Void Art

‘Pansori’ is the overarching component of the movie Seopyonje. However at the peak of its emotional storyline, the sound is muted, and the movie offers the viewers non-vocal mood music. Even if the visual expression of Pansori is still visible, this reduction greatly effects the audient’s relation with the film. Some might be disappointed and others might have the feeling they were ‘cheated’ on. The scene definitely raised some questions and lowered the favorability of the film for some people, but I personally believe that it was a good call.  

Adding onto Julian Stringer’s interpretation expressed in the essay “Seopyonje and the Inner Domain of National Culture”, I see the directorial decision in the replacement of the climactic and operatic moment in the movie’s plot to be a successful and necessary choice. Not only because of a deeper nationalistic or sophisticated meaning, but also for a functional need that storytelling demands in order to become more universal.

Simply put, sometimes the best things are the things you can’t have. By not giving the audience the climactic sound of Pansori that is reached when the main characters Song-hwa and Dong-ho overcome their ‘han’, is in a sense, leaving it up to the imagination of the viewers to create a personal interpretation of the encounter and allow space for true excellence that can fulfill different standards. Even though the actors are trained in the art of Pansori, it woule be extremely difficult to produce a sound that satisfies the many expectations of different style, taste, and culture. So the absence allows a possibility for a richer sound for people to experience.

This might be a reason that Song-hwa and Dong-ho chose different paths after waiting their reunion for such a long time. Because to an extent, all experience is rooted in remembrance. Perhaps they wanted to cherish their reunion by preserving it as a memory and not allowing different interactions to be an intrusion. Although they go their separate ways, they will always have a piece of each other within them as reminiscences of the moment.