The Front Line (고지전) (2011)
Director: Hun Jang
Writer: Park Sang-yeon
Actors: Shin Ha-kyun, Go Soo, Ryu Seung-su
This is an excerpt from my University paper on The Front Line (2011) for my Korean Cinema Course:
War films have been a part of the Korean film industry since the beginning. This is due to the fact that Koreans have been in a constant state of tension when it comes to war. These war films, may give some sort of release for the Koreans who suffered due to the war. This is why, this genre has been quite popular in South Korea and continues to be to this day. However, war films have been one of great change when looking at the various themes presented in them. Throughout the years, the style of war films in Korea changed due to government censorships and changes in politics. Immediately after the war (1950 – 1953) films on war were very popular amongst audiences. This may be due to how recent the war was for the audiences at the time, which may have made them connect more with the films. However, due to government control and censorship, many of the war films at this time were heavily influenced. Due mainly to the National Security Law (1948) and also the Motion Picture Law (1963), films which were pro-communism or anti-government were banned. The Motion Picture Law even stated “(censorship of films and entertainment to defend public morals and social ethics is permissible), which completely ignored the commonly accepted idea in democratic societies that film is part of the media, and there can be no censorship of it” [1]. This meant that filmmaking at that time was censored three times, before, during, and after a film shoot [1]. Many key films during this time however tried to push the boundaries of these limits. An example of this is Piagol (1955), which actually focused on North Korean soldiers rather than South Koreans. However due to the censorships in place, the film was not able to show North Koreans in a positive light. So the film painted those soldiers as monsters and evil. Nevertheless, these films show us that filmmakers at the time were trying as much as they can to show their creativity in order to convey their artistic vision. These censorships continued for a very long time in South Korea and never really loosened up until the 1990s. As stated by Mark Morris “It is only since the relative democratization of the 1990s that filmmakers have been free to re-explore the landscape of the war” [2]. With this new freedom of expression, film directors were able to truly express what they felt about war. Many influential war movies were made after this time, including Taegukgi (2004), Welcome to Dongmakgol (2005), The Front Line (2011), and many more. These films were able to truly convey what the director feels about war. Through this paper, I will dissect one of these contemporary Korean Films, specifically The Front Line (2011), and find the themes and messages it tried to convey about war.
Before the 1990s it was very difficult to see on screen a war film that showed communism in a good light. Also, it was very difficult to see South Koreans as evil or inhuman in war films. However, after the end of censorship laws, directors started to experiment with war films to try and show an accurate depiction of war. For this paper we will look at the movie The Front Line (2011) and how it was able to depict war in a different light when compared to old war movies. The film revolves around an ongoing battle for a strategically located hill that will determine the border between North and South Korea. If this film was done shortly after the war ended, we would see a totally different result from what we have now. The movie would have focused on how North Koreans are evil and uncoordinated while the South are brave and incredibly tactic. However that is not the case with The Front Line (2011), where director Jang Hun was able to show audiences a different side to war. From this film we get one clear message that is shown to us the entire time “war is the enemy”. This message is constantly being shown to the audience through actions and sometimes even through dialogue. An example of this is seen near the end of the film where one character states “Our enemy isn’t the commies, but the war itself”. Another example occurs when a character dies and one of the soldier without hesitation says “The war killed Sung-Sik”. In both these scenes and many more, the director is pulling out the hidden theme and presenting it to the audience. The entire film shows us how each side does not even know why they are fighting. They have no purpose, yet they keep on sacrificing hundreds and thousands of lives for the sake of war. Another important theme that is present is the nature of rankings in war. Many times throughout the film we see how soldiers are treated as expendable pawns in the game of war. The soldiers in the movie blindly follow orders even when they know the orders will lead to their deaths. A great example of this comes from the quote “soldiers die when they are told to”, which perfectly exemplifies the idea of soldiers being nothing but pawns to the higher-ups.
Finally the most interesting aspect of this film is the way it depicts both North and South Koreans. In this film, no side is painted as more evil than the other. The lines between good and evil are really thin as the film manages to paint a huge grey are over both sides. We see South Koreans being ruthless and even going as far as killing their own comrades. Similarly we see North Koreans being having no sympathy and killing all that is in sight. Furthermore, a key element of the film is the messages, food, and alcohol that are being transferred from each side. Since the hill is always in a state of back and forth between both sides, each time it is taken a hole is filled with food and wine for the other side waiting to be taken once again. This is something that would never have been accepted during the 1950s or 60s, since it shows soldiers having sympathy towards the communists. Furthermore, in my opinion the most important scene in this film happens when it is announced that the war is over. The South Koreans are finally happy and they are washing up in a small stream of water near the hill. As they are in joy, a group of North Korean soldiers pass through and they both pull out their guns. Tensions are high for a few seconds and then suddenly they put down their guns and greet each other. They go as far as to say “you did a good job! Goodbye”. This scene is the perfect example of what the director wished to convey to audiences watching his film. The message is clear, war is the main enemy that is dividing people of similar culture and background. Ultimately this never could have been expressed a long time ago. Thankfully due to the freedom that directors have nowadays, they are able to show us these interactions that would have never been seen before. All in all, the movie does a great job at giving us a different perspective to war that would have never been seen in Korea beforehand.
In conclusion, The Front Line is a very important movie in the repertoire of Korean War films. It presents us with a different outlook on war and the various interactions of soldiers within themselves and with the enemy. Furthermore, the movie gives us a better understanding of human nature in war, and how hard it must be to make decisions under such intense situations. Through this film and many more modern war films, audiences can truly get to experience what war was actually like. All in all, war films have been a staple in the Korean Film Industry, and hopefully they will continue to be around for many years to come with more inventive ideas and concepts.
References:
[1] A History of Korean Film Policies. (n.d.). Retrieved October 30, 2016, from http://www.koreanfilm.or.kr/jsp/publications/download.jsp?fileNm=Theme351.pdf
[2] Morris, M. (n.d.). Spectacle and Sorrow: The Korean War Film.
