Overall Rating
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3 reviews, 56 user ratings
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| Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War |
by Elaine Perrone
"History repeats itself. When will we ever learn?"
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I can think of few anti-war statements more articulate, or images more powerful, than those conveyed by writer-director Kang Je-gyu in his epic Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War. Set in the years between 1950 and 1953, the film centers around two devoted brothers whose lives and loyalties are torn asunder by a civil conflict that remains unresolved to this day.The elder brother, Lee Jin-tae (Jang Dong-kun), supports his family by shining shoes but dreams of perfecting his craft as a fine shoemaker. The younger, Lee Jin-seok (Won Bin), is a bright student who is looking forward to starting college. Times are tight, but still Jin-tae takes great joy in presenting Jin-seok with a beautiful writing pen that he knows his brother has admired. Left with only enough money for a single ice cream treat, Jin-tae buys it and proffers it to the younger boy. Arriving home at their mother's house, Jin-seok playfully dips into a pot of noodles with his hand and feeds a mouthful to his older brother.
When the North Koreans invade the South, all the young men between the ages of 18 and 30 are ordered to join the army to fight the communists, and a frightened Jin-seok is quickly conscripted and herded onto a train with a number of others. The horrified Jin-tae boards the train, intending to rescue his brother, but failing that, he vows to stay with Jin-seok, making it his personal mission to keep his beloved younger sibling safe from harm.
When the two are sent onto the battlefield, Jin-tae becomes a relentless fighting machine, determined to become a hero so that he can negotiate with his superiors to have his brother sent home. Although his intentions are good, Jin-seok, who doesn't understand Jin-tae's motivation, is horrified by his beloved brother's transformation into what he sees as a communist-hating monster. As time goes on, the viewer, too, is left to wonder whether Jin-tae's motivation remains entirely altruistic, or if he simply comes to enjoy the killing.
Likewise, just as Kang has painted Jin-tae as a complex man with conflicting characteristics of good and evil, he has avoided the stereotypical war-movie device of creating heroes, on the one side, and demons, on the other. The people who choose to fight for North Korea, and those who change sides, whether of their own accord or forced to do so, are portrayed as the same frightened and confused human beings as their South Korean counterparts, for the most part good people just trying to do what is right and make their way through circumstances over which they have no control.When will those to whom we bestow control -- and therefore we -- ever learn?
link directly to this review at http://www.hollywoodbitchslap.com/review.php?movie=10669&reviewer=376
originally posted: 09/05/04 03:56:31
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OFFICIAL SELECTION: 2005 Palm Springs Film Festival. For more in the 2005 Palm Springs Film Festival series, click here.
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USA
03-Sep-2004 (R)
DVD: 15-Feb-2005
UK
N/A
Australia
N/A
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