JSA - Joint Security Area [DVD] [2000]

The story is based along the Korean Demilitarized Zone between North and South Korea. One night a South Korean Soldier is found struggling to get out of North Korean territory after shoots were heard. It is believed that the soldier killed two North Korean's and injured one other. The South Koreans naturally praise the soldier as a hero but the North Koreans want justice. A Korean speaking investigator is sent in from the Swiss/Swedish UN team to find out what happened that night. Her investigation leads here to discover the history of both the surviving soldiers involved.

When the film starts off you get the feeling that you're going to watch a film very similar to 'Courage Under Fire'. We get the two versions of what happened by the usual flashback sequences and follow the UN investigator in her interrogations. We are then thrown back a few months to an incident which leads to the night of the shootings. Now this is where the film really succeeds. We are given the history between the soldiers involved which adds a great twist to the story. What makes this movie a joy to watch has to be due to the two lead characters. Lee Byung-hun (Sympathy For Mr Vengeance, Save The Green Planet) does an excellent job portraying the young South Korean soldier but it's Song Kang-ho (Sympathy for Mr Vengeance, Memories of Murder, Shiri) who steals the show as the surviving North Korean soldier who strangely seems unwilling to talk about what happened.

Park Chan-wook directs the film perfectly as always. He does an excellent job at showing the division of North and South Korea. Much of this is done by fancy camera work and character interaction. It's the little touches Park adds that makes this movie rise above the rest (the final image before the credits is a fine example). As always with his films, Park manages to add a large amount of style by using fancy camera angles and editing techniques. This style never overshadows the most important thing which is the story.

Overall this is a thought provoking and at times touching film. Tartan has done a great job at presenting this DVD in a two disc special edition (even if it was a bit overdue). A must own for anyone, especially Park Chan-wook fans.

By all accounts this should have been just a straight mystery / thriller with on the spot topicality dealing with one of the most dangerous places on Earth right now: North and South Korea and their DMZ. Here in the United States we have the DMV, and while the two can't be compared - it's as close as we can come to imagining a line that runs down the middle between those that have everything and those that have nothing to lose. This is a movie that should have been filled with guns, tanks, rockets, missiles, barking special operatives, red and blue wires and a final countdown. And J.S.A. does have these moments, but they're mostly in the background.

Instead, what we have here is a love story. Perhpas not in the traditional sense, but a love story all the same. And while it's boy meets boy - it's not meant to be homoerotic but instead patriotic. This is a political love story where two sides to the same coin meet along the edge and try to come to an understanding that neither of their governments, or leaders, can agree to. The South has everything, but feels empty. While the North has next to nothing, yet is filled with dreams (sweet dreams in fact - you'll know what I mean when it happens).

J.S.A. has all the trademarks of a love story. There's a "cute meet" scene between our leads. There's a goofy sidekick, a dog, a buddy / pal, two families in opposition keeping our "meant to be's" apart (who proceed to steal away each night to be together), a soundtrack, a catch phrase (of a sort - it's repeated several times in the film), food, a breaking down of walls... and then violence, scarifice, and the aforementioned tragedy. It's a dark and disturbing ending which works to draw you to the central point of the film - love hurts... no, just kidding.

The point is an old one. It's a classic. You can find it in any Civil War and you can find it in the DMZ between North and South Korea - no house, no home, no land or its people can remain divided forever. Like Hong Kong to China, like East and West Germany - at some point, sooner than we might want to imagine, the DMZ is going to have to be erased... and J.S.A. is pointing to this line and trying to rub it away (the group photo scene, both of them, are the stand out shots here - a great moment).

The central story here works. The wrap around staggers and stumbles a bit as it comes across too much like SILENCE OF THE LAMBS. But taken all together it helps to keep the movie clicking. Production values are excellent and the performances from the leads draw and involve you. Stick with the original voice track as the dub version sounds as bad as a GODZILLA film.

J.S.A. promises everything on its cover (helicopters!, explosions!, fireballs!, a raging inferno!, and a tag line so old it's drawing social security: HE CROSSED THE BRIDGE OF NO RETURN! Aaaaaiiieeeee!), but gives twice as much, and twice as good, once you get inside. Excellent film. Highly recommended.

A few things which I wish they were rectified before the release of the film:

1. Very poor character building on all Swiss/Swedish mediators including the main female mediator character whose parents are Korean and Swiss(?). (Often the case in many East Asian films, I seem to find.) They just appear a bunch of sleazy white blond men for no apparent reason.
2. Although the female mediator character is meant be brought up in Europe for her life, you just could not ignore the fact that her English has a good Korean accent. This makes some of the dialogues rather unnatural...

Despite above, I would think it is very worth watching.