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(1988 or 1993, depending on what one considers democratization) It is not uncommon for both younger generation of Koreans and foreigners to not know how relatively recent the country’s democratization was.
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These two actors, both internationally recognizable, become the point of identification for the audience: in the case of Song, representing the Korean population who has forgotten the event that took place 37 years ago, while Kretschmann stands in for the uninformed non-Koreans who have never known of such a traumatic event. Over the course of the film, the duo witness unspeakable horrors, get involved in a few chases and eventually escape the city to let the world know what is happening in Gwangju. The story follows a foreign reporter (Jurgen Hinzpeter, played by Thomas Kretschmann) infiltrating into a city under martial law along with his apolitical local taxi driver (Man-seob, played by Song Kang-ho). In that sense, it is probably the most accessible point of entry into getting interested in Gwangju Massacre from a foreign perspective, as the film is structured that way. Its main purpose is to educate those who may not be familiar with the event, foreigners and Koreans alike. After all, having premiered in Montreal’s own Fantasia, A Taxi Driver serves not only as a domestic blockbuster, but also has its eyes set on the international stage, especially when compared to the other films that depict the same event ( May 18, A Petal, Peppermint Candy). As a film depicting a historical trauma, it is fully aware of the position. Jang’s work is the most expensive film to date that depicts the event, given a budget that would be considered a Korean blockbuster. A very traumatic page in recent Korean history, the massacre occurred when Chun Doo-hwan, a general who recently seized power in December 1979 through a military coup, declared martial law in Gwangju city in Southern Jeolla Province and massacred thousands of protesters. Not to be confused with Martin Scorsese’s neo-noir, A Taxi Driver (Jang Hoon, 2017) is a Korean historical drama set during the 1980 Gwangju Massacre, based on the anecdotes of a German journalist who first broke the story out to the world. Of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.A Taxi Driver: Politics of Remembering Traumaīy Sohng Yi Chan Volume 23, Issue 1 / January 2019 5 minutes (1113 words) For more information, please visit Academy Award® and Oscar® are the registered trademarks and service marks What began as an easy fare becomes a life-or-death struggle in the midst of the Gwangju Uprising, a critical event in the history of modern South Korea.įollow on Facebook and Twitter and be sure to use #ATaxiDriver when socializing your coverage. They arrive to find a city under siege by the military government, with the citizens, led by a determined group of college students, rising up to demand freedom. Synopsis: In this powerful true story set in 1980, a down-on-his-luck taxi driver from Seoul is hired by a foreign journalist who wants to go to the town of Gwangju for the day. Directed by Jang Hoon (The Front Line), the fifth-highest-grossing domestic film of all time in South Korea stars Song Kang-Ho (Snowpiercer), Thomas Kretschmann (King Kong, Wanted), Yoo Hai-Jin (Veteran, Pirates) and Ryu Jun-Yeol (The King). Described by Rob Hunter of Film School Rejects as a “powerful film set in the relatively recent past, but with messages and themes that remain every bit as relevant in today’s world,” the film follows A TAXI DRIVER from Seoul, who accidentally gets involved in a German journalist’s reporting of the events of the Gwangju Uprising in 1980. (October 23, 2017) – Based on a true story, A TAXI DRIVER, which will represent South Korea as its official entry in the 2018 Academy Awards® best foreign-language film category, debuts on digital November 7 from Well Go USA Entertainment.