JSA

Synopsis

In a guardroom located on the northern side of the demilitarized zone ( Joint Security Area in English) separating both Corées, two soldiers of North are killed by a man of the South, which claims to be made prisoner. This turbid business gives place to a major Diplomatic incident. In order to alleviate the crisis, the commission of the neutral nations (made up of the Sweden and the Swiss ) sends Sophie E. Jean (Lee Yeong-ae), Swiss woman of Korean origin, to inquire into the ground. This last meeting the soldier survivor of the South, the sergeant Lee Soo-yeok (Lee Byung-hun) and discovers quickly that the history was more complex than a simple removal.

The continuation of film tells, in a length flashback, the friendship which bound actually the Lee sergeant and his friend Nam (Kim Tae-woo) to two soldiers of North, the Oh sergeant (Song Kang-Ho) and the soldier Jeong (Shin ha-kyun), as well as the tragic outcome of this friendship.

Comment

Conceived like one of first large films on the possible reconciliation between the two Corées, JSA approaches polemical topics in South Korea, by putting in scene the friendship of 4 men at the completely contradictory values national policies within the zone of demarcation between the two Corées.

Left shortly after the beginning the relaxation between the two Corées (and meets it between Kim Jong-il and Kim Dae-jung), the film, extremely of very large means (one of the largest budgets of the history of the Korean Cinéma) meets a success expresses first of all in South Korea, where it makes several million entries, then in the world, where it is presented to many festivals, in particular in Germany and France.

The realizer entrusts to have delivered a film approaching the relationship between the men apart from political cleavages and social. He also affirms that to make such a film earlier ten years would have been impossible because of the Censure and of the too sharp tension between the two Corées.

Data sheet

Title: JSA
original Title: 공동경비구역 JSA, Gongdong gyeongbi guyeok JSA
Realization: Park Chan-wook
Scenario: Jeong Seong-san, Kim Hyeon-seok, Lee Driven-yeong and Park Chan-wook, according to the novel of Park Blood-yeon
Production: Lee Eun-soo
Music: Bang Jun-seok and OJ Yeong-wook
Photography: Kim Sung-bok
Assembly: Kim Blood-beom
Costumes: Park Blood-hoon
Country of origin: South Korea
Format: Colors - 2,35:1 - Dolby Surround - 35 mm
Kind: Drama
Lasted: 110 minutes
Coming out date: September 9th 2000

Distinctions

Price of best film and better realizer at the time of the Blue Dragon Film Awards 2000.
Price of the best actor (Lee Byeong-heon and Song Kang-Ho) at the time of the Pusan Film Critics Awards 2000.
Price of the jury, price of the public and price of the best actor (Song Kang-Ho) at the time of the Festival of Asian film of Deauville 2001.
Nomination at the price of best Asian film at the time of the HongKong Film Awards 2002.
Large Beautiful Award Film of Best film and a Special price of the jury to the International festival film of Seattle.

External bond

JSA on Internet Movie Database

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