Joint Security Area

As if the tension between North and South-Korea wasn’t big enough, a firefight takes place in the DMZ (De-Militarized Zone) and two North Korean soldiers get killed. As expected, both camps have their own story. The South claims one of their people got kidnapped and the North says they were ambushed by the South. But there’s something not right about both stories. And soon a neutral inspector finds out the people involved have more history than they admit.

The Cast


The Trailer



Music video:



Worth the Popcorn?

I recently saw this movie because of the director Park Chan-wook. Since he has directed some other impressive pieces like Oldboy, I was interested in his earlier works. Little did I know this was the highest grossing film in Korean movie history in 2000.

The story takes place after the incident, using flashbacks to tell the story. I was initially put off by the neutral inspectors, who mostly speak English. It was like those war movies, where the German soldiers speak English with a German accent. Not convincing at all. I almost turned it off, thinking it was some kind of Korean B-movie. Some directors need time to develop and maybe this was one of them. But luckily I didn't. Because when the story turns to the real incident, the director brilliantly pulls you into the story.

It's a story about a friendship the society doesn't approve of. It ultimately shows how the people fighting the war have nothing against each other. But how they get forced to. It would be interesting to know how many friendships actually took place between different camps in time of war. Or is it just the magic of cinema that can make it happen?