Silmido (film)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Silmido'' () is a 2003 South Korean
action drama The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...
film directed by
Kang Woo-suk Kang Woo-suk (; born November 10, 1960, in Gyeongsan) is a South Korean film Film producer, producer and Film director, director. He has often been called the most powerful man in Korean cinema, topping Cine21 magazine's list of '50 Most Powerful ...
. It is based on the 1999 novel ''Silmido'' by Baek Dong-ho, which in turn is based on the true story of Unit 684. Some parts of the film are dramatizations, as the actual details of certain events remain unknown. The film was both critically well received and a financial success, and was the first film in South Korea to attract a box office audience of over 10 million viewers.


Plot

On 21 January 1968, 31 North Korean commandos of Unit 124 are shown to have infiltrated South Korea in a failed mission to assassinate President
Park Chung Hee Park Chung Hee (; ; November14, 1917October26, 1979) was a South Korean politician and army officer who served as the third president of South Korea from 1962 after he seized power in the May 16 coup of 1961 until Assassination of Park Chung ...
. As a means of retaliation, the
Republic of Korea Armed Forces The Republic of Korea Armed Forces (), also known as the ROK Armed Forces, are the armed forces of South Korea. The ROK Armed Forces is one of the largest and most powerful standing armed forces in the world with a reported personnel strength o ...
assembled a team of 31 social outcasts including criminals on
death row Death row, also known as condemned row, is a place in a prison that houses inmates awaiting execution after being convicted of a capital crime and sentenced to death. The term is also used figuratively to describe the state of awaiting executio ...
and
life imprisonment Life imprisonment is any sentence (law), sentence of imprisonment under which the convicted individual is to remain incarcerated for the rest of their natural life (or until pardoned or commuted to a fixed term). Crimes that result in life impr ...
, in a plot to kill
Kim Il Sung Kim Il Sung (born Kim Song Ju; 15 April 1912 – 8 July 1994) was a North Korean politician and the founder of North Korea, which he led as its first Supreme Leader (North Korean title), supreme leader from North Korea#Founding, its establishm ...
. The team is designated 'Unit 684'. The recruits are taken to the island of Silmido for training. The mission is offered to the recruits as the only way to redeem themselves and show their loyalty to their country. If they succeed, they will win their freedom and a new life. With this goal in mind, the recruits undergo several months of training, enduring various forms of extremely vigorous training and regular physical punishment, including being branded. One recruit is killed after he falls from a
ropes course A ropes course is a challenging outdoor personal development and team building activity which usually consists of high elements, low elements, or some combination of the two. #Low course, Low elements take place on the ground or above the ground. ...
. At the end of their training, they are dispatched on their mission to North Korea, but are recalled not long after their departure. It is revealed that the project has been called off, as the government attempts a peaceful reconciliation with the North. The recruits return to Silmido discouraged and frustrated. Shortly afterwards two of the Unit 684 members escape from their barracks and rape a female doctor. They are quickly discovered, and believing that they will be executed, decide to commit suicide. One kills the other at his request but is apprehended before he is able to kill himself. The apprehended soldier is then returned to the camp, tied up, and made to watch his fellow Unit 684 members being beaten by the guards for the two men's betrayal. Enraged, one of the Unit 684 members being beaten is able to take his guard's bat and kills the tied up soldier for bringing disgrace to the unit. To keep the plot to kill Kim Il Sung unknown to the outside world, the South Korean Central Intelligence Agency decide to kill all the members of Unit 684. The unit's commander protests, but is told that if his troops failed to follow this order, they too would be killed alongside Unit 684. Torn between his duty to follow orders and his personal honor, the commander intentionally leaks this information to one of the Unit 684 members. The Unit, realizing they are going to be killed that same night, make plans to mutiny. They attack and kill the majority of their guards, and find out from one of the guards that they legally no longer exist, and never would have received recognition for their mission if it succeeded, nor even be allowed to return to society. They decide to escape from the island and make their story known. The 20 remaining members of Unit 684 capture a bus containing civilians and head to
Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...
. An official pronouncement is heard over the radio that 20 "armed communist agents" have infiltrated the country, and a state of emergency is declared. After charging through one army roadblock and winning a firefight they are eventually stopped and surrounded by soldiers in front of the
Yuhan Corporation Yuhan Corporation () is a South Korean pharmaceutical and chemical company headquartered in Daebang-dong, Dongjak-gu, Seoul. It was established in 1926 by New Il-han and has been listed on the Korea Stock Exchange since 1962. Yuhan is one of th ...
building in Dongjak District, Seoul. A firefight ensues, with the
Republic of Korea Army The Republic of Korea Army (ROKA; ), also known as the ROK Army or South Korean Army, is the army of South Korea, responsible for ground-based warfare. It is the largest of the military branches of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces with 365,0 ...
showing no regard for the welfare of the civilians on board the bus. Most of the Unit 684 members are either killed or wounded, and many South Korean soldiers are also killed. To avoid further bloodshed, the surviving Unit 684 members release the civilian hostages, before committing suicide using their own hand grenades. An investigation into the incident is shown to have been carried out; however the report is not read and is seen to be filed away in storage.


Production

Filming took place mainly in South Korea, but underwater and winter training scenes were filmed in
Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...
and
New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
, respectively.


Reception

''Silmido'' was well received by audiences in South Korea, where it was viewed by over 6 million people in its first 26 days, taking in over
US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...
30 million in South Korea during this time alone. ''Silmido'' would also gross US$4,540,528 in Japan, as well as US$298,347 from its limited release in the United States. ''Silmido'' would go on to become the first film to have a box office audience of over 10 million in South Korea, and held the record for the most viewed film in theatres until the release of ''
Taegukgi The national flag of South Korea, also known as the ''Taegeukgi'' (), consists of three components: a white rectangular background, a red and blue ''taegeuk'' in its center, accompanied by four black Bagua, trigrams, one in each corner. The p ...
'' in 2004, which received 11.74 million viewings. Derek Elley from Variety gave the film a positive review, praising both its production and casting.


Awards and nominations

;2004
Baeksang Arts Awards The Baeksang Arts Awards (), also known as the Paeksang Arts Awards, are awards for excellence in film, television and theatre in South Korea. The awards were introduced in 1965 by Chang Key-young, the founder of the newspaper ''Hankook Ilbo'', ...
* Grand Prize for Film ;
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...
Grand Bell Awards The Grand Bell Awards (), also known as the Daejong Film Awards, is an awards ceremony presented annually by The Motion Pictures Association of Korea for excellence in film in South Korea. The Grand Bell Awards retains prestige as the oldest co ...
* Best Supporting Actor – Huh Joon-ho * Best Adapted Screenplay – Kim Hie-jae * Best Planning – Jonathan Kim * Special Jury Prize – Plenus/ Cinema Service * Nomination – Best Film * Nomination – Best Director –
Kang Woo-suk Kang Woo-suk (; born November 10, 1960, in Gyeongsan) is a South Korean film Film producer, producer and Film director, director. He has often been called the most powerful man in Korean cinema, topping Cine21 magazine's list of '50 Most Powerful ...
* Nomination – Best Editing – Ko Im-pyo ;2004
Blue Dragon Film Awards The Blue Dragon Film Awards () is an annual awards ceremony that is presented by ''Sports Chosun'' (a sister brand of the ''Chosun Ilbo'') for excellence in film in South Korea. The Blue Dragon Film Awards considers only blockbusters and popula ...
* Best Film * Best Director –
Kang Woo-suk Kang Woo-suk (; born November 10, 1960, in Gyeongsan) is a South Korean film Film producer, producer and Film director, director. He has often been called the most powerful man in Korean cinema, topping Cine21 magazine's list of '50 Most Powerful ...
* Best Supporting Actor – Jung Jae-young * Nomination – Best Supporting Actor – Huh Joon-ho * Nomination – Best Screenplay – Kim Hie-jae * Nomination – Best Cinematography – Kim Sung-bok * Nomination – Best Art Direction – Jeong Eun-jeong ;2004 Korean Film Awards * Nomination – Best Supporting Actor – Jung Jae-young * Nomination – Best Supporting Actor – Huh Joon-ho


Historical accuracy

The release of this film brought public attention to Unit 684, and in 2006 the South Korean Ministry of National Defense released an official report on the unit and the uprising, officially acknowledging its existence for the first time. Brigadier General Nam Dae-yeon said that the 31 Silmido recruits who made up Unit 684 were part of a
Republic of Korea Air Force The Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF; ), also known as the ROK Air Force or South Korean Air Force, is the Air force, aerial and Space force, space warfare service branch of South Korea, operating under the Ministry of National Defense (South K ...
squadron. Seven died in training and 20 were killed in the uprising. The four who survived were executed after a military trial in 1972. Nam stated that documents describing Unit 684's mission no longer exist, but the government has not denied that its mission was to kill Kim Il Sung. What actually caused the uprising on August 23, 1971, is unclear. The film shows the government deciding that the recruits had to be killed because they knew too much. The recruits find out and revolt. Jonathan Kim, the film's producer, acknowledges that history is unclear at this point. Six guards survived the Silmido uprising. One of the guards, Yang Dong Su, confirmed that the unit's mission had been to infiltrate North Korea and kill Kim Il Sung. Yang stated that though the film portrays the 31 recruits as death-row inmates, most were petty criminals. Yang stated that "They were the kind who would get into street fights a lot". Yang also gives his version of why the uprising occurred. On May 19, 2010, the Seoul Central District Court ordered that the government pay 273 million won in compensation to the families of 21 members of Unit 684. The court found that "the Silmido agents were not informed of the level of danger involved with their training, and the harshness of the training violated their basic human rights" and also acknowledged the emotional pain the government caused by not officially disclosing the agents' deaths to family members until 2006.


References


External links

* * * *
Preview of "Silmido": Blowback on the Korean Peninsula
by Minnie Chi {{Blue Dragon Film Award for Best Film 2003 films 2003 action drama films South Korean war drama films South Korean action drama films Cold War films South Korean historical action films Films set in the 1960s Films set in the 1970s Films set in Incheon Films shot in Incheon Films shot in New Zealand Films directed by Kang Woo-suk Best Picture Blue Dragon Film Award winners 2010s Korean-language films Films about North Korea–South Korea relations Films about the Republic of Korea Air Force 2000s war drama films 2010s historical action films Historical action films South Korean films based on actual events 2010s South Korean films 2000s South Korean films