This was originally going to be a review of Fred Hoyle's The Black Cloud, but my workload has prevented me from finishing that work at the moment. When I do finish, I will make sure to post a review of it. For now, here is a review of a book I read in one go a few months ago. When you think of North Korea, you most likely think of the lunacy and caricature of its ruler, Kim Jong Un. However, beyond this, there is still a nation of people suffering under a complete totalitarian regime, which controls every aspect of their lives, with little hope of escape. Beyond the pompous absurdity, there is a real horror that presides over the regime. And much of that is the result of the ruling Kim dynasty. Their grip on the entire country is so absolute, it bends to their will completely. Believe it or not, though, there was a time, when the leadership was interested in creating a good image of itself (As opposed to today, where the Dear Leader does what he wants), and the best way to do that was film. Exporting quality films could show that North Korea wasn't nearly as bad as people assumed. However, the North Korea "film industry" was a mere machine to produce propaganda films venerating the Kims and the whole Jurche ideology, with very little artistic value. Kim Jong-Il, the son of the original Dear Leader, Kim Sung-Il, and a huge movie buff, wanted to change that. He wanted to show that North Korea could make great, popular films, and those would help popularize North Korea among the world community. And he had a plan to do just that. A Kim Jong-Il Production, written by journalist Paul Fischer, details the story of a filmmaker and his actress wife, who are both kidnapped by Kim, and forced to serve as the filmmakers of the Hermit Kingdom. And we will take a look at it now.
(Note: I do not know Korean or how the Korean name system works, so I might refer to some people incorrectly. My sincerest apologizes if I do.)
Shin Sang-Ok was one of the most acclaimed directors in South Korea during the 50's and 60's. His wife, Choi Eun-hee was one of the biggest stars in the country. The two of them had a whirlwind romance, despite Choi being married, and they were one of the most famous couples in South Korea, being personal friends of the South Korean dictator Park Chung hee, and his wife, Yuk Young-soo, among other. Shin was overly dedicated to the art of filmmaking, and he and Choi had their own studio. Choi also ran her own acting school to teach a new generation of South Korean Thespians. However, this was soon to end, as Shin had an affair with another actress, whom he impregnated. Choi divorced him, and he also ran afoul with government censorship, which ultimately led to a shutdown of his studio in 1978. Meanwhile, Choi struggled to maintain her school, which led to her accepting an offer from Hong Kong, which would have helped her school. And she ends up getting kidnapped. After a long boat ride, she eventually finds herself in North Korea (a country she had fled during the Korean War), and has a face to face encounter with Kim Jong-Il, the son of the founder, Kim Sung-Il, who keeps her as a prisoner. Meanwhile Shin investigates his ex-wife disappearance in Hong Kong, but is himself captured. He is tossed around the infamous North Korean prison system, kept alive for mysterious reasons. Finally, in 1982, he is reunited with his wife, and Kim Jong-Il himself comes to explain their presence. He wants to project the glory of North Korea to the entire world, but he needs some actual good films, not just state propaganda. He hopes to utilize the talents of Shin in order to make those films. Kim makes Shin a cultural official, and he and Choi once again make movies. Of the films made in North Korea, the most notable and well-known is 1985's Pulgasari, a pseudo-Kaiju film, revolving around a mythical creature who is called upon to kill an oppressive warlord by a village under his rule....only to himself oppress the villagers himself. (Subtle....)Despite being directly under the thumb of the son of the Dear Leader, the two still plot their escape. They eventually carry it out while in a film festival in Vienna. They slip past their North Korean detail, and drive to the American embassy, where they ask for asylum. While Jong continued to rise through the ranks to eventually succeed his father following the latter's death in 1994, Shin and Choi spend time in the US, getting reacquainted with some of their South Korean friends and family (including their children). Shin tried to start a career in Hollywood, directing, among other things, the third 3 Ninjas film (remember that franchise? Yeah, me neither), and a Romanian co-produced remake of Pulgasari called The Legend of Galgameth, before finally coming back to South Korea to dispel rumors that they had willingly defected to the North. They remained there, until Shin's death in 2006.Choi Eun-Hee is still alive, and living in Seoul, where the book concludes.
This book was very well researched. The writer derived most of his information from Shin and Choi Korean language memoirs, but, as he details in the afterword, Fischer went out of his way to really verify the story, and make sure that every word is accurate, at least to the extent that he could. And frankly, the story is quite hard to believe at points. The North Korean state really is as absurd and extreme as the news often states. However, there were many horrors that many don't know about. Shin and Choi's kidnapping? That was actually very common, and not just from South Korea. They would kidnap people from Japan, Hong Kong, and even as far away as Jordan. They didn't target them, but just kidnap them at random, and try to train them as spies. They also had this massive drug dealing empire to help fund the government. North Korea also had an extensive prison system, where the tiniest offences could lead to not only you, but your entire extended family. It really does hammer in the horror of the regime. Equally disturbing and absurd is the life of Kim Jong-Il, who would often hold absurd and bizarre parties, but still had enough power to force people to play along. Among the examples of his power was killing an actress whom he had an affair with, after she eloped with someone else and tricking the actor who played Godzilla (the guy in the suit) to star in Pulgasari. An entire mythology has been concocted about the Kims, ensuring that the population is under their complete influence, in an almost religious fashion....
As this is a non-fiction work, I don't really want to criticize the story, as it likely happened as described. It's hard to criticize reality, after all. That said, the writer could have added more detail to actual films that Shin made in North Korea. Pulgasari is covered in some detail, as it was the most well known (and worst) film out of this period, given it was smuggled to Japan shortly after its release. However, more detail on the rest of the films would have given a better impression of Shin's North Korean films. He also never puts up any other accounts beside Shin and Choi's. It would've been nice to see the perspective of the two from others who knew them, even if most of them are deceased at this point, and it's hard to find such perspective.
I suppose this book has some new found relevance in the world, with the whole controversy with The Interview and the Sony Hacking last year. Reading such an account does provide a nice look into the North Korean government's feelings on the film medium itself, and why a harmless James Franco-Seth Rogan comedy could send them in such a frenzied state. They realized that film is a powerful medium, which has the ability to influence the way people view reality. Really, that's something most people realize now. So, if you want to read an extraordinary account of surviving in the Hermit Kingdom, or just want something to past the team, I suggest giving it a read.
(Note: I do not know Korean or how the Korean name system works, so I might refer to some people incorrectly. My sincerest apologizes if I do.)
Shin Sang-Ok was one of the most acclaimed directors in South Korea during the 50's and 60's. His wife, Choi Eun-hee was one of the biggest stars in the country. The two of them had a whirlwind romance, despite Choi being married, and they were one of the most famous couples in South Korea, being personal friends of the South Korean dictator Park Chung hee, and his wife, Yuk Young-soo, among other. Shin was overly dedicated to the art of filmmaking, and he and Choi had their own studio. Choi also ran her own acting school to teach a new generation of South Korean Thespians. However, this was soon to end, as Shin had an affair with another actress, whom he impregnated. Choi divorced him, and he also ran afoul with government censorship, which ultimately led to a shutdown of his studio in 1978. Meanwhile, Choi struggled to maintain her school, which led to her accepting an offer from Hong Kong, which would have helped her school. And she ends up getting kidnapped. After a long boat ride, she eventually finds herself in North Korea (a country she had fled during the Korean War), and has a face to face encounter with Kim Jong-Il, the son of the founder, Kim Sung-Il, who keeps her as a prisoner. Meanwhile Shin investigates his ex-wife disappearance in Hong Kong, but is himself captured. He is tossed around the infamous North Korean prison system, kept alive for mysterious reasons. Finally, in 1982, he is reunited with his wife, and Kim Jong-Il himself comes to explain their presence. He wants to project the glory of North Korea to the entire world, but he needs some actual good films, not just state propaganda. He hopes to utilize the talents of Shin in order to make those films. Kim makes Shin a cultural official, and he and Choi once again make movies. Of the films made in North Korea, the most notable and well-known is 1985's Pulgasari, a pseudo-Kaiju film, revolving around a mythical creature who is called upon to kill an oppressive warlord by a village under his rule....only to himself oppress the villagers himself. (Subtle....)Despite being directly under the thumb of the son of the Dear Leader, the two still plot their escape. They eventually carry it out while in a film festival in Vienna. They slip past their North Korean detail, and drive to the American embassy, where they ask for asylum. While Jong continued to rise through the ranks to eventually succeed his father following the latter's death in 1994, Shin and Choi spend time in the US, getting reacquainted with some of their South Korean friends and family (including their children). Shin tried to start a career in Hollywood, directing, among other things, the third 3 Ninjas film (remember that franchise? Yeah, me neither), and a Romanian co-produced remake of Pulgasari called The Legend of Galgameth, before finally coming back to South Korea to dispel rumors that they had willingly defected to the North. They remained there, until Shin's death in 2006.Choi Eun-Hee is still alive, and living in Seoul, where the book concludes.
This book was very well researched. The writer derived most of his information from Shin and Choi Korean language memoirs, but, as he details in the afterword, Fischer went out of his way to really verify the story, and make sure that every word is accurate, at least to the extent that he could. And frankly, the story is quite hard to believe at points. The North Korean state really is as absurd and extreme as the news often states. However, there were many horrors that many don't know about. Shin and Choi's kidnapping? That was actually very common, and not just from South Korea. They would kidnap people from Japan, Hong Kong, and even as far away as Jordan. They didn't target them, but just kidnap them at random, and try to train them as spies. They also had this massive drug dealing empire to help fund the government. North Korea also had an extensive prison system, where the tiniest offences could lead to not only you, but your entire extended family. It really does hammer in the horror of the regime. Equally disturbing and absurd is the life of Kim Jong-Il, who would often hold absurd and bizarre parties, but still had enough power to force people to play along. Among the examples of his power was killing an actress whom he had an affair with, after she eloped with someone else and tricking the actor who played Godzilla (the guy in the suit) to star in Pulgasari. An entire mythology has been concocted about the Kims, ensuring that the population is under their complete influence, in an almost religious fashion....
As this is a non-fiction work, I don't really want to criticize the story, as it likely happened as described. It's hard to criticize reality, after all. That said, the writer could have added more detail to actual films that Shin made in North Korea. Pulgasari is covered in some detail, as it was the most well known (and worst) film out of this period, given it was smuggled to Japan shortly after its release. However, more detail on the rest of the films would have given a better impression of Shin's North Korean films. He also never puts up any other accounts beside Shin and Choi's. It would've been nice to see the perspective of the two from others who knew them, even if most of them are deceased at this point, and it's hard to find such perspective.
I suppose this book has some new found relevance in the world, with the whole controversy with The Interview and the Sony Hacking last year. Reading such an account does provide a nice look into the North Korean government's feelings on the film medium itself, and why a harmless James Franco-Seth Rogan comedy could send them in such a frenzied state. They realized that film is a powerful medium, which has the ability to influence the way people view reality. Really, that's something most people realize now. So, if you want to read an extraordinary account of surviving in the Hermit Kingdom, or just want something to past the team, I suggest giving it a read.
