Korean Job Discussion Forums

Col.Brandon · Joined: 09 Aug 2004 Location: Seoul

Personally, I'd be more worried about China's ultimate intentions.

My avatar not withstanding.

pastis · Joined: 20 Jun 2006

jinju · Joined: 22 Jan 2006

seoulsucker · Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2006 9:54 pm Post subject:

It's a good publicity ploy in a nation that feels constantly threatened by outside forces and influences. It'll probably be the #1 movie this year in Korea. Whether or not he actually believes it, people will always want/need new reasons to hate Japan in this country, so it'll fill the seats.

Merlyn · Joined: 08 Dec 2004 Location: Korea

I won't be seeing this crap movie.

Satori · Joined: 09 Dec 2005 Location: Above it all

Promoting the idea that there is a valid threat of Japanese invasion is extremely dishonest, and a clear ploy to play on nationalistic sentiments. This is repulsive. There are so many reason why Japan will never invade again, first, they don't need to, second they are not militarily equipped to do so, third the US will never allow it and Japan's prosperity is intimately tied up with that of the US so Japan will never go against the US. It is simply in no one's interest for Japan to invade Korea and it will never happen. To suggest otherwise is simply inciting racial hate. I despise this man, and will not see the film.

bigverne · Joined: 12 May 2004

The film is set in South Korea��s near future and develops a close relationship with the North for unification. The two Koreas agree to re-open a railway between the two but, as it constructed the railway during its colonial occupation of the peninsula, Japan claims ownership of the railway.

What an absurd premise for a film. No doubt this film will be a box office smash.

Milwaukiedave · Joined: 02 Oct 2004 Location: Goseong

I have mixed feelings about this film. Not sure if I'd watch it.

The idea of unification is not as crazy as some make it sound. As a non-Korean, I hope and pray it happens.

I can understand why Koreans hate and distrust the Japanese. Go and visit Sodaemun Prison. Yes, their fears are overblown in term of Japan reoccupying Korea. Since Japan isn't allowed to have a military for other then self-defense purposes, it seems like fear mongering.

Now, that's not to say that Japan will never have a military. It could happen some day. There has been talk off and on through out the years of changing the consitution to allow it.

Satori · Joined: 09 Dec 2005 Location: Above it all

Billy Pilgrim · Joined: 08 Sep 2004

I have a feeling - all politics aside - the film is going to be terrible anyway. SILMIDO was atrociously put together, which surprised me seeing as PUBLIC ENEMY is actually a very, very good film.

The director certainly seems like an ill-informed (or even worse, willfully misleading) fool, and a film that stirs up old shit against Japan is the last thing that is needed right now. I thought Korea had turned the corner with (the terrible) THE KING AND THE CLOWN, which seemed to indicate movie-goers were keen to see more "uplifting" Korean history, rather than the same old shite. We'll see.

Milwaukiedave · Joined: 02 Oct 2004 Location: Goseong

Newbie · Joined: 07 Feb 2003

Disgusting.

(anti-korean sentiments increase Twisted Evil

)

mithridates · Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2006 3:45 am Post subject:

I think I'll chime in and say that the premise of this movie sounds ridiculous.

I have two books of editorials from the Asahi Shinbun here from 1945 to 1954 and the one after the outbreak of the Korean War (July 5th) is interesting. It's the first one to address the war and talks about how the government should continue to be harsh with the regular Japanese people that were attempting to go over to fight in the war to help the South, because Japan with its new constitution, under the rule of the US and not even a member of the UN shouldn't be getting into anything like that, and because of the divisions it could cause with communists in the country as well.
But there it is - just as more Koreans tried to join the Japanese army during the occupation than they had room for or were willing to accept, on the other hand a lot of normal Japanese were willing to put their lives on the line too. Japan had lost four islands a while before too to the USSR so there was no love for communism, and I assume that a lot of those who had been based in Pyeongyang and elsewhere during the occupation really didn't want to see the North as well as the South fall into communist hands.
It's true that the Japanese economy really started to get moving after the Korean War because Japan was used to make weapons and whatnot, but there really was no other place to use as a base to fight the war so it wasn't really their fault. Lest anyone dispute that the Japanese economy started to get going as a result of the Korean War, it was on Japanese tv that I first learned this.