Identity Crisis

Identity Crisis                                                                     Yu-Han (Frank) Chang

The film centered on the Song family and how each member of the family struggled both in their individual lives and together as a collective unit. Myong Sook, the sister, was depicted with two very distinct identities. One was the innocent woman trying to reclaim her fiancé’s love who was distancing himself away from her because of his injured leg and self-esteem. In this portrayal, she was dressed in traditional Asian clothing and she showed how dedicated her love was to Kyong Sik. On the other side, Myong Sook was a prostitute for the American soldiers. She was dressed in Western clothing and most importantly her behaviours (ex. Flirting) were the complete contrary to the Myong Sook first introduced in the film. There was a sense of conflict between traditional and modern and Eastern and Western values. The irony, unfortunately, was that she had to have her other identity as a prostitute in order to survive despite the fact that she was “liberated” from North Korea and Koreans were “liberated” from colonization.

                  Another identity crisis occurred amongst the veterans returning from the war. This theme was mostly portrayed through Yong Ho, the second son in the family, and his army friends. Yong Ho believed that being a brave and strong soldier was his qualification but apparently, not enough for this society. He felt that he was trapped in the “cage of conscience” and wanted to do something big. Even when he was arrested, he was still saying that he’d rather be hung and die in front of everyone as a hero than living in this hopeless life. Yong Ho’s portrayal reflected on how war veterans struggled to find an identity in which they would be able to blend into the society. Instead, life was difficult and expectations were disappointed.

                  Chul Ho, the oldest son, also caved in after seeing his brother arrested and his wife died delivering his child. He felt that it was “hopeless fighting against fate” and that he “might be God’s stray bullet”. In the last scene, he rode in the taxi going around and about, lost in the world of despair. Chul Ho represented the common citizens in Korea at the time and reflected how people in Korea were struggling just to get by during the great depression after the Korean War.

                  Overall, I thought this was an attempt made by the producer to allow the audience to reflect upon what was really going on during that time in 1961. Korea had just been through nearly half a century of colonization with political and culture oppression. Each member of the family illustrated the struggle and quest to search for an identity in different disciplines of the society. And together, the family was fragmented and lacking in purpose. Every individual wanted to escape. This was reiterated over and over by the mother whose last remaining instinct was to repeat “Let’s Go!”. In a broader sense, the family was a simplified portrayal of the nation. A common question amongst everyone was - “What now?”  since the war was finally over and Korea was liberated. The war and the history have left the country in a devastated and fragmented state where her identity as a nation’s entirety was missing.