GERMANY: Korean WW II drama brings brings theme of forgiveness to Berlin Film Festival

Record ID: 471016

  • Title: GERMANY: Korean WW II drama brings brings theme of forgiveness to Berlin Film Festival
  • Date: 17th February 2012
  • Summary: BERLIN, GERMANY (FEBRUARY 11, 2012) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (Korean) 'MAI-WEI' ACTOR, JANG DONG-GUN, SAYING: "You might know that in the film it is really cold. Berlin is really cold but it was really cold shooting in Latvia. It was minus 17 or 18 degrees and the uniforms we were wearing were not very thick, so the battle against the cold was the hardest thing and I am not
  • Embargoed: 3rd March 2012 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Germany, Germany
  • Country: Germany
  • Reuters ID: LVA7UMBTXHITMG0JCWLXNM7BRCRJ
  • Story Text: The picture of an Asian man wearing a German army uniform discovered at the invasion of Normandy during World War II is the inspiration for a tragic, yet miraculous story of a man who was a Japanese, Soviet and German soldier, Korean director Kang Je-kyu said when introducing his film 'Mai-Wei' (My Way) at the Berlin film festival.
    The photograph, that had been kept in the United States National Archives, was revealed on a World War II-related Internet site and subsequently generated a great deal of interest. The picture was of a small Asian man found among German prisoners after the Allies' victory in Normandy in 1945. No one could understand a word he said at that point, but a unique story unfolded once he was turned over to the US Intelligence. Apparently, the man, who survived a 12.000 - kilometer journey across the battlefields of Korea, Mongolia, the Soviet Union, Germany and finally France, was Korean.
    "When I first saw the photograph I was really thrilled and found it interesting, but wasn't thinking about making a film about it. But later on, a Korean TV station made a documentary about the photograph and when I watched the documentary I felt like, how could this event occur in Korean history? So then I decided to make the film," Kang Je-kyu told Reuters.
    In 'Mai-Wei', Jun-shik (Jang Dong-gun) is a young Korean man who dreams of becoming the next Sohn Ki-jung, the Korean gold medalist marathoner. Tatsuo (Joe Odagiri) is Japan's top marathoner. Sharing a strong sense of competition in childhood, Jun-shik and Tatsuo grow up to be the greatest of national rivals.
    A year after an unexpected incident Jun-shik is forced to join the Japanese military service, destiny reunites him with Tatsuo, now a colonel in the Japanese army. Thrown into the maelstrom of World War II, Jun-shik and Tatsuo wear the uniforms of Japan, the Soviet Union, and even Germany before finally arriving in Normandy, France. As they survive endless, unpredictable battles, they slowly transform into each other's greatest hope.
    "Because of historical reasons the Japanese-Korean relationships aren't comfortable, in fact, they are rather uncomfortable," Kang Je-kyu explained. "Through this film and through the depicted relationship between Jun-shik and Tatsuo, the Korean and the Japanese man, I wanted to heal the wound between two countries, heal the hatred and see the future and open a new paradigm between two countries and that was my hope. But at the same time, that sort of new paradigm and forgiveness should be applied to the North Korean and South Korean relationship, as well and it is also a universal theme. Forgiveness should be applied in all relationships around the globe. So I found the subject of forgiveness really interesting. I was intrigued by it."
    According to production notes, the budget for 'Mai-Wei' was more than 25 million US dollars which makes it the most expensive local production of all time. Director Kang is well known for such works as 'Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War' and 'Shiri'.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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