A COUNTRY’S history encompasses different eras, incidents, and significant changes that have helped shape it into the country we know and live in today. Due to the rather heavy and sensitive topics history often deals with, many find it a difficult field to approach, especially if it is of a foreign country. Movies, with their captivating plots and characters, can serve as a form of media that is both entertaining and educational, through which we can get a glimpse of a country’s culture and history. This article introduces four Korean historical films that cover significant parts of Korean history, ranging from the Chosun Dynasty to the Democratization Movement of 1987.

The Throne  (2015)

   The Throne is set in 18th century Korea, during the Chosun dynasty, under King Yeongjo’s reign. It deals with one of the most significant historical incidents in Korean history—the I-mo Tragedy in 1762, where King Yeongjo ordered Prince Sado to be confined in a rice chest, ultimately leading to his tragic death. Although the film covers the eight days of the I-mo Tragedy and the start of King Jeongjo’s reign, with its incorporation of a frame narrative and flashbacks, we are introduced to Prince Sado’s life from his birth to his death.

   The Throne focuses heavily on the disharmonic father-son relationship between King Yeongjo and Prince Sado. With its representation of familial discord, the film not only portrays the historical event itself, but also provides the audience with insight into the historical figures’ minds and the insecurities they would have had during the Chosun Dynasty. The Throne is regarded as one of the most accurate historical films*, providing the viewers with an illuminative introduction to the Chosun Dynasty and the I-mo Tragedy.

Director: Lee Joon-ik

Cast: Song Kang-ho, Yoo Ah-in, Moon Geun-young

Run time: 125 minutes

Audience Ratings**: 8.49

Modern Boy  (2008)

   Modern Boy, is set in 1937, during the Japanese colonization of Korea, and depicts the lives of the “Modern Boys”—men who welcomingly adopted Western culture during the early 1990s. The film also portrays the emergence of Shin-yeo-seong*** and the influx of foreign culture in Korea at the time. It gives us a visual representation of the introduction of jazz music, performances, phonographs, and music records. This movie illustrates the lives of both the pro-Japanese and the Independence Movement activists, depicting not only the activists’ efforts but also horrifying scenes where they were physically tortured under the Japanese colonial rule.

   The two main characters, Lee Hae-myung and Jo Nan-sil, are each other’s love interests, and their relationship constitutes the romantic gist of the film. Lee starts out a pro-Japanese “Modern Boy,” whereas Jo is a female independence activist. With its focus on the inseparable idea of love and fate, the film places emphasis on how our nation was separated by different beliefs and social roles. Modern Boy vividly captures the cultural and social transformations during the time, allowing the audience to better understand Korean modernization under the colonial rule.

Director: Jung Ji-woo

Cast: Kim Hye-su, Park Hae-il

Run time: 121 minutes

Audience Ratings: 6.81

Ode to my Father  (2014)

   Ode to my Father is set in 1950, and revolves around the main character Yoon Duk-soo and his 60 years of life. Throughout these 60 years, we are introduced to the Hungnam evacuation, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. The audience is able to join the main character in his journey to Germany, where he worked as a coal miner, and to Vietnam, where he was dispatched to as a technician. With the film’s portrayal of the 1983 KBS special live broadcast “Finding Dispersed Families,” we also see the heart-warming North and South reunion where family members reunite decades after being separated by the Korean War.

   The movie focuses on the sacrifices Koreans have made not only for their respective families, but also for the nation in the decades following Korea’s independence from Japan. With its heartfelt theme and plot, theatres were filled with tears and many viewers expressed their gratitude for our parents and elders. This film gives the audience a thorough overview of modern Korean history and culture over half a century.

Director: Yoon Je-kyoon

Cast: Hwang Jung-min, Kim Yoon-jin

Run time: 126 minutes

Audience Ratings: 9.16

1987: When the Day Comes  (2017)

   1987: When the Day Comes is set in 1987 Korea, under Chun Doo Hwan’s oppressive military regime, shortly after the Gwangju Uprising. It starts off with the Park Jong-cheol torture incident—a tragic event where police officers asphyxiate Park, a Seoul National University student, to his death, as he refused to confess the other activists’ whereabouts. Although the authorities try to suppress the truth, as soon as it gets out through the media, it triggers the 1987 June Democratization Movement. As a result, Lee Han-yeol, a Yonsei student activist, dies from a police-shot tear gas canister, leaving a significant mark in Korean history.

   While watching this film, the viewers will be able to experience the heated and hopeful atmosphere of the period, by looking forward to the time when the day comes amidst police brutality and political unrest. Notwithstanding the incorporation of cinematic devices, this film is acclaimed for its highly accurate reflection of the year 1987****. The moving student-oriented storyline will give the audience, especially university students, an insightful and powerful introduction into modern Korean history.

Director: Jang Joon-hwan

Cast: Kim Yoon-seok, Ha Jung-woo, Yoo Hae-jin, Kim Tae-ri, and Gang Dong-won

Run time: 129 minutes

Audience Ratings: 9.31

*Munhwa News

**Naver Movies

***Shin-yeo-seong: Refers to “New Woman”—young women who pushed against the traditional limits they faced in the 1920s

****The Korea Herald