Joint Security Area (2000)

After a shooting incident at the North/South Korean border/DMZ leaves 2 North Korean soldiers dead, a neutral Swiss/Swedish team investigates, what actually happened.

Director:

Chan-wook Park

Writers:

Seong-san Jeong, Hyun-seok Kim

Stars:

Yeong-ae Lee, Byung-hun Lee, Kang-ho Song

14 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Yeong-ae Lee	...	Maj. Sophie E. Jean
Byung-hun Lee	...	Sgt. Lee Soo-hyeok
Kang-ho Song	...	Sgt. Oh Kyeong-pil
Tae-woo Kim	...	Nam Sung-shik
Ha-kyun Shin	...	Jeong Woo-jin
Herbert Ulrich	...	Swedish soldier
Christoph Hofrichter	...	Maj. Gen. Bruno Botta
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Micara Adriana
Gallego Alberto
Ahmedov Ayder
Cannon Greg Courtney
Ju-bong Gi	...	General Pyo
Isaac Green
Lim Il-Gyu	...	Police officer
Tae-Hyun Jin	...	South Korean military (as Tae-hyeon Kim)

Storyline

In the DMZ separating North and South Korea, two North Korean soldiers have been killed, supposedly by one South Korean soldier. But the 11 bullets found in the bodies, together with the 5 remaining rounds in the assassin's magazine, amount to 16 cartridges for a gun that should normally hold 15. The investigating Swiss/Swedish team from the neutral countries overseeing the DMZ suspects that another, unknown party was involved - all of which points to some sort of cover up. The truth is much simpler and much more tragic.

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Plot Keywords:

korean demilitarised zone | north south korea divide | soldier | korea | neutral nation | 

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Genres:

Action | Drama | Thriller | War

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

During the course of the movie when the South Korean soldiers salute their superiors they say (phonetically) 'TUN-GIL!' This is Korean for 'UNITE!' It is used in the South Korean military (mostly army) because - even though the North wishes to reunify under the Communist rule, while the South desires it under democratic rule - the hopes and goals on both sides are for reunification.

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Goofs

The moment before Sgt. Lee shoots Sgt. Oh in the shoulder you can clearly see the squib device underneath his uniform.

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Quotes

Sgt. Lee Soo-hyeok: Hey Assholes! You just gonna leave me here?
Sgt. Oh Kyeong-pil: You told us to go.
Sgt. Lee Soo-hyeok: I said don't come closer, when did I say to leave, you fuckers!

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Connections

Referenced in Weakest link: Hitori gachi no hôsoku: Episode dated 29 July 2002 (2002)

User Reviews

AWESOME PIECE OF WORK: Rent this today if you can!

It's been a few years, but I saw this in a Singapore theatre a day or two after it opened there. A Korean friend had mentioned it was good, so I went to check it out assuming it would be good. OH MY GOSH! This was an excellent movie and it seems so unfortunate that it didn't get a wide-release in North American (or not that I know of) as I think it would have done really well! This was #1 in Korea beating out Spider Man!! In fact, the North Korean leader even requested a copy for his viewing pleasure -- perhaps to get his own look at what South Korea might be plotting, or maybe simply to be entertained with some great film-making.

The movie combines a very likable Hollywood touch with compelling plot action, in contrast to some very personal moments and an amazing sense of suspense in this movie. I was floored.

The whole location of where the movie takes place -- in the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea -- and the acute tension was certainly captured and sure made for great story-telling. I can't remember another movie where I saw and experienced more tension in a story than in this movie! It fit the story perfectly, and really got the movie off to a great start. Then, as the characters were introduced, piece by piece, we explored action, emotion, and thought. The movie examined, re-examined and really brought us close not only to the events, but to the people in the story. I felt a range of emotions in this story culminating in a really great movie!

This is a must-see!

Details

Official Sites:

Myung Film

Country:

South Korea

Language:

Korean English German

Release Date:

9 September 2000 (South Korea)

Also Known As:

J.S.A.: Joint Security Area

Filming Locations:

Asan, Choongchungnamdo, South Korea

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$124,071

Company Credits

Production Co:

CJ Entertainment, Intz.com, KTB Network

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1