Gukjesijang is a Korean foreign language film that tells the life story of a man through key points in modern Korean history.
The film does this by travelling through the memories of the main character, Deok-soo.
The film sheds light on how millions of lives have been altogether changed by the Korean and Vietnamese Wars.
As a whole Gukjesijang tells the story millions of Koreans can relate to, both in the past and present.
Synopsis
Gukjesijang follows the fractured narrative which many in Korea have lived through, that being losing family members during the wars.
The Korean war left many families broken with despair as many vanished without a trace, without families knowing anything about the fate of their loved ones.
Gukjesijang is a film which focuses on this despair and tells the story of how families got through those trying times.
As a young boy, Deok-soo lost his baby sister in the panic of the evacuation of Heungnam Port in 1950.
This led to the moment (pictured above) where his father tells Deok-soo to be the man of the family, shortly before he goes knowing he won't come back from search to find his daughter amid the chaos. Knowing both his sister and father are gone affect Deok-soo from that moment on and stays with him to old age.
Gukjesijang follows Deok-soo through key points in his life through misery, heartbreak, delight and adventure.
Everything he does in his life is for his family, paying homage to the promise he made to his father all those years ago.
Important Themes
Gukjesijang does a beautiful job in recreating and foretelling landmark moments in modern Korean history. As well as importantly showing how many lived during this nation building era.
The film emphatically dramatically details:
- The hard times of the region under and after the Korean War.
- The consequences of the Korean financial hardships and industrialization in the 1960's, which lead to the Korean government adopting an outward-looking strategy in 1964. Which saw over 18,000 Koreans sent to Germany to work in mines and hospitals in the 60's-70's.
- The decision many Koreans made to seek better employment in Southern Vietnam due to regional tensions with the Vietnam War.
- The massive outcry from the Korean public in the 1980's which led to many efforts done by the Korean Broadcast System (KBS) to reunite loved ones on live TV and radio.
Conclusion
Gukjesijang left me in heartbreak. Living through the memories of Deok-soo and following his journey was a very emotional ride.
Many Korean families have lived through these issues but you hardly ever hear about these stories in the West.
Gukjesijang amplifies these voices and provides a real insight into how things have changed (not only in Korea), but also how we as a society regard the past. Most disregard and forget what people have done that have allowed us to live our lives the way we do presently.
Gukjesijang shows that it is important to realize and appreciate where you come from and to cherish what you love.
