the four soldiers building friendships while it was forbidden for them to cross the border and have contact. Maybe it was this idea of forbidding something that allowed the four soldiers to be more tight and felt like they are together because the only preventing factor from them to become friends was the political barrier that existed in between them. They involuntarily hated each other from what they have been taught throughout years in their own countries.
However, there were two important scenes where it reflected that the soldiers never should have been friends after all and tells that it is actually difficult to overcome their barriers was when Kyung-pil eats chocopie that he got from Soohyuk. He seems to be enjoying the taste of the pie then Soohyuk asks if he wants to come over to the South with him and have as much as chocopies as he wants. All the sudden the atmosphere changes and Kyung-pil tells Soohyuk with a heavy voice that he only dreams of the North making better tasting Chocopies than the South and it is his dream to carryout such duty. Furthermore, Soohyuk was saying towards the end of the movie when they all were pointing guns at each other were that they were “enemies after all”. No matter the emotional, personal connections they shared all together as friends these two significant scenes indicate that their political background still wasn’t able to penetrate the true friendship they shared. I think this also indicates that despite all our hopes to unite as one, it has been unfortunate and unless the political barriers are to be overcame we would still remain as "enemies after all".
This is filmed in 2000 by Park Chan Wook director. This movie is a story of tragic friendship between North Korean and South Korean military at the Joint Security Area. First, the movie develops with Lee Su-hyuk’s flashback. However, later when another flashback is told by Oh Kyung-pil to General Sophie, who really killed Jung Woo-jin is revealed. Lee Su-hyuk, not Nam Sung-sik killed Jung Woo-jin. Nam Sung-sik shot Jung Woo-jin many times in the mass. This shows that Nam Sung-sik’s shots were not accidental. If it was accidental he might have not shot like that many times. I think it was because weak-hearted Nam Sung-sik felt a sense of betrayal, and fear toward Jung Woo-jin when he was pointed a gun by Jung Woo-jin. After the person who really killed Jung Woo-jin is revealed, and Lee Su-hyuk gets to know that it was him who killed Jung Woo-jin, he commits suicide. Lee Su-hyuk seems not to remember the fact that he killed Jung Woo-jin until General Sophie tells the fact to him. I think he does self-justification, because of the pain that he would undergo if he recognizes the fact that he killed his friend. So, knowing the fact, Lee Su-hyuk gets out of self-justification, and seems to feel guilty so much. That fact tortures him much. That’s why he commits suicide. I think the lighter plays an important role here. Oh Kyung-pil gives back the lighter to Lee Su-hyuk. However, later, Lee Su-hyuk doesn’t take the lighter with him. I think Oh Kyung-pil gives the lighter back because he gives up the hope that they can be friends. This also means that he gives up the hope that North Korean and South Korean can be friends. For Lee Su-hyuk’s behavior that he doesn’t take the lighter with him, I think it is because of a sense of guilt, and he may already has decided to commit suicide. The ending was quite confusing. I was especially confused when characters in the movie talk about the bullet numbers, which guns were used, and how the bullet was shot to get the truth. This movie has implications that North Korean and South Korean are the same people, and they can be friends, but the fact that they are from divided countries restrict everything.
JSA was a great movie to watch. I’ve seen it before in my previous Korean Culture Class but seeing it again made me realize different points in the story. I recently went to watch the musical, “그날들” (a musical using Kim Kwang Suk’s songs) and was exposed to his songs and was surprised that his song was in this movie. It thought it was a great choice for the movie. The lyrics go great with the movie’s story line. “So that I’ll remember our times together warmth, you grow smaller as the whistles fades, it’s a new start, the dreams of my youth, my reflection in the mirror, hardens with my mind, atop that hill, would I see home.” I was also confused at the end of the movie. When Private Nam Seong-sik commits suicide, he “flashbacks” to the night of the incident and shows a image of him killing Private Jeong Woo-jin, but when Sergeant Lee Soo-hyeok commits suicide, it shows an image of him firing the shot. I wasn’t sure whose flashback was the correct one. I thought it could be Sergeant Lee Soo-hyeok’s flashback that was true because it was shown towards the end of the movie. Also, since Major Sophie E. Jean said there was something missing in the story that could have been what was missing.
Won Jae Chang Park Chan-Wook’s film, JSA, represents the division of North and South Korea. Four men (two from North and two from South) who have different ideology, form a brotherhood and friendship. The background of this film is a sensitive part for all Koreans because the Korean War is still going on. Unlike the other related war movies, the director has portrayed both sides as equal position. In other words, he has not put North Korean as stereotypical evil people. Instead, he puts them as friendly and funny people allowing the audience to see that they are just simply Koreans. While the film contains violent scenes like gun fire, it also contains the beautiful scenes. For example, the scene where South Korean soldiers and North Korean Soldiers are facing each other at the snow field (which takes place in DMZ) shows beautiful view of surrounding environment. Throughout the film, there are many shot techniques. The director often shows the line that divides North and South through the view from top or side. Through panning shot, the camera moving with foreign tourist movement at Panmunjom clearly shows the line that divides North and South and the confrontational situation at JSA. When Sergeant. Lee and Private Nam try to close the line to North side, the camera focuses on a close up of their foot. (In reality, nobody is allowed to close the division line.) At the beginning of the film, the scene shows a broad view of North side of Panmunjom through eye level shot from South side. The extreme close up shot skill is often used to show the various expressions on people’s face. Overall, the movie was incredibly fantastic. The mixture of all kind of genre is perfectly associated well. Even though I was once member of Korean army, I never knew about JSA well. Also, it reminded my memories of army life. I could say that JSA was the best movie I have ever seen throughout my life.
-Sorry,I submitted my response paper late, due to technical problem on my laptop.
JSA is one of many films that touches upon Korea's painful past as a nation split into two halves. With this in mind, symmetry becomes a very important visual element of this film, whether subjects are portrayed as being on opposite sides, or in the middle of two sides. This can be seen in shots of the DMZ, where the soldiers are standing on their respective sides, in the scene where Soo Hyuk is trying to get his friend to cross the line to the North with their boots shown on either side of the line, and also in the scene where Soo Hyuk is driven away from the crime scene. In this third scene, Sgt. Oh is placed in the middle of the shot, between two objects, as if to mentally and emotionally put him in between the two sides. This effect is deliberate and creates very powerful visual language throughout the film. The camera does quite a bit of moving around in this movie, often following subjects in tight, close shots, rather than having them move around in wider shots. This adds to the intimacy between friends, while also demonstrating the tension between opposing sides. While this was effective, there were other elements that were not so successful. For example, the beginning of the film was a little strange. Scenes were broken up unnaturally, one transition sliding across the screen, much like a PowerPoint presentation effect, which was bothersome. Also, when Nam jumps out the window, strange effects are used to freeze time and highlight the moment, but it does not fit it the look of the film overall. These odd moments seem to be less frequent as the film progresses, but stood out to me. On another note, I know it cannot be helped, as the part was played by a Korean actress, but the idea that Sophie was Swedish and had never been to Korea was a tough sell with her strong accent while speaking English.
The different aspects of the film work together to create a strong, impacting idea of the complications of Korea's attempt to “overcome a history of agony and disgrace”. This film, unlike others who tend to portray the North in a more negative light, is much more tragic. It goes to show the underlying aversion to the separation, even amongst those actually doing the fighting. This is clear in the scene where the soldiers from each side meet in the snow and, not wanting to be the ones to shoot first, stop to have a smoke together and part ways. While the guys are having fun and arm wrestling together, the camera closes in on their arms, demonstrating their desire to be brothers, while visually representing the constant push and pull between North and South, even though both sides are holding hands geographically, historically, and emotionally. They are so intertwined that there is no easy solution to this issue, which becomes clear with the events revealed at the end of the movie. This is a very intense moment, bringing up an issue dealing with loyalty and also of trust, among friends, fellow countrymen, and comrades. Everyone questions one another at that moment, possibly making the point that, even though people do not want to be separated any longer, it is an impossibility and they cannot ever be brothers.
This movie stirs up many different emotions with the backbone of the division of the Korean Peninsula. JSA successfully provides a different view of the relationship between the south and the north: friendship can exist on a smaller, personal scale, contrasting with the bigger picture of war tension and hostility. The friendship between the officers from the south and the north comes from great amount of humanity, trust, and naivety because officers from both sides are literally putting their lives on the line just to play children games like jacks and cock fight. It almost seems like they created this dream environment of utopia of bromance. However, it shatters when an outsider points his gun at Officer Soo Hyuk to awaken everyone that Korean War never really ended. The existence of loyalty between these "brothers" are painfully complicated and cannot be kept in peace. The meaning of trust becomes a question again as the officers pull out their guns and point to each other. The last scene of Soo Hyuk's suicide after his realization of his killing may be the last resort to maintain that last bit of "loyalty" and "brotherhood" by killing himself.
Some of the most memorable film techniques used in JSA are panning and solo shots. Panning in a circle is used as a transition from face to face of officers sitting around a table and sharing stories under a single light. Panning also occurs when one scene transition back in time as a character reminisces a past event. The focus of the camera moves sideways to a dark ambiguous space that smoothly introduces a new setting, paired with a subtitle telling the time and the date of the event. Solo cuts of the characters are very common as the plot of the story includes Sophie Jean questioning the officers for the truth. The use of solo shots reflect how heavy and important each character is, regarding the shooting incident. The solo shot is also great to capture the character's determination to protect his "comrades" or "brothers," regarding the incident.
"Joint Security Area" portrays bittersweet situation along South and North Korean border. The director utilizes flashbacks effectively to complete the puzzle of the incident. In the beginning, we didn't know who started shooting and what caused the mass murder. We only get to see a part of the story, when the South Korean soldiers escape back to borderline. Lee Young Ae, the investigator from switzerland gives up to stand in neutral position because she wanted to maintain friendship between Byung-hun Lee and Kang-ho Song. At the end of the movie Kang-ho Song forgives Byung-hun Lee. "I would have shot first if I were on South Korean side" The movie and the historical background in 2000 are parallel. 2000 was the start of new millenium as well as the start of active diplomatic activity between the South and the North. President Kim first visited Pyongyang with warm welcome from the General secretary of North Korea. Although the relationship between the North and the South recently went cold, the movie reminds us the hopeful time when reunification was indeed possible. In addition, the movie emphasizes that North Korean and South Korean soldiers both share common interests, such as tv celebrities, women, choco pie, sports, etc.
The movie JSA was about the brotherhood of the north and south Koreans that showed even though the country was split in half few people still had this friendship with each other. The beginning through the middle of the movie, it was confusing at first because two men, Soo Hyuk and Gyung Pil (idk how to spell his name..) were both lying about the incident that killed two men and wounded two other men. It was interesting to see how Sophie tried to figure out even though no body in both side of the military camp wanted anyone to know the truth because the two (actually three) soldier who survived from the incident wanted to cover each other from getting into a big trouble. When Sophie finally got a sense of what had really happened, one solider committed suicide but failed, and even though this solider tried to kill himself because of Sophie trying so hard to figure out the truth, she does not take this as a warning but a good sign to dig in deeper and she later causes Soo Hyuk to kill him self.
The director used many different techniques to show how brotherhood of Koreans are sort of sticky and strong that even if the country is divided in half to fight each other, they just have to be friends with each other. There were short moments where the director showed how the soldiers from north and south are similar, like when Soo Hyuk accidentally stepped on a land mine the soldiers from the north just wanted to survive--even if that means to save the enemy to survive together. This event led them to build stronger friendship later on that eventually leads Gyung Pil to kind of betray his own teammate to coverup Soo Hyuk's friend's murder which caused to mess up each one's minds to kill themselves later on. But it was very interesting to see how Gyung Pil chose to save the soldiers from the south to value their friendship and brotherhood from enemy side.
The movie Joint Security Area by Park Chan-Wook was the first movie which brought a huge success in Korean film industry. It broke the record in the box office after a famous movie called Shiri by Kang Je-Gyu in 1999. Riding the trend of Korean action blockbuster after a huge success of Shiri, Park Chan-Wook directs the murder thriller about the death of North Korean soldiers on Demilitarized zone. The movie Joint Security Area not only talks about the tension between the North and South Korea, but also their humanity and friendship between them. Park Chan-Wook tried to portray the image of unity by showing the brotherhood and friendship between two North Korean soldiers (Woo-Jin, Kyung-pil) and two South Korean soldiers (Soo-Hyeok, Sung-Sik). However, at the same time, it clearly showed a fear in their eyes that in one day they have to trigger their guns to each other. There was one scene where Soo-Hyeok wanted to introduce Sung-Sik to his North Korean friends, Woo-Jin and Kyung-Pil. In this scene, Sung-Sik shivers his legs and fears to pass the line of the North and South boundary. This represent the "fear" of the war between North and South Korea.
Moreover, there are some mysterious scenes in this film. One scene I remember was that Sung-Sik repeatedly shot at Woo-Jin dead body. I was curious why Sung-Sik shot repeatedly eight times at a dead body and why he tried to commit suicide while investigating this murder case. Moreover, I was curious whether or not Soo-Hyeok knew that he was the one who shot Woo-Jin in the head. At the end of the movie, when Sophie told him that he was the one who shot Woo-Jin, he commits a suicide. I wonder why Sung-Sik tried to commit suicide since he was not the one who killed Woo-Jin in the first time. It was heartbreaking to see Soo-Hyeok and Sung-Sik tried to kill themselves due to their guilt for Woo-Jin's death.
At first, JSA was a movie that I had no idea what was happening. I knew that the conflict was between North and South Korea but was not sure who was on which side. My confusion was rooted in trying to figure out which uniforms belonged to who. They looked extremely similar which might be intended for a foreign audience to be confused as I was. I had a suspicion that the North Koreans were the ones with the red on their uniforms but was not completely sure until about 2/3 into the movie. This confusion was due to the flashbacks that did not really make themselves evident as there were no zoom-ins to the character to show a moment of introspection. This might have been intentional to show that the soldiers involved were really not that different at all. They were so similar that their allegiance to their country was blurred by appearing just as Korean men from the same homeland. The fact that they were young men with fears of going into war and sharing the same ancestry blurred the visual distinction of whose allegiance was whose. At the end of the movie, it is very apparent however who is who and the picture at the end is a nice touch to show the distinction clearly. The South Koreans have glasses on while the North Koreans have smiles on their faces in traditional military attire. The South Koreans look solemn and mean business as their sunglasses hide their emotions because their eyes are covered. The South Korean is also attempting to cover the photographer's attempts to take the picture while the North Koreans cherish the attempt as they are smiling and the North Korean in the back makes an exaggerated military step that makes him look comedic. The stark differences in this picture show the South Korean side more confrontational and less peaceful. This last picture seems to favor the North Korean side as more kind people. Although another picture of the men were taken, the movie did not end with this picture. Instead it ended with this confrontational picture denoting the men with different intentions in mind. The South Koreans were suspicious of the North Korean's intentions but it seems like the South Koreans look more intimidating and menacing as they hid their emotions behind a pair of sunglasses. Heartfelt movie that touches on what humanity is, JSA is one of the best of the semester.
Joint Security Area, known as JSA is a mystery thriller film directed by Park Chan-wook who is famous for the ‘Vengeance Trilogy.’ The movie is based on the novel DMZ and deals with a mysterious shooting incident involving South Korea and North Korea’s soldier at DMZ. The movie is seen by the point of view of Sophie, who is a Swiss Army Major from the Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission came for the investigating the incident. The movie uses a frame story, which is a story within a story. Throughout the movie, there are scenes where the story portrays the past to depict what the incident was about. I think the movie really depicts the current (even though the movie was released 13 years ago, Korea is still a divided country) situation as the one and only divided country. As the movie draws the friendship between the South and North Korea’s soldiers at DMZ, and how the shooting incident finally sums up the friendship between them. I think director Park did a good job in depicting the tragedy of Korea’s situation as a divided country through the concept of friendship between the soldiers. Even though DMZ is a place full of tension and hostile relationships, the relationship between Soo-hyeok, Seong-sik from South Korea and Kyung-pil and Woo-jin from North Korea shows the humanistic side of both soldiers and how they become real brothers with same heritage. As the movie represents how the soldiers from both sides become friends even though they distrust at each other at first just because of the situation of divided country, it shows we all are from same country and there is no need to divide the country by South and North. As both side of soldiers share the stories of their families, and the life as soldiers, they share the hardships and build friendship. The movie based on a story of Korean history as a divided country cannot avoid the sad ending because of the current situation. However, through the depiction of humanistic side of the soldiers and how they all are friends, not enemies, the movie suggests a hope for the unification of the country.
Hae Jung, Min
ReplyDeleteJSA was the best movie I have ever seen this year not only because of the story, but also because it triggered me to think back that maybe all the truths I have been believing may have been just the rationalization from my perspective and my schema. The impossible truth of 4 soldiers (two from North and two from South) caring for each other was effectively shown to the audience by comparing the "reports" by each government to the actual truth.
Since the emotion of each character and broadly the emotion of two countries, were so important, middle shot, close shot and extreme close shots were used. Especially extreme close shots were effective in showing the objects, which symbolized the division between two countries, such as a land mine and the line on the bridge, which was supposed to divide the one country into two. Even though the ending seemed like the movie showed a negative possibility of reunification since 3 out of the 4 soldiers died, this movie definitely gave the audience the hope of reunification by focusing on the 4 soldiers as people rather than their countries, and also by ending the movie with a scene with all 4 soldiers doing their own jobs in relevant countries, but still together at a same place.
Esther Oh
ReplyDelete“JSA: Joint Security Area” portrayed a story about soldiers from North Korean and South Korea forming friendships. The movie starts out with an investigation to find out how the shooting occurred, but through a series of unexpected events, it is revealed that the shooting was not due to hostility between soldiers, but misunderstandings. This movie shows that friendships can form even from people who are pit up to be enemies. Even though there were deaths and people were hurt, the movie ended with a scene of all four soldiers in one picture.
Before watching the movie, I thought it would be an intense action movie, but it was actually slow-paced. The shots were medium-length and more medium to close shots. Rather than focusing on the action and gory aspect of wars, this heart-warming movie showed the camaraderie and unexpected formations of friendships from two different sides.
J.S.A
ReplyDeleteTina Kim
I was really impressed by J.S.A both by the story and how it was taken. The long take of the owl not only created a mysterious tone to the start of the movie, but also gave a hint about the main plot. Owls have the ability to turn their head 180 degrees and have really good eyesight. This helps hint about what the story will be since the Swiss Army Major Sophie attempts to find out the truth about what had happened in the N. Korean border house. Another scene that I was liked was when Sophie was looking at Sergeant Lee Soo-hyeok’s disposition for the first time.
As Sophie turns the page of Sergeant Lee Soo-hyeok’s disposition, the film transitions to the sergeant’s experience. The transition was really smooth, almost like some kind of sweep but in this case follows the turn of the page. This take was really creative and better than if she were to read out his disposition. There was only one part of the film where I was confused and that would be the photo with the four main characters present at the end of the movie. When was the photo taken?
Seungyoon, Mok
ReplyDeleteI have seen 'Joint Security Area' when this film released. This film was a box office hit, so it was not very difficult to see the film. 'JSA' is a story of soldiers who work in Joint Security Area the Korean Peninsula. This film shows a friendship between South and North soldiers.
'JSA' is producted by Chanwook Park who is very famous director in the world. Park became to be famous by his next film 'Old boy'. 'JSA' and 'Old Boy' is very different in a style of storytelling and atmosphere. I enjoyed comparing two films which is made by one director during the screening.
There are two countries which are in contact to Panmunjeom. And, there is Joint Security Area beside it. JSA is the most dangerous place in the Korean Peninsula because soldiers of two countries protect their countries each other. Two south soldiers and two north soldiers become friends in JSA and form a deep friendship. However, in the end, they are enemies. They shot and kill each other. This film starts like a mystery drama. Sophie, a military officer of Switzerland follows evidences that they were friends. And the film shows the past how they became friends and played together. 'JSA' is very different from the other movie which deal with the division of Korea into north and south. North Korea was not only evil, North Korea soldiers were not a bad guys. This film did not handle the war between North and South. 'JSA' just dealt with the friendship between humans. There was not the ideological conflict, was just four men's humane friendship. The reason Youngpil, a north soldier tried to keep a secret was for South soldiers, and the reason Soohyuk, south soldier made a suicide was also due to a guilty which he killed Woojin. It is because they were real friends. The film showed the reality that they are enemies in the issue.
This film was very interesting. I think there are definite reasons to become popular. It was popular but not that light. I think this film went down in history of the movies which deal with the division.
Joint Security Area is a film released in 2000 and directed by Chan-wook Park. It focuses on unveiling the mystery behind murders that involve two pairs of soldiers from North Korea and South Korea who learn to disregard their countries’ history of political animosity. Throughout the film I have to admire the use of camera placement. There are scenes in the film where the group of soldiers are hanging out together and the camera pans around in circles with each character’s face in frame as they speak to each other. This makes the conversation seem natural as if the audience is there listening and turning to each character as they speak. Whether it was for the same reason, the sequence reminded me ones seen in the television sitcom called That 70s Show, which is usually done with comedic effect. There are also scenes that remain focused on inanimate objects while actions are going on out of frame, such as the one where Soo-hyeok tries to convince Seong-sik to cross the bridge. The camera here only frames their boots with the border line dividing the two sides at the center. By doing this, it really conveys how significant the border is to Seong-sik as he hesitates while at the same time it shows how irrelevant it is to Soo-hyeok as he has already crossed it multiple times. I think there are even more scenes with similar framing, like the seemingly trivial scene where Sophie mixes up the despositions, which also suggests the trivialness of the division between north and south.
ReplyDeleteAnother mention I want to make is how the film goes about revealing the truth of the matter. JSA follows Sohpie as she tries to unravel the mystery by connecting evidence and gathering each character’s stories. The tension and uncertainty created by viewing multiple versions of the incident increases curiosity and pays off when the truth is finally revealed by flashback. The ending of the film is even a flashback to a picture taken that viewers witnessed earlier themselves. I thought it was a nice touch by showing one more surprise of a happy coincidental moment with the four soldiers.
Alice Kwon
ReplyDeleteJSA
I had heard a lot about this film so I was very eager to watch it. I know that the North/South division has been the popular basis for many recognized films within South Korea; these films tend to be very emotional and well-made from my general experience. I think this expectation placed JSA on a pedestal it did not quite reach (in my mind). It had its moments of brilliance, but failed to leave a lasting imprint. I did not appreciate the flashback method by which the story was told. Initially it was very confusing. Also by this process, Lee Young Ae was kind of turned into a 밉상 character. She is someone that is representative of neutrality and good but ends up becoming an aggressor that aggravates the delicate situation.
Everything in the story just happened so fast. I really enjoyed the comraderie shared between the Northern and Southern soldiers in the basement. These scenes were very heartfelt and tapped into a sensitive topic of nationhood/brotherhood that has been affecting Korea into the present. The actors portrayed their respective characters very well. The movie made me aware of the current enlistment laws that sanction Korean men to serve two years; it put this service in a different light.
Like "Welcome to Dongmakol" JSA does not corner the North as inherently "bad". Rather, by the end of the film, the sacrficial qualities of Kang Ho Song (north korean solider) come to light and a more negative aspect is placed on the South Korean soliders who acted instinctually in the situation. The film is a very interesting and heartfelt take on a topic that has haunted Korea for over 50 years.
Ji Hee Lee
ReplyDeleteThis movie is a story of tragic friendship between North Korean and South Korean military at the Joint Security Area. I think the most important theme in this movie is the fear.
People talk about how monstrous North Korean and South Korean are but i feel like it's not the people but the idea of war; everything comes from the fear of the war. These armys hold on to their trigger to protect themselves because they fear, but deep down their mind they want to let go of the guns and reach for peace. We fear but we are all same, holding on to same tension. Perhaps all these war movies are trying to indoctricate the idea of peace or set people at ease, relieve public anxiety.
The tears these people shed represented their fear in most frankly way but at the same time it had layers of meaning to acknowledge. Soo Hyuk cries and yell out for help when he stepps on the landmind. his facial expression, tone in his voice spoke of how much he fears death.This was where Kyungpil helped him out and became friends eventually. Woojin weeps when he gets his birthday present because he's happy to get present but at the same time he feared because he knew it could be the last chance to see each other when they part. Soo Hyuk cries again when he face Kyungpil at Panmunjeom, maybe because he couldn't stand their tragic situation or maybe he wanted their friendship back. Then Kyungpil kicks him cruelly as if he's heartless but it was all to protect Soo Hyuk. Kyungpil didn't cry but it felt like he was crying from the inside.The meanings of these cries almost narrate their tragic relationships.
I thought it was interesting to see how there were different characteristics to the fearful weapons. Although the weapons are usually used to kill the opponents, it was used in a slightly different way in this movie. When Soo Hyuk is left alone with landmind under his foot, Kyungpil, Woojin comes and save him by disconnecting the mind from the trigger. Kyungpil hands over the dead mind to Soo Hyuk as a souvenir. When the defcon 3 was announced with the explosions of landmind, troops from bothsides of the borderline watched it blow up as if they were watching fireworks. Although the landmine was originally barried in the ground to kill eachother, it was depicted as a gift and an entertainment. Bullet is another weapon that had dual sides; at one point bullets were used to play Gongi but eventually ended up killing and hurt each other. This shows the importance of the purpose of using these weapons. Overall in the movie JSA depicted longing and fear of death through tear and showed the fear of double side of the weapons when it was used as a weapon or as a tool to get closer.
Dongsu Jo
ReplyDeleteKorea is an only country that divided into two separate sovereign states. The war isn’t end yet; it is taking a break now. I was young, I went to the Lee Seongbok’s memorial hall that has story about 9 years old boy, Seongbok said “I hate communist party” to army communist gruella in Pyungchang. I was scared of North Koreans and thought they are monsters and enemies we need to kill. Many people were raise with negative mind about North Korean like myself. But ironically, movies about the agony between North Korea and South Korea has always been popular and eventually started to change people’s mind. The movie JSA, Joint security area, is one of movies about North Korean and South Korean that changed my mind. The movie is about friendship between North Korean and South Korean that shows tragedy circumstance. I think the cigarette and photo contain many meanings that show humanness.
The cigarette was used to break the wall between people’s mind. When North Koreans armies and South Korean armies met in the snowfield, they didn’t fight each other but their captains met in the middle to smoking together. In that point, even they didn’t speak out any words, they greeted each other by smoking. They have same habit and looks similar. Suhyuk gave a zippo lighter as a gift to Kyungpil so that he couldl use it everyday. But Kyungpil gave it back to suhyuk with a message saying that he’ll quitting somking, implying a meaning that their relationship is over. Also Sophie smoked only one time in the movie and that was when she was talking with Kyungpil about truth. This almost shows how much they are close enough to share the truth.
The photo has humane points through showing 4 lovers of the soldiers. When they gather in the basement, they showed family and girl friend’s photos to each other. The Photos show that they have same attachment that have own family who wait for them. Sophie looked like cold-hearted woman at first, but after she saw her family photo in her wallet, she seemed like a warmer person just like any other solders who longed for their family. Movie ends with a photo that foreign tourist took in the earlier part of the film. In the photo, coincidentally, there were all 4 soldiers in Panmoonjum. It was only one and last photo that had everybody in it. It almost looked like a family photo, which implied an idea that North Korean and south Korean are both same nation and human.
Sangbin Park
ReplyDeleteResponse: JSA
The movie JSA was truly a sad movie. A story of four soldiers’ friendship that ended in a tragedy was heart touching. Especially, with the 60th anniversary of Korean armistice last weekend, the plot of the movie seemed sadder. The movie itself can be taken lightly with its feature of comical scenes, but the movie’s setting and Korea’s tragic past arouse uneasy feeling. The friendship between two South Korean soldiers and two North Korean soldiers is a pure fantasy and mere imagination, because South Koreans and North Koreans are inevitably enemies. At times, there were talks of reunification. It is more sorrowful to know the fact that the movie was introduced during the time when the tour of Mountain Geumgang, meeting of separated families, and improved relationships between the South and the North Korean governments brought people to think of peaceful reunification was near and could be possible. Therefore, the movie reminds the audience that Korea is still a divided country and reveals heartbreaking reality.
Clearly, more than anything, the movie seemed to be an illustration of the tragic reality of the divided country. The movie uses multiple objects to show this tragic reality: the “Bridge of No Return,” lines, and cigarettes. The “Bridge of No Return” serves as both the frontline of divided nation and the connector of the two countries. It is a place that is heavily guarded and crossing of it signifies the start of war, but it also allowed the four soldiers to meet with each other. South and North Korea are so close to each other, but are divided by a “line.” Throughout the movie, lines appear to show a clear boundary between the South and the North. The line on the bridge and the line on the Panmunjeom draw a line that divides the nations that once was one. Along with the bridge, these lines also emphasize the tragedy of Korea. Moreover, cigarettes seemed to play a role as a connecting link between the South and the North Korean soldiers. In many scenes, where the South and the North Korean soldiers encountered each other, they lighted their cigarettes together. Cigarette smoking is an intercultural behavior and it allowed the South and the North to bond over their common behavior. I thought that this showed the similarities of the South and North Koreans and that they are no different from each other. It was also fascinating how the director pieced everything together through a smooth and clever transition of the scenes. The movie started and ended with the same scene where a photo of the four soldiers was taken by a foreign tourist. The significance of the last picture of the four soldiers is that these four soldiers are all brothers. Although they are in different uniforms, they cannot deny the fact that they are brothers. It is another sad depiction of the divided country and its people.
When I first heard about Park Chan-wook’s JSA, I thought the movie was going to be a war movie that shows the views of South Koreans on the North Koreans, especially since this week theme is about the division in Korea. Surprisingly, the movie was not what I had in mind; I thought the movie would have more intense, violent breakout of a war between the two sides. I heard that JSA was another blockbuster movie that beat Shiri, the first blockbuster from Korea, in terms of viewings, and I can see why. Unlike Shiri, the movie doesn’t show the North Koreans being desperate, harsh, or inhuman because of isolation, diseases, and hungry. Instead, the North Koreans are more humanized than the South Koreans would have thought. This is depicted through the scenes where the North and South Koreans have bonded and became brothers through games, drinking, and smoking. Although the North and South Koreans are on different side, they actually have more in common than they think. However, this brotherhood cannot overcome their country difference and go against their country regime by confessing the truth. This can be seen by the ant crawling around on Sergeant Oh’s hand toward the end. Ants are symbolically important in Park Chan-wook’s movies, like Oldboy. In this particular movie, the ant shows how the North and South Korean soldiers are powerless to their own respective country. Individuals cannot break away from their country or their countries’ scheme.
ReplyDeleteJSA
ReplyDeleteSang Won Jee
In this movie the characters from North and South were in two sides of identity. First one was the country that they are living or have citizen. "Country" this word have strong power in this world or society. People living with identity of one or two country. It means Human needs group to live and they have their own rules. Depends on what rules are, some groups collapse each other and fight. North Korea and South Korea have same situation. In this situation, people trying to keep their country identity and makes an effort to increase the level of people's life. At the begining of the film, both North and South protect their territory by army. If we see broadly, every army must in their side. However, in JSA, the army acted personally. I think both identity of country and personal are crashed each other and they are trying to solve the problem as both beneficial solution. The soldiers of North and South grow the friend ship in this movie and showed the humanity of people. Even Korea is still in the war, people of Korea are wanted to be a friend and can be a friend. They helping and sharing their culture and food such as chocopie. Through these activities they are getting closer and closer. However, at the almost end of the film. They have a problem of collapsing of identity. Thus they had to shot the gun to their friend and made a happening or story to make others and their country's pride safe. This movie have powerful message. Even it is not the situation of Korea, similar happening can occur near by us. When we are in this trouble, this movie gave us a parts of the soultion and examplify the conclude.
In this movie, the overlay two scenes and move it to the right to left. This effects showed the dizzy of soo hyuk's vision. It was un usual so i feel like fresh. They used the long shot when soo hyuk was escaping from the North and it gave me more nervous. Also i liked the screen through the screen. It means swiss soldiers recording the video. While they are record it, i could see the face of soldiers' different angle through the screen. Thus i could see two different face in one screen. Extreme close shots when they zooming in to the mine, i could feel friend ship of North and South. North Koran soldiers helped to remove the mine from a South Korean soldier and when soo hyuk sacrifise himself they zooming in to the mine. This scene made me think why he died and what was strong point of the mine. Thriu this mine can be connect person to person and kill all of them. Anyway, the movie was great.
Kelsey Savoy
ReplyDeletePark Chan-Wook’s film, JSA, explores the existence and nature of neutrality during division. The film employs many repetitive medium to long shots that are perfectly balanced. Shots of the area where South Korean soldiers and North Korean soldiers stand face-to-face have an almost mathematical composition demonstrating how rigid the division is between each country from the outside. Yet when the four soldiers become closer their scenes are not composed so rigidly showing their natural ability to get along regardless of nationality.
The film perpetuates division but also illustrates the similarities of the soldiers as humans. When Major Sophie Jean is trying to get the deposition of the two living soldiers, each ignores her in the exact same fashion. A low angle shot shows each Oh and Lee, in their respective scenes, turning over in their hospital beds and ignoring the “neutral” agents towering over them in comparison denoting the soldiers’ powerlessness in the situation. Interestingly, Sergeant Oh’s deposition is played out like a propaganda film as a medium shot portrays Oh smiling and getting along with his comrades with a perfect hairdo, makeup, and most importantly without his facial scar. The lack of the scar within this scene illustrates how Oh is trying to hide his own violent past as a soldier, specifically for the sake of his country. While Lee’s deposition portrays him as a brave hero who singlehandedly took out a room of soldiers who kidnapped him erasing any sense of mad violence to his character.
Personally, I felt that this film evoked a more emotional reaction from me than both of the films watched during melodrama week. Instead of a tragic romance, this film illustrated a type of tragic “bromance” and was more successful in making me emotionally involved with the characters’ friendship and brotherhood. The last scene in the movie,which shows the four soldiers coincidentally all in the same photograph, leaves the audience questioning the actual ability for neutrality and friendship to exist between divided people.
There are many interesting points about JSA. First I would point out that typically Korean movies involving North Korea tend to lean towards a Good vs Evil plot. The good, capitalist South Koreans/Americans vs the evil commie north. Often the North Koreans are depicted unhuman-like as if they were pure evil. This is likely due to the tradition that was caused from early film makers receiving training from the american Information Services. This is not the case in this film though. The North Korean soldiers are shown to have a heart. This is first exemplified in the rescuing of Sergeant Lee Soo-hyeok. In a traditional movie the north koreans would have killed him, or left him for dead or captured him. This wasn't the case though. It showed how these soldiers are really family after all. They are people with a common origin, language and goal, the re-unification of Korea, albeit under different forms of government. The friendship they develop shows that reunification could be possible as long as they put aside their differences and learn to deal with others. Despite residing on different sides of the line, they still come together.
ReplyDeleteLines are another motif of this film. We often see lines framed on screen. There is the line at the border between the two blue shacks, and the line on the bridge of no return. At both of these locations we are forced to focus on the line, the division while some dialog or other actions take place. This is done to point out the division that is in Korea today. The scene at the guard point with the spitting symbolizes the skirmishes that have taken place there. In the end the spit is just wiped away and both sides laugh and carry on with their lives. I found the line that was the trip wire to be the most interesting one in the movie. Sergeant Oh Kyeong-pil initially appears on the same side of the "line (trip wire)" as Sergeant Lee Soo-hyeok. This is where he takes his weapon. Then when he comes back to save him. He disarms the mine from the other side of this line. I feel that this cross-over foreshadowed the fact that they would eventually have to pick a side to be on, and that in the end they chose opposite sides.
Ja Hyun Kim
ReplyDeleteI loved the way that the director started the movie, “Joint Security Area”. He started by showing the result of the incidence and intrigued the audience. Music added onto the suspense in the beginning. In addition, there were sudden changes of atmosphere when there were shifting between present and past; it was solemn and heavy during present scenes but it was rather light and comic during past scenes. I was thrown by the scene where Soo Hyuk and North Korean soldiers first encountered. It was funny how they were alerted by each other’s presence at first, but then they slowly trusted and approached. They treated each other as if they were not enemies. The intimacy that they build throughout the movie made the audience forget where they come from. However, this intimacy became meaningless after they get caught.
I believe the hardest thing of being divided is that South and North Korea once was one country. Yet, as soon as the line was drawn and became two separate countries, families, friends, and lovers were then forced to become enemies. In this movie, it is unfortunate because the four characters themselves know that their friendship is forbidden and that they would have to point each other with guns if they were to have a war. The movie “Joint Security Area” reveals a tragic reality of divided countries, South and North Korea.
Laura Markou
ReplyDeleteThe film "JSA" gave a take on the relation between North and South Korean soldiers as there was a bond formed between four of them. I thought that the film was well made as well as good with drawing emotions out through the acting and length of the shots.
I noticed that throughout this film there were two reoccurring cinematic ways of filming. The first was Point-of-View shots. In the very beginning when Sophie Jean walks up the stairs to the Swiss building it is as if you can see what she sees that is her point of view. Another example was when Lee awoke from being unconscious the camera blurred objects and the camera was tilted to convey his view.
Another camera method that was used more than once was handheld camera. This is a way to shoot a scene by holding a camera so the shot appears to be a bit shaky and also gives a realistic and sometimes eerie feel. An example of this was also in the beginning as Jean is about to embark on her mission of trying to reason why the shooting occurred.
All in all I think that the film was more emotionally drawing due to the circumstance and the acting job as they made it so believable that the soldiers cared about one another.
Response to JSA
ReplyDeleteI don’t know how many of people know that this film is based on ‘DMZ’ the novel. I came up with the idea of why Sophie (Lee Young Ae) is chosen as a spectator who delivers the story. This movie is more male oriented movie, precisely for Korean males who have been to army or who are eligible for going army. However, I think by setting Sophie as a spectator brings neutralized perspective toward the two ideologies between North and South Korea as she represents. In this perspective, it worked well mitigating conflicts in brutal men-oriented society; military and separation of the nation. According to the book ‘DMZ’ it shows similar feelings toward her father. She came to Korea as an investigator and her father is Korean who left both side of Korea denying ideologies. When she finished investigating, she opened the picture frame that her father’s picture was folded on the backside. This shows relief of her ignorance and hatred toward Korea.
However, this only continues until the real story of how the murder happened. When Sergeant Lee, of south and Sergeant First Class Oh of north develops the narrative, her voices faded away and didn’t appear for long time. At the end, when four of soldiers who are related to the case met the tragic end, that was implying orders and investigation or persuasion can’t free them from forcefully trained ideology.
So this leads to question of how people are adapted in classical conditioning also know for Pavlov’s Dog toward the separation of nation. That’s why Sophie’s role was important to imply the ignorance or indifference that not many people would feel seriously about the condition. Anyways, Koreans are accustomed to the situation of separation that the result is derived in same feelings same reaction. This should not have to be political. That’s why it has several panning shots and dialogues to remind the difference between two sides. Overall, I guess the source of typical Korean male melodrama consists, military and friendship.
Young Joon Kim
ReplyDeleteDuring the film, I noticed how the director would use long shots between the North and South soldiers to portray a disconnection between the two. An example of this would be when the two groups of soldiers meet in the snow. An extreme long shot is used to distance the soldiers from each other but the North Korean soldiers are standing in front of a forest while the South Korean soldiers are standing with open land behind them. I thought the forest behind the North Korean soldiers was appropriate for the scene, portraying a sort of mysterious representation of the soldiers and the forest representing North Korea, a place shrouded in secrecy and darkness whereas the open land behind the South Korean soldiers represented a supposed freedom and openness of South Korean society and also capitalism.
However, when filming the 4 soldiers together, even when they are divided by the border and spitting at each other in Panmunjom, the director used close-ups and rapid moving close pan shots between the soldiers to portray a sense of brotherhood. The rapid moving pan shots between the soldiers reminded me of "that 70's Show" where there would be a similar shot/scene during a conversation between friends. The technique gave me the point of view of who the soldiers were talking to, putting myself in a position where I am the friend he is directly talking to.
The director also seemed to use bird's eye view shots frequently. Particularly when filming the soldiers at Panmunjom. They also used the particular angle when filming major jean towards the end of the film when she is discharged due to her father's ties with North Korea. I thought the director used this angle to portray the soldiers and Major Jean as "puppets" of their respective nations and governments. In these bird's eye view angled shots, the camera was always in a medium distance, showing more than one person (except in the scene with Major jean) and portraying a sort of disconnection that is similar to the extreme long shot in the film emphasizing the division between the two sides.
JSA is my favorite film shown in class so far. The tragic story of a brotherly friendship abruptly ended and disguised as a standoff between North and South Korean soldiers during tense times was a refreshing twist from the usual suspenseful, international war theme centered on the division between North and South Korea.
Yoonil Cho
ReplyDeleteThe movie 'Joint Security Area JSA' handles divided country's tragic reality. This movie shows how people live inhumane life because of cutoff of Korea due to the ideology dispute even after the war ends. The movie added some fun scenes such as the scene about Choco Pie to treat these serious theme not too seriously. Actor's acting was awesome so that it could make us feel the pain of the reality we faced more realistically. About structure of the movie, instead of remaining in present progressive form only, the director chooses to cross the present and past freely to show the theme effectively.
The end of the movie is very tragic and also leaves an aftertaste. At last, all 4 friends end up terribly, which emphasizes the sacrifice of individuals because of group's dispute. Particularly the final scene of the movie which is the scene Lee Soo Hyuk self suicides shows his feeling of guiltiness toward his friends and also means resistance to the reality. The movie gives us a question that how could relation between person and person become guilty just because their ideology is different. After I saw this movie I was really sad about Korea's current north and south division reality. I was also kind of skeptical about all that ideology that transcend individuals. I wish we, Koreans could at least have some time to share emotional interchange.
Grace Chang
ReplyDeleteSeveral Korean movies which have succeeded in the past include one of the most nationalistic themes that cannot possibly be ignored in Korean society: the separation and the conflicts of North and South Korea. For instance, Swiri (1998), JSA (2000), and Brotherhood (2003) all include melodramatic situation where two lovers (or brothers) have to point their guns at each other because of their identities. We, Koreans, sometimes call ourselves as “one nation”, but the reality seems nowhere close to this notion. However, these movies fulfill certain desire within Korea toward the idea of reunification, and JSA portrays the tension as well as secretive love-hate relationship between North and South Korea.
I remember watching this movie with my family when I was in elementary school without acknowledging how stylish the movie is; however, when I re-watched it today in the class, the movie seemed as if it can be released in any time now in theaters. It does neither contain brilliant computer effects nor technological adjustment, but the plot and the protagonists’ acting ability made it possible for us (our classmates) to laugh and concentrate at a right time. It also is true that all of the protagonists and the director himself became immensely successful after the release of the movie. We laughed when Lee Soo Hyuk cried, seeking for help to the North Korean soldiers when he stepped on a mine. We also got serious when two brothers, Lee Soo Hyuk and Sergeant Oh, had to face each other on the opposite side and read their fake report that was written in order to protect one another. Although this movie is categorized as war movie, I would say that the mixture of humor and seriousness also indicate that Park Chan Wook can create hybrid-genre as well. Lastly, the photos in the movie indicate captured moments that cannot be retrieved again. They exchange their uniforms and take last photo before the incident. Another photo in the last scene of the movie represents four brothers in one.
Shi Hui Chen Lin
ReplyDelete“Joint Security Area” has become one of my favorite movies. It presents us with such a sad story about the division of North and South Korea in a very profound way. The division creates mistrust and hostility between the North and the South people; yet it cannot cut out the deep connections between them. The saddest part is to see how the brutal reality of politics and ideologies severed the pure and simple friendship built between the four soldiers. The short bridge between the North and South border house symbolizes the division of the people. Yet at the same time, it is also used to connect the two sides. Soo-hyeok and Seong-sik crossed it to meet and spend time with Sergeant Oh and Private Jung. The tragic cross shooting also happened over the bridge. This bridge just keeps reminding me of the painful reality of how easy and difficult at the same time it is to connect with the other side.
There is a sharp turn of atmosphere from warm and happy to rigid and dangerous when the North Korean officer discovered the four’s meeting. Such contrast awoke the fact that the two sides are still enemies in spite of the four’s close friendship. The relaxed music accompanying the four’s meeting came to a sudden stop as the Officer put out his gun, symbolizing the start of hostility. When the Korean pop music sounded from the cassette player, the officer tried to reach out for his communicator and was shot down by Seong-sik. It was reasonable to think that the officer was trying to turn off the communicator so that the other North Korean soldiers would not hear the pop music from it. However, mistrust between the two people caused Seong-sik to shoot and led to the tragic shootings afterwards. This shows the deep impact of long-time division has on the people, which are the most tragic aspects of the division.
The film tells the story using flashbacks and re-enactments of both countries’ reports of the incident. This creates a sense of suspense and is really effective in drawing the audience into the story. Since it is a very sentimental story, medium and close shots of the characters are used to convey strong emotions. When Seong-sik jumped off the building in an attempt to suicide, there is an extreme close shot of Soo-hyeok’s eyes, showing his astonishment. When the North Korean officer appeared outside the door of the border house, each character was given a close shot of his face. We can see their expressions changing from smiles to terrified.
Overall, I think “Joint Security Area” is a terrific film, leading the audience to reflect on the North and South division and its impact on the people.
Chan-wook Park’s JSA: Joint Security Area is a film that examines the relationship between the communist North Korea and the western influenced, South Korea at both an individual level and a national level. Throughout the film director Park uses scenes of military exercises and equipment in addition to a patriotic soundtrack to convey a sense of seriousness about the conflict at the DMZ between North and South Korea. However the film delves far deeper than the national level of conflict to the individual level.
ReplyDeleteThrough the lengthy flashbacks, director Park unveils the mystery behind the deaths of the North Korean “border patrol.” After a two North Korean soldiers save a South Korean soldier’s life, the South Korean attempts to make contact to the people who saved his life. Eventually he gathers his courage and crosses the DMZ and becomes friends with the North Koreans. Because of the instability between the North and the South this is unheard of, however director Park chooses to show this in order to show to the audience that in order to overcome adversity it starts with an individual. Although the two nations are at war the South Korean soldiers and North Korean soldiers are able to befriend each other.
Director Park takes us back to reality when a North Korean general catches the group hanging out and a Wild West shoot out occurs. The once uplifting hope between uniting two nations is crushed when the South Korean soldiers killed their close North Korean friend. However director Park reignites this hope through the last scene in the movie that shows the picture of all four Korean soldiers. In the picture, nobody except the four soldier friends are looking at the camera and a sense of happiness can be felt.
YoonJu Bae
ReplyDeleteUnlike predicted, JSA depicted a heart-warming friendship bond between the North and South Korean soldiers which was nearly impossible at that time. I liked that the movie did not focus fully on the cruel war story. The extreme long shots are used to present the separation of the North and South in scenes of showing the bridge that cannot be crossed or the DMZ line. Another frequently used shot is the extreme close shots. Extreme close shots of eyes or mouth show the emotions of the actor Gangho Song to the fullest. The rotation shot of the four soldiers is good way to show that the four soldiers are no different and they have a close bond to each other. Even though there was a distinct separation between North and South soldiers, in the end scene showing the photo taken by a foreign traveller, the four soldiers were seen in clearly in one photo.
All four actors` acting was awesome. They showed their tragic moments very well and expressed the cute friend relationship to the greatest. The ending was cruel and unfortunate, but overall the movie was very well made and was favourable.
Fang-chieh Lien
ReplyDelete“JSA” is a film primarily about the friendships between four soldiers from North and South Korea. I really love the way how director, Park Chan-wook, tells the whole story. In the beginning of the film, we could only know that there was something happened between North and South Korea. But in the process of Sophie’s investigation, the friendships between the four soldiers were gradually revealed.
In the end of the film, we see the picture of the four main characters. This is in fact the first picture of four of them. I like that in the film, director first used the bird’s-eye shot in the scene that Sergeant Oh picked up the girl’s hat, so we could find out in the end that the four characters were actually there in that scene. In the picture, Sergeant Oh and Jung seemed very relaxed, in contrast to Sergeant Lee and Nam, who looked more serious and nervous. This might indicate that in the friendship between these four soldiers, Sergeant Lee and Nam seemed to be the ones who bore more pressures. I think that it may be because they did not completely trust Sergeant Oh and Jung. Likewise, in the memory of Sergeant Lee, we saw that PFC Nam kept telling him something like they really need to be careful or this might be a trap and that PFC Nam was the one who cruelly killed PTE Jung. However, we found out in the end that Sergeant Lee was actually the one who killed PTE Jung. Therefore, I think it showed that Sergeant Lee did not really trust the other two soldiers and he just tried to rationalize his suspicion by making PFC Nam the one who warned him all the time in his memory. I believe this also caused him to commit suicide since after Sophie pointed out that he was actually the one who killed PTE Jung, he could no longer deny the truth and he then needed to face the guilt. To me, the ending of this film is very sad that they paid too much for doing nothing really wrong.
I was somewhat surprised when I saw JSA today because it was not what I expected at all. I learned about the movie from another class and knew that it was about the tensions between the North and South; I expected this movie to be tailored more towards bloodshed and war, but it was actually about bridging the gap between the two nations torn by war. Hearing about the recent threats made by North Korea also made me question the realism behind the film because the characters representative of the North and the South seemed to get along rather easily, which probably doesn’t happen in the real world. Some other things I noticed about this film include the extensive use of close up/extreme close up shots along with a dizzying 360 degree pan with the camera put on a pivot (I haven't seen this technique used in the past Korean films we've watched in this class).
ReplyDeleteOne particular scene that stuck out to me was when Sgt. Lee was retreating back to the South’s side of the bridge (of no return?), just after he and Private Nam killed the two North Korean soldiers. Lee fell down while he was halfway across the bridge and lays on the ground, staring into the sky. The camera focuses on a close up of his face before it begins to rotate counterclockwise while panning out, ultimately achieving a bird’s eye view, medium shot of Lee being carried away. From this pan we are able to see bullets fly through the air while debris falls on Sgt. Lee as he lays motionless on the ground. In this moment very moment, the audience is able to see Lee in shock because it took merely a minute for these soldiers to transition from laughing friends to the sworn enemies their countries predisposed them to become. I thought this scene was epic because both parties sacrificed their lives in attempt to achieve unity between the North and the South. Their failure in the process just goes to show the strength of the feud between these two nations and how they’d rather take each other out than fix the division that’s torn them apart.
Hyungwoo Kim
ReplyDeleteThere is certainly a lot going on within JSA but one of the central themes that the movie explores is the possibility of unity between North and South Korea. This is symbolized through the friendship between South Korean soldiers Soo-Hyeok and Sung-shik with the North Koreans Kyung-pil and Jeong Woo-jin. At first Sung-sik is particularly apprehensive about meeting up with the sworn enemy but shortly after being introduced to the North Koreans by Soo-Hyeok it doesn’t take long at all before all four are merrily drinking together, showing off photographs of their loved-ones and even eventually exchanging addresses.
At the same time as the movie explores the appeal of unity though, the tension of ideological differences always linger in the background and at several key-points throughout the film we see the soldiers lamenting over the fact that the ever present difference in ideology will most likely always serve as an obstructive barrier between the two nations. One great scene that illustrates this is when Soo-Hyeok hands over a Choco-Pie to Kyung-pil. Whilst Kyung-pil is enjoying the delicious taste of the common South Korean treat, Soo-Hyeok works up the courage to ask him if he would ever consider heading South and jokingly adds that Kyung-pil could then eat as many Choco-Pies as his heart desires. The atmosphere turns heavy almost instantly as Kyung-pil gives Soo-Hyeok an intensely cold and serious glance, remarking that he only dreams the great communist state will open up factories one day to produce the finest Choco-Pies that would make its citizens proud.
Another interesting point to make about JSA is that the depictions provided of the characters from the North and South are incredibly complex. Even though it is a South Korean movie, the North Korean Kyung-pil is in some respects depicted as even more ‘human’ to his South Korean counterparts. This is best illustrated in the scene when Soo-Hyeok first gets to know Kyung-pil and Woo-jin. Soo-Hyeok unknowingly ventures into Northern territory during a routine patrol and accidentally makes contact with the trip-wire for a mine. With no means of escape, he is left standing stationary. After some time Kyung-pil and Woo-jin turn up and after hearing out Soo-Hyeok’s desperate pleas Kyung-pil clearly shows that he actually has some compassion as a human-being as he decides to deactivate the mine and save his enemy’s life. Needless to say, it is mainly for this reason that Soo-Hyeok starts to look up to Kyung-pil and explains why Soo-Hyeok was so open to becoming friends with the two North Korean troops.
Ng Hui Shin
ReplyDeleteThe overall theme seems to point to the superficial divide that lies between North and South Korea. The maintenance of the divide appears redundant and contrived; just an order from the higher authorities. The composition in shots accentuates this theme; in most of the shots, things were distinctly placed side by side, or separated by fine lines. For example, there was a scene when the shot exited the frame by moving upwards. This created a sort of line and divide between that particular shot and the next, thus appearing to divide the North and the South metaphorically. However, this divide appears artificial, soldiers at the DMZ befriend each other, or have fun at work (teasing each other/spitting games). This makes the film sentimental; soldiers who could have been friends are being separated by a mere political divide. However, the film also showcases the futility of trying to close the divide. This can be demonstrated by Lee Soo-hyeok’s words of ‘we are enemies, after all’; even true friendship is still overcome by different political ideologies. The scene where Major Sophie appears to take a side by heading towards one end of the crossroad from a bird’s eye shot is also made ironic by the fact that her father was a North Korean general. Even though individual soldiers might want to close the divide, they are still bound by their political and national roots.
I also find that scenes of sad or dangerous events to be eerily poetic and beautiful. For example, the opening scene where the subtitles appear after the owl flies away is quite artistic, but we know later on that it was where the bullet shot through the wall. Also, when Nam Seong-sik fell out of the window in slow motion, the shot is also morbidly beautiful; the arrangement of the broken shards of glass and Nam Seong-sik was beautifully arranged. I also feel that the film ended on a hopeful albeit sad note. In the last scene, Sergeant Oh Kyung-pil returns the American her cap, and both the North and South Korean playing the spitting game were in the frame. In this shot, there were no clear lines dividing the North and the South; instead, the North appears to be marching towards the South. However, we know that Lee Soo-hyeok, Nam Seong-sik, and Jeong Woo-jin, comrades in trying to close the divide, had all died; thus symbolising that while hopes to unite are present, it is still a futile dream.
Yunhwa Choi
ReplyDeleteJSA
As I am one of the Korean citizens, the movie Joint Security Area: JSA made me feel sorrowful about history of my own country. This movie is a mystery thriller film that depicts friendship between two separated North and South Koreans through investigating a shooting incident. One of the most significant things about this movie was how the movie was composed. Unlike any other movies, this movie repeatedly goes back to the past before the incident happened and comes to the present where the incident is being investigated. The back-and-forth between the past and present follows the order of how the investigation is processed. This could help audience not to lose the tension and curiosity about what actually happened and who killed two soldiers of North Korea until the end.
Moreover, director of the movie uses many close-up shots and extreme close-up shots in order to convey the emotions of characters in detail. Through closing up to their faces and eyes, audience could realize how they are feeling.
Donghee kim
ReplyDeleteCompared to other movies that Park Chan-wook have made, “Joint Security Area” is less violent though the blood were shed during the movie. This movie depicts the definite division of the North and the South through many objects such as ‘the bridge of no return’ and just one imaginary line drawn at ‘panmunjum’ without any barriers. Also, the owl comes up few times symbolizing the alertness and the surveillance along the both sides in one country. However, Park Chan-wook tries to illustrate the neutrality through four soldiers, two from the North and two from the South. He captured emotions from those four main characters through serial middle shots, close shots, and extreme close shots of their faces and eyes. Despite the history, those four continued their friendship across the border.
Moreover, what I found interesting in this movie was that Park demonstrated the South soldiers more childish like babies when faced hardships while the North as competent, calm, and brave. I think this could be the reversal part of this movie.
Sent an e-mail
ReplyDeleteStudent number : 2013841579
Film, JSA was very touching movie, to me personally. The movie elaborates on inner conflicts that were happening between the soldiers of North and South. At the Joint Security Area, where there shouldn't be any feelings of attachment and warmth, there were two Northern and Southern soldiers who felt brotherhood and attachments to each other. But, repeatedly through out the movie, the long take of showing the Panmoonjum line, emphasizes the point, that they were still enemies. A camera composed a frame with a line and in between spaces, and the angle was looking straight from above to the ground. This kind of take was shown a lot in between the scenes. This take explains how North and South cannot be friends even though, they share common enjoyment and feelings of brotherhood. In addition, the long take of the bridge that divides North and South indicates that North and South are divided and still present in war (even though they agreed a truce) It was very tragic to see how Northern and Southern soldiers were connected and felt brotherhood.. and after one of the northern soldiers was killed by Southern soldier, they both were suffering from the fact that they had to hide their precious memories because, they are indeed, enemies, not brothers. The last shot of the film that composed of these four soldiers was very touching at the same time, tragic. That picture holds the whole inside story of the film and all the feelings are in the shadows of their smiles. The film to my thoughts, was very successful of depicting not only the time period and history of that era, but also this sort of humanness and warm feelings.
ReplyDeleteAndrew Song
ReplyDeleteJoint Security Area takes place in Korea, the only one divided country in the world, especially in Panmunjom, the demilitarized zone. The movie describes the rigidity and irony of war, which eventually leads friends killing each other for no good reason. Is the ideology that important? So that friends have to aim their guns each other? What if it is not their ideology, but the each government’s? In the movie, the soldiers first call one another “the enemies” but later on, they call each other “brothers”. In front of war, they have to obey the order— to remain vigilant and to kill each other, although they think each other brothers. War was occurred in order to pursue each ideology of each part of Korea, to pursue their happiness. However, ironically, those men have to aim their guns and eventually kill one another due to the order.
In the movie, there are many scenes that shows lines, which metaphors the division, just like what "the bridge of no return" means. Also the cigarette is a symbol of the brotherhood, since they used to smoke together greeting each other without saying something. Also when the brothers get along together after saving one’s life from mine, they exchange things from each country. Before they finally aim their guns each other, they probably knew what is could be happen eventually that their memories are too cruel.
Hyungkwon Lee
ReplyDeleteThe film Joint Security Area portrays not only portrays the dual contrary aspects of capitalism and communism, and of the North and South Korea. JSA itself represents an area that reflects coexistence of contrary ideologies. However, it is also visible to discover the step toward reconciliation by portraying the friendship of the soldiers of both nations. Regardless of the wills of the protagonists, they thoroughly have to threaten each other and the tension at Panmunjom is at peak. However, the portrayal of the reconciliation suggests a humane especially in that they call themselves brothers and give birthday gifts. Even though they unwillingly had to discriminate and marginalize each other, the brotherhood of one root that shares the same history and ancestors enhances the sorrow and wound that has long been forgotten. The strong bond was especially emphasized through the scenes where Lee Byunghun decides to kill himself in order for Song Kwangho not to be in danger
However it is also emphasized that their regained brotherhood and affection could not eventually overcome their barriers, which significantly enhances the ideological tension and hardship in thoroughly integrating them into one society. Such portrayal was enhanced through the long take and extreme close shots (when they sacrifice themselves for the sake of counterparts).
Joanna Han
ReplyDelete“JSA” is a film that analyzes deeply complex and multi-faceted issues stemming from Korea’s history. However, its message is clear. By humanizing the North Korean soldiers, the film reveals its anti-war sentiment. While criticizing the current relationship between the two Koreas, the director also highlights the hostile history between them. As I was reading up on the film, I came across the story of the Poplar Tree Incident where two US soldiers were killed by North Koreans in the JSA. I found out that the director used this tree to border the left side of the frame in a scene depicting the Bridge of No Return. In this way, the director reminds the viewers of the past hostility between the North and the South. This is truly a brilliant and very overlooked detail of the film in that it juxtaposes the harsh reality of the North-South relations and the blossoming friendship of the four soldiers. The dark tree looms over the bridge, foreshadowing the inevitable tragedy to come.
Another scene that I really appreciated was when Sergeant Lee convinces Private Nam to cross the border and meet his friends in the North Korean bunker. All that can be seen are the two soldiers’ combat boots and the small concrete line that divides them. While Sergeant Lee’s feet are grounded and steady, you can see Private Nam’s hesitation as his boots wriggle around and sway. This scene was effective in the way that it showed both the physical and mental hesitation in Private Nam. He is unable to confidently cross the line since he understands what it might mean; he is an enemy of South Korea. Whether Nam understands what he is fighting for or not, he does know what he should and should not do. Private Nam’s unwillingness to cross highlights that in the end, these four men are soldiers for their respective countries with strict orders they must obey. Although it was humorous to see Nam’s cowardice, there is a definite underlying tension in the scene. In these ways, the director creates a humorous but an also contrastingly serious and tense atmosphere that he never fails to remind the viewers about.
Joint Security Area - My grandpa longed for the reunification of the Koreas. Korea’s history is very heartbreaking because the same nationality is divided -my grandpa never got to see his family ever again... North and South used to be one, one family. Because I grew up knowing about my grandpa’s plight, I feel closer whenever talking about North Korea -I have cousins that I’ve never met there...
ReplyDeleteWhile watching this movie, I teared up in many scenes because it reminded me that the Korean War is not over and that it’s a real tragedy. One recurring word is: “hyung.” In Korea, it is a title used to show respect to older boys or a more accurate translation is older siblings (for guys). When hearing this word, I thought of two ideas. 1) the characters understand each other because they are using the same language 2) they are brothers. 같은민족: same nationality
North Korea is geographically close yet politically so separated from South Korea. All Koreans grow up with the fear of North Korean military aggression. In the movie, this idea was shown in the extreme closeups -in their eyes and the sweat... Although North Koreans share the same language, similar features, and same history as the South Koreans, the two countries are living different lifestyles. The South Korean soldier brought foreign goods for North Koreans which shows how some North Koreans are aware of how “better” it is on the other side. Ex: The North Korean soldier tried to send his dog to South Korea because there are better things to eat on the other side.
I was happy to see the 2 North Korean soldiers and 2 South Korean soldiers hanging out but it was sad because whenever they talked about war, it got really emotional. Would they have to shoot each other in battle? There seems to be no answer to this tragic story. --Was the director on North Korea's side? Was the director on South Korea's side? It seemed to be neutral... Because, the problem of this story was: the 4 soldiers were at peace. Why? What happened? Or the question I want to ask is similar to my grandpa's. When will there be reunification?
Joan Kim
not neutral.. indifferent*
Delete-joan
The movie ‘Joint Security Area JSA’ is a my favorite film shown in this class so far. The JSA is story of tragic friendship between North Korean and South Korean military. The saddest part was shooting each other even though they trust and love each other, but they had to kill each other due to reality of politics and ideologies even though they had such a strong friendship. It was very sad situation.
ReplyDeleteThe scene that Lee su-hyuk tells the truth to Lee young-ae to save the guy from North Korea was very touching. In addition, a scene that north Korean guy hit the table, yelling at Lee su-hyuk with anger when Lee su-hyunk and north korean met to compare their statement was questionable. I don’t think that he yelled to lee su-hyuk because he is really mad. I think he wanted lee su-hyuk become stronger and do not feel guilty to him. He also behaves for south Korean, lee su-hyuk. It was also very touching scene.
I also loved how this movie starts. In the very beginning of this movie, the director shows us the result of the incident. This story line attracted my attention.
Overall, this movie was awesome and now I want to watch more this kind of movies. I long for the unification of South and North Korea soon!
Harin. Chung
ReplyDeleteThe movie JSA begins with the sound of gunshots and a close-up long shot of an owl flying away. This creates a mysterious and gloomy atmosphere of the movie. I think the fact that the director used an owl in the beginning was to show the role of Lee Young Ae, being a general who came from Geneva as a case investigator. Like an owl looking over from one of the highest points on the mountain to keep an eye of what is going on around, she was there to silently investigate. She remains neutral to both sides of Korea, but it was ironic that her father was a North Korean general and her daughter visits Korea for the first time in her life as to investigate an incident between the two Koreas being completely neutral to both.
Despite the personal relationships one might have with another, the soldiers at the DMZ are being separated into two, the South and the North just because of the political tension that exists between the two nations. It does not only reflect the soldiers of South and North Korea being enemies, but everybody from each side of the peninsula forcefully lived as enemies to each other since the division.
Mainly the movie was about the four soldiers building friendships while it was forbidden for them to cross the border and have contact. Maybe it was this idea of forbidding something that allowed the four soldiers to be more tight and felt like they are together because the only preventing factor from them to become friends was the political barrier that existed in between them. They involuntarily hated each other from what they have been taught throughout years in their own countries.
However, there were two important scenes where it reflected that the soldiers never should have been friends after all and tells that it is actually difficult to overcome their barriers was when Kyung-pil eats chocopie that he got from Soohyuk. He seems to be enjoying the taste of the pie then Soohyuk asks if he wants to come over to the South with him and have as much as chocopies as he wants. All the sudden the atmosphere changes and Kyung-pil tells Soohyuk with a heavy voice that he only dreams of the North making better tasting Chocopies than the South and it is his dream to carryout such duty. Furthermore, Soohyuk was saying towards the end of the movie when they all were pointing guns at each other were that they were “enemies after all”.
No matter the emotional, personal connections they shared all together as friends these two significant scenes indicate that their political background still wasn’t able to penetrate the true friendship they shared. I think this also indicates that despite all our hopes to unite as one, it has been unfortunate and unless the political barriers are to be overcame we would still remain as "enemies after all".
Joung Eun, Kim
ReplyDeleteThis is filmed in 2000 by Park Chan Wook director.
This movie is a story of tragic friendship between North Korean and South Korean military at the Joint Security Area. First, the movie develops with Lee Su-hyuk’s flashback. However, later when another flashback is told by Oh Kyung-pil to General Sophie, who really killed Jung Woo-jin is revealed. Lee Su-hyuk, not Nam Sung-sik killed Jung Woo-jin.
Nam Sung-sik shot Jung Woo-jin many times in the mass. This shows that Nam Sung-sik’s shots were not accidental. If it was accidental he might have not shot like that many times. I think it was because weak-hearted Nam Sung-sik felt a sense of betrayal, and fear toward Jung Woo-jin when he was pointed a gun by Jung Woo-jin.
After the person who really killed Jung Woo-jin is revealed, and Lee Su-hyuk gets to know that it was him who killed Jung Woo-jin, he commits suicide. Lee Su-hyuk seems not to remember the fact that he killed Jung Woo-jin until General Sophie tells the fact to him. I think he does self-justification, because of the pain that he would undergo if he recognizes the fact that he killed his friend. So, knowing the fact, Lee Su-hyuk gets out of self-justification, and seems to feel guilty so much. That fact tortures him much. That’s why he commits suicide.
I think the lighter plays an important role here. Oh Kyung-pil gives back the lighter to Lee Su-hyuk. However, later, Lee Su-hyuk doesn’t take the lighter with him. I think Oh Kyung-pil gives the lighter back because he gives up the hope that they can be friends. This also means that he gives up the hope that North Korean and South Korean can be friends. For Lee Su-hyuk’s behavior that he doesn’t take the lighter with him, I think it is because of a sense of guilt, and he may already has decided to commit suicide.
The ending was quite confusing. I was especially confused when characters in the movie talk about the bullet numbers, which guns were used, and how the bullet was shot to get the truth.
This movie has implications that North Korean and South Korean are the same people, and they can be friends, but the fact that they are from divided countries restrict everything.
Bo Lee
ReplyDeleteJSA was a great movie to watch. I’ve seen it before in my previous Korean Culture Class but seeing it again made me realize different points in the story. I recently went to watch the musical, “그날들” (a musical using Kim Kwang Suk’s songs) and was exposed to his songs and was surprised that his song was in this movie. It thought it was a great choice for the movie. The lyrics go great with the movie’s story line.
“So that I’ll remember our times together warmth, you grow smaller as the whistles fades, it’s a new start, the dreams of my youth, my reflection in the mirror, hardens with my mind, atop that hill, would I see home.”
I was also confused at the end of the movie. When Private Nam Seong-sik commits suicide, he “flashbacks” to the night of the incident and shows a image of him killing Private Jeong Woo-jin, but when Sergeant Lee Soo-hyeok commits suicide, it shows an image of him firing the shot. I wasn’t sure whose flashback was the correct one. I thought it could be Sergeant Lee Soo-hyeok’s flashback that was true because it was shown towards the end of the movie. Also, since Major Sophie E. Jean said there was something missing in the story that could have been what was missing.
Won Jae Chang
ReplyDeletePark Chan-Wook’s film, JSA, represents the division of North and South Korea. Four men (two from North and two from South) who have different ideology, form a brotherhood and friendship. The background of this film is a sensitive part for all Koreans because the Korean War is still going on. Unlike the other related war movies, the director has portrayed both sides as equal position. In other words, he has not put North Korean as stereotypical evil people. Instead, he puts them as friendly and funny people allowing the audience to see that they are just simply Koreans. While the film contains violent scenes like gun fire, it also contains the beautiful scenes. For example, the scene where South Korean soldiers and North Korean Soldiers are facing each other at the snow field (which takes place in DMZ) shows beautiful view of surrounding environment.
Throughout the film, there are many shot techniques. The director often shows the line that divides North and South through the view from top or side. Through panning shot, the camera moving with foreign tourist movement at Panmunjom clearly shows the line that divides North and South and the confrontational situation at JSA. When Sergeant. Lee and Private Nam try to close the line to North side, the camera focuses on a close up of their foot. (In reality, nobody is allowed to close the division line.) At the beginning of the film, the scene shows a broad view of North side of Panmunjom through eye level shot from South side. The extreme close up shot skill is often used to show the various expressions on people’s face.
Overall, the movie was incredibly fantastic. The mixture of all kind of genre is perfectly associated well. Even though I was once member of Korean army, I never knew about JSA well. Also, it reminded my memories of army life. I could say that JSA was the best movie I have ever seen throughout my life.
-Sorry,I submitted my response paper late, due to technical problem on my laptop.
Kathryn Brown
ReplyDeleteJSA is one of many films that touches upon Korea's painful past as a nation split into two halves. With this in mind, symmetry becomes a very important visual element of this film, whether subjects are portrayed as being on opposite sides, or in the middle of two sides. This can be seen in shots of the DMZ, where the soldiers are standing on their respective sides, in the scene where Soo Hyuk is trying to get his friend to cross the line to the North with their boots shown on either side of the line, and also in the scene where Soo Hyuk is driven away from the crime scene. In this third scene, Sgt. Oh is placed in the middle of the shot, between two objects, as if to mentally and emotionally put him in between the two sides. This effect is deliberate and creates very powerful visual language throughout the film. The camera does quite a bit of moving around in this movie, often following subjects in tight, close shots, rather than having them move around in wider shots. This adds to the intimacy between friends, while also demonstrating the tension between opposing sides. While this was effective, there were other elements that were not so successful. For example, the beginning of the film was a little strange. Scenes were broken up unnaturally, one transition sliding across the screen, much like a PowerPoint presentation effect, which was bothersome. Also, when Nam jumps out the window, strange effects are used to freeze time and highlight the moment, but it does not fit it the look of the film overall. These odd moments seem to be less frequent as the film progresses, but stood out to me. On another note, I know it cannot be helped, as the part was played by a Korean actress, but the idea that Sophie was Swedish and had never been to Korea was a tough sell with her strong accent while speaking English.
The different aspects of the film work together to create a strong, impacting idea of the complications of Korea's attempt to “overcome a history of agony and disgrace”. This film, unlike others who tend to portray the North in a more negative light, is much more tragic. It goes to show the underlying aversion to the separation, even amongst those actually doing the fighting. This is clear in the scene where the soldiers from each side meet in the snow and, not wanting to be the ones to shoot first, stop to have a smoke together and part ways. While the guys are having fun and arm wrestling together, the camera closes in on their arms, demonstrating their desire to be brothers, while visually representing the constant push and pull between North and South, even though both sides are holding hands geographically, historically, and emotionally. They are so intertwined that there is no easy solution to this issue, which becomes clear with the events revealed at the end of the movie. This is a very intense moment, bringing up an issue dealing with loyalty and also of trust, among friends, fellow countrymen, and comrades. Everyone questions one another at that moment, possibly making the point that, even though people do not want to be separated any longer, it is an impossibility and they cannot ever be brothers.
Eunice Choi
ReplyDeleteThis movie stirs up many different emotions with the backbone of the division of the Korean Peninsula. JSA successfully provides a different view of the relationship between the south and the north: friendship can exist on a smaller, personal scale, contrasting with the bigger picture of war tension and hostility. The friendship between the officers from the south and the north comes from great amount of humanity, trust, and naivety because officers from both sides are literally putting their lives on the line just to play children games like jacks and cock fight. It almost seems like they created this dream environment of utopia of bromance. However, it shatters when an outsider points his gun at Officer Soo Hyuk to awaken everyone that Korean War never really ended. The existence of loyalty between these "brothers" are painfully complicated and cannot be kept in peace. The meaning of trust becomes a question again as the officers pull out their guns and point to each other. The last scene of Soo Hyuk's suicide after his realization of his killing may be the last resort to maintain that last bit of "loyalty" and "brotherhood" by killing himself.
Some of the most memorable film techniques used in JSA are panning and solo shots. Panning in a circle is used as a transition from face to face of officers sitting around a table and sharing stories under a single light. Panning also occurs when one scene transition back in time as a character reminisces a past event. The focus of the camera moves sideways to a dark ambiguous space that smoothly introduces a new setting, paired with a subtitle telling the time and the date of the event. Solo cuts of the characters are very common as the plot of the story includes Sophie Jean questioning the officers for the truth. The use of solo shots reflect how heavy and important each character is, regarding the shooting incident. The solo shot is also great to capture the character's determination to protect his "comrades" or "brothers," regarding the incident.
"Joint Security Area" portrays bittersweet situation along South and North Korean border. The director utilizes flashbacks effectively to complete the puzzle of the incident. In the beginning, we didn't know who started shooting and what caused the mass murder. We only get to see a part of the story, when the South Korean soldiers escape back to borderline. Lee Young Ae, the investigator from switzerland gives up to stand in neutral position because she wanted to maintain friendship between Byung-hun Lee and Kang-ho Song. At the end of the movie Kang-ho Song forgives Byung-hun Lee. "I would have shot first if I were on South Korean side"
ReplyDeleteThe movie and the historical background in 2000 are parallel. 2000 was the start of new millenium as well as the start of active diplomatic activity between the South and the North. President Kim first visited Pyongyang with warm welcome from the General secretary of North Korea. Although the relationship between the North and the South recently went cold, the movie reminds us the hopeful time when reunification was indeed possible. In addition, the movie emphasizes that North Korean and South Korean soldiers both share common interests, such as tv celebrities, women, choco pie, sports, etc.
(Ju Hyun Lee)
ReplyDeleteThe movie JSA was about the brotherhood of the north and south Koreans that showed even though the country was split in half few people still had this friendship with each other. The beginning through the middle of the movie, it was confusing at first because two men, Soo Hyuk and Gyung Pil (idk how to spell his name..) were both lying about the incident that killed two men and wounded two other men. It was interesting to see how Sophie tried to figure out even though no body in both side of the military camp wanted anyone to know the truth because the two (actually three) soldier who survived from the incident wanted to cover each other from getting into a big trouble. When Sophie finally got a sense of what had really happened, one solider committed suicide but failed, and even though this solider tried to kill himself because of Sophie trying so hard to figure out the truth, she does not take this as a warning but a good sign to dig in deeper and she later causes Soo Hyuk to kill him self.
The director used many different techniques to show how brotherhood of Koreans are sort of sticky and strong that even if the country is divided in half to fight each other, they just have to be friends with each other. There were short moments where the director showed how the soldiers from north and south are similar, like when Soo Hyuk accidentally stepped on a land mine the soldiers from the north just wanted to survive--even if that means to save the enemy to survive together. This event led them to build stronger friendship later on that eventually leads Gyung Pil to kind of betray his own teammate to coverup Soo Hyuk's friend's murder which caused to mess up each one's minds to kill themselves later on. But it was very interesting to see how Gyung Pil chose to save the soldiers from the south to value their friendship and brotherhood from enemy side.
The movie Joint Security Area by Park Chan-Wook was the first movie which brought a huge success in Korean film industry. It broke the record in the box office after a famous movie called Shiri by Kang Je-Gyu in 1999. Riding the trend of Korean action blockbuster after a huge success of Shiri, Park Chan-Wook directs the murder thriller about the death of North Korean soldiers on Demilitarized zone. The movie Joint Security Area not only talks about the tension between the North and South Korea, but also their humanity and friendship between them. Park Chan-Wook tried to portray the image of unity by showing the brotherhood and friendship between two North Korean soldiers (Woo-Jin, Kyung-pil) and two South Korean soldiers (Soo-Hyeok, Sung-Sik). However, at the same time, it clearly showed a fear in their eyes that in one day they have to trigger their guns to each other. There was one scene where Soo-Hyeok wanted to introduce Sung-Sik to his North Korean friends, Woo-Jin and Kyung-Pil. In this scene, Sung-Sik shivers his legs and fears to pass the line of the North and South boundary. This represent the "fear" of the war between North and South Korea.
ReplyDeleteMoreover, there are some mysterious scenes in this film. One scene I remember was that Sung-Sik repeatedly shot at Woo-Jin dead body. I was curious why Sung-Sik shot repeatedly eight times at a dead body and why he tried to commit suicide while investigating this murder case. Moreover, I was curious whether or not Soo-Hyeok knew that he was the one who shot Woo-Jin in the head. At the end of the movie, when Sophie told him that he was the one who shot Woo-Jin, he commits a suicide. I wonder why Sung-Sik tried to commit suicide since he was not the one who killed Woo-Jin in the first time. It was heartbreaking to see Soo-Hyeok and Sung-Sik tried to kill themselves due to their guilt for Woo-Jin's death.
At first, JSA was a movie that I had no idea what was happening. I knew that the conflict was between North and South Korea but was not sure who was on which side. My confusion was rooted in trying to figure out which uniforms belonged to who. They looked extremely similar which might be intended for a foreign audience to be confused as I was. I had a suspicion that the North Koreans were the ones with the red on their uniforms but was not completely sure until about 2/3 into the movie. This confusion was due to the flashbacks that did not really make themselves evident as there were no zoom-ins to the character to show a moment of introspection. This might have been intentional to show that the soldiers involved were really not that different at all. They were so similar that their allegiance to their country was blurred by appearing just as Korean men from the same homeland. The fact that they were young men with fears of going into war and sharing the same ancestry blurred the visual distinction of whose allegiance was whose.
ReplyDeleteAt the end of the movie, it is very apparent however who is who and the picture at the end is a nice touch to show the distinction clearly. The South Koreans have glasses on while the North Koreans have smiles on their faces in traditional military attire. The South Koreans look solemn and mean business as their sunglasses hide their emotions because their eyes are covered. The South Korean is also attempting to cover the photographer's attempts to take the picture while the North Koreans cherish the attempt as they are smiling and the North Korean in the back makes an exaggerated military step that makes him look comedic. The stark differences in this picture show the South Korean side more confrontational and less peaceful. This last picture seems to favor the North Korean side as more kind people. Although another picture of the men were taken, the movie did not end with this picture. Instead it ended with this confrontational picture denoting the men with different intentions in mind. The South Koreans were suspicious of the North Korean's intentions but it seems like the South Koreans look more intimidating and menacing as they hid their emotions behind a pair of sunglasses.
Heartfelt movie that touches on what humanity is, JSA is one of the best of the semester.
Jihye Park
ReplyDeleteJoint Security Area (2000)
Joint Security Area, known as JSA is a mystery thriller film directed by Park Chan-wook who is famous for the ‘Vengeance Trilogy.’ The movie is based on the novel DMZ and deals with a mysterious shooting incident involving South Korea and North Korea’s soldier at DMZ. The movie is seen by the point of view of Sophie, who is a Swiss Army Major from the Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission came for the investigating the incident. The movie uses a frame story, which is a story within a story. Throughout the movie, there are scenes where the story portrays the past to depict what the incident was about.
I think the movie really depicts the current (even though the movie was released 13 years ago, Korea is still a divided country) situation as the one and only divided country. As the movie draws the friendship between the South and North Korea’s soldiers at DMZ, and how the shooting incident finally sums up the friendship between them. I think director Park did a good job in depicting the tragedy of Korea’s situation as a divided country through the concept of friendship between the soldiers. Even though DMZ is a place full of tension and hostile relationships, the relationship between Soo-hyeok, Seong-sik from South Korea and Kyung-pil and Woo-jin from North Korea shows the humanistic side of both soldiers and how they become real brothers with same heritage.
As the movie represents how the soldiers from both sides become friends even though they distrust at each other at first just because of the situation of divided country, it shows we all are from same country and there is no need to divide the country by South and North. As both side of soldiers share the stories of their families, and the life as soldiers, they share the hardships and build friendship. The movie based on a story of Korean history as a divided country cannot avoid the sad ending because of the current situation. However, through the depiction of humanistic side of the soldiers and how they all are friends, not enemies, the movie suggests a hope for the unification of the country.