Su-eop-ryo

If accounts from the period are to be believed, SU-EOP-RYO was a resounding success in colonial Korea and elsewhere in the Japanese empire. The film was directed by experienced directors Bang Han-jun and Choi In-gyu, who, in a surprising shift in political allegiance, would later shoot Korea’s first postwar film JAYU MANSE (LONG LIVE FREEDOM!, 1946). A copy of the film surfaced at the China Film Archive in 2014 and was passed on to the Korean Film Archive for restoration. It is the engaging tale of how fourth-grader Yeong-dal must overcome obstacles to pay for his school tuition. He is being looked after by his grandmother, as his parents are away to earn money. Inspired by a real life school boy’s prize-winning story, the film provides plenty of lovely (non-urbanised) Korean scenery and lots of human kindness to balance out the scenes of poverty and adversity. At the same time, its depiction of the educational system and its supportive Japanese teacher is rosy to say the least, and there is no direct mention of the political situation. In the film’s defence, its use of Korean language where possible, can be considered slightly subversive, in that it was flaunting Japanese rules. (Gerwin Tamsma)

Choi In-gyu: GUK-GYEONG (1939), JIBEOPNEUN CHEONSA (1941), TAE-YANG-UI A-IDEUL (1944), AI TO CHIKAI (1945), KAMIKAZE NO KODOMODACHI (1945), JAYU MANSE (1946), JOE-EOBSNEUN JOE-IN (1948), DOGLIBJEON-YA (1948), GUGMINTUPYO (1948), JANG CHUHWA MU-YONG (1948), HUIMANG-UI MA-EUL (1948)

Banh Han-jun: SALSUCHA (1935), HANGANG (1938), SEONGHWANGDANG (1939). SEUN-GRIUI DDEUL (1940), PUNGNYEONGA (1942), GEOGYEONG JEON (1944), BYEONG JEONGNIM (1944)