hankyoreh

The big-budget domestic film "May 18," which chronicles the historical events of the 1980 pro-democracy uprising in South Korea's southern city of Gwangju, took the top box office spot in five days after its release, besting several Hollywood blockbusters.

According to the film's distributor, CJ Entertainment, on July 30, ticket sales for "May 18" totaled about 1.43 million between its July 25 premier through July 29, making the movie the best opening-week performer among South Korean films so far this year. Before "May 18," CJ Entertainment's own "Voice of a Murderer" had previously held that spot, with a five-day opening sales tally of 1.4 million tickets.

"May 18" knocked the Hollywood film "Live Free or Die Hard" out of first place.

CJ Entertainment said the age of first-week audience members of "May 18" varied from those in their teens to viewers in their 50s. In addition, many viewers have posted reviews on the Web site of "May 18," quite a few saying they wept because of the events portrayed.

The film "May 18" is set againt the historical backdrop of the Gwangju Democratization Movement, which occurred between May 18 and May 27, 1980, events simply called "5.18" or "May 18" in Korea. At the time, the military, led by General Chun Doo-hwan, brutally cracked down on Gwangju citizens rising up against military rule. The government has maintained that civilian casualties numbered about 200, but some historians and groups made up of the families of victims say that over 2,000 were killed that spring. After the uprising was crushed, Chun became president in August the same year.

For the period of Chun Doo-hwan's reign, the incident was portrayed by the media - then strictly government-controlled - as a rebellion inspired by Communist sympathisers. After civil rule was reinstated in 1987, the incident was recognized as an effort to bring democracy to a South Korea ruled by a dictatorial military regime. The government has since issued a formal apology for the incident, and the May 18 National Cemetery was established in Gwangju to honor and preserve the memory of the victims.

Viewers of "May 18" have reacted with tears, but the cause of their sadness seems to differ depending on their age and historical perspective in terms of the events of 1980 in South Korea.

Some of those who remember the massacre in Gwangju in 1980 expressed a guilty conscience about their uncomfortable memories of the event. A 40-year-old Internet user named Kwak Hye-jeong asked, "What did I do at the time when our brothers and sisters were suffering? I have no choice but to weep because of a guilty conscience." Another Internet user identified as "Alpican" wrote a review titled, "I was a coward." The user said, "At that time, I was in Gwangju, but I didn't take to the streets and hid under the bedcovers at home. I cried with a deep remorse when I saw the film." An Internet user in his 50s said, The film reminds me that I vented my pent-up anger after the fact, when I saw photos of the events taken by foreign journalists.

Some viewers pointed out that "May 18" placed the focus on one family's love in the midst of the violent events, in contrast to the hit 2004 movie "Taegukgi: The Brotherhood of War," which focused more on sweeping historical consequences, in that case related to the Korean War. An Internet user identified as "Ji-in" said, "I had hoped the director would let viewers know why Gwangju citizens had to fight against the military government at that time through explanatory subtitles." Another Internet user identified as "On-the-spot soldier" said, "Solders were also victims, because they were dispatched there by orders."

Younger viewers of "May 18" seemed to experience 'historical education.' Teenage viewers mainly responded with questions such as "Did this thing really happen?" or "Could I fight like they did if my family members were hurt?" A 15-year-old Internet user wrote, "Though I live in Gwangju, I hadn't appropriately understood the Gwangju uprising. However, the movie let me understand the uprising with my heart." The movie was shown to some 180 teenagers at an international youth film festival on July 23 in Seoul, and most of the teenagers reacted with tears. In addition to that showing, an organization for victims of the Gwangju uprising recently held an event to show the film to some 1,000 teenagers.

Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]