Joint Security Area (JSA) is a Korean movie investigating the murder of two North Korean soldiers in the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). The investigation into the deaths demonstrates some attitudes in the Korean border. The movie has a quality story about Korea.
Many people do not understand the effects that the Korean War brought on people living in South and North Korea. When we focus on the history of the war, the entire peninsula was destroyed by the war, and though the cease-fire ended, the war has still not ended. The South and the North are still under war though no enmity has been experienced since 1953.
The film starts by introducing stories that demonstrate the tension that exists between the North and the South. Two North Korean soldiers had been murdered at the guardhouse, and a lawyer from the military had been certified to undertake the investigation.
The Lawyer, under the script name Lee Young Ae, is half Korean, and according to her investigations, she discovers the differences existing between the accounts of the Southern and the Northern (Joint Security Area).
In the movie, it is clear that the one who commits the crime is an army sergeant from South Korea with the script name Lee Byung-Hun. There is a soldier who witnesses the shooting, and the information he gives is different from that given by the sergeant.
According to the account of the South Korean Army Sergeant, he had been in the bushes relieving himself when he was suddenly attacked by the North Koreans and dragged when unconscious (Joint Security Area). He afterward regained consciousness and shot the two to his freedom. During the shootings, he had been injured in the knee.
The sergeant from North Korea tells a different story that gives a different account. He says that Lee found them at the guardroom and started shooting the North Koreans without being provoked. According to investigations, one of the soldiers had been shot in the head at close range, meaning it was some form of execution.
The movie shows the events that led to the shootings. The South Korean soldiers have already crossed to the North Korean part. Lee is saved after he steps on a landmine. They would have left him to die or arrested him, but they left him to go (Joint Security Area).
Lee is stationed to guard the border and to realize that Jeong and Oh are also stationed on the other side; they exchange letters, and a long-distance connection develops. There is an ethical dilemma in the movie, and Lee cannot differentiate between enemies and true friends (Joint Security Area).
This relationship continues for some time before Nam realizes. Nam is lured by Lee into crossing the border to connect with Jeong and Oh, and they all develop a relationship. Despite being friends, they still understand that a war exists between them.
Jeong feels that the South is a barrier to them attacking the Americans, and on the other hand, Lee and Nam feel that Oh and Jeong are trying to lure them into defecting to the North (Joint Security Area).
Lee and Nam feel that the relationship with the North Koreans should end, and they settle on visiting them for the last time. The four are heartbroken by the end of this relationship. As they are leaving, a North Korean lieutenant braces the door and pulls his gun on Lee and Nam. Lee also has his gun up to the lieutenant. Oh, makes efforts to calm them down.
The relationship breaks down between people who share a common language, but their connection is blurred by the demilitarized zone. The South and the North only meet in the movie. In the movie, the North Koreans are seen to be evil as they never there is any instance where they cross to the Southern side though they have friends there.
On the other hand, the North Koreans are seen to have characteristics of compassion and loyalty as they save the life of Lee and free him instead of arresting him though he is on the Northern side (Joint Security Area). The attitude of the South Koreans becomes questionable.
The movie links us to a connection with four soldiers. The soldiers are confused about whether they should love each other or hate each other as they have been taught. They have been playing games together, eating chocolate, drinking, talking about women, and listening to music.
In the real sense, Lee and Nam are confused about whether their friendship with Jeong and Oh is genuine or they want to capture and kill them. The relationship between the four soldiers is genuine, but they are all confused as the North should hate the South and Vice Versa (Joint Security Area).
The whole movie revolves around a tragedy. There is an ethical dilemma between the beliefs of the four soldiers and what they have been as compared to the relationship they have.
Works Cited
Joint Security Area. Dir. Shim Jae-myung. Prod. Lee Eun. Seoul: Myung Films, 2000. DVD.