[Han Ki-wook] Fiction and Film in Popular Culture (1)
The Works of Kim Yong-ha * , Ha Song-nan, and Hong Sang-soo *
Translated by KIm Yoo-sok
1.
Nowadays, one often hears lamentation about how our literature is stagnant our films are witnessing a second renaissance since the 1960's. Nor are even more pessimistic predictions quite infrequent: because the "new generation," who enthuse over popular consumer culture such as music TV, film, video, cellular phones, automobiles, and the Internet have for long neglected literature, the prospects for literature are even darker than they already are now. [1] Although I myself do not believe such pessimism regarding the fate of literature, I must admit that South Korean cinema is enjoying unprecedented success and popularity. This phenomenon stands at a market contrast to the 1960's, when Kim Su-yong [金洙英], requested to write a film review, went to a movie theater, only to come outside in disgust with incompetent acting and illogical scenes. [2]
As of late, movies have far surpassed novels in terms of both the number of readers (audience) and the sheer ability to be the talk of the town. In this respect, then, we can say that film has undoubtedly outdone fiction over the last few years. Moreover, most of our movies are being made in such a way that they now "make sense," some of them even worthy of notice for their artistry. Indeed, not only serious films such as JSA―Joint Security Area , [3] Peppermint Candy , [4] The Virgin Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors , [5] and The Isle [6] but also purely-for-entertainment works such as Attack on the Gas Station [7] are far more interesting than the bulk of Hollywood fare. If such is the case, how would recent movies and novels do in competition with each other as works of art? Although this is a most interesting―and "grand"―question, I myself am unable to provide any answer. This writer merely and vaguely feels that, thanks to its phenomenal growth, South Korean film can now be compared with fiction.
Odd as it may be, the idea of discussing the novels of Kim Yong-ha and Ha Song-nan [河成蘭] and the movies of Hong Sang-Soo [洪尙秀] together in this essay was inspired by the desire at least to concretize my "vague feeling" mentioned above. I have dared to take on this task first because Kim's and Ha's novels have been influenced to a considerable degree by cinema whereas Hong's movies in turn make active use of novelistic elements. Consequently, it seemed like a possible and worthy thing to compare their works regardless of genre. But this is neither the most important nor the only reason I have chosen these particular artists' works. While Kim and Ha are relatively new writers and therefore hardly representative of Korean letters, they still deserve individual evaluation for their noteworthy artistic achievements. By dealing with the autistic daily life of the metropolis immersed in popular culture, each in his or her unique way, these writers have managed to present us with art that actively responds to urban life in our times. And it is precisely at this junction that the two novelists' works meet Hong's films.
* All Korean words and names have been romanized in accordance with the McCune-Reischauer system except, of course, established spellings such as "Seoul" and personally preferred renditions such as "Paik Nak-chung." In addition, the names of all Korean figures, fictive or historical, appear with the last name preceding the first. [Translator's note]
* Depending on the source, the hyphen is sometimes omitted. The same holds true for the names of all of the characters from his movies. This article was originally published in no. 111 (spring 2001) of Quarterly Changjak-kwa-Bipyong [Creation & Criticism ; 創作과 批評]. [Translator's note]
* Literary critic and professor of English literature at Inje University. Works include "Chiguhwa Sidae-ui Segye Munhak" [World Literature in the Age of Globalization; 地球化 時代의 世界 文學]. His e-mail address is englhkwn@ijnc.inje.ac.kr.
[1] See Kim Yong-ha [金英夏], "Wokuaut Chikchon-ui Munhak" [Literature―In the Face of a Corporate Workout; 워크아웃 直前의 文學], Hyondae Munhak [Modern Literature ; 現代 文學] (January 2001).
[2] See Kim Su-yong, "'Munye Yonghwa' Pum-e Taehayo" [Regarding the 'Literary Film' Trend; 文藝 映畵 붐에 對하여], Kim Su-yong Chonjip [ Complete Works of Kim Su-yong ; 金洙英 全集], vol. 2 (Seoul: Minum-sa [民音社], 1981).
[3] Kongdong Kyongbi Kuyok Cheiesuei [共同 警備 區域] JSA in Korean, the title is translated into English also as Joint Security Area or simply JSA . [Translator' note]
[4] ,em>Pakha Sat'ang [薄荷 砂糖] in Korean. [Translator' note]
[5] This is the official English rendition of the Korean O! Su-jong [오! 수정]. However, the title is translated into English also―and more literally―as Oh! Soo-Jung . Perhaps not incidentally and rather ironically, "Soo-Jung" is a female given name in Korea that can mean "crystal" [水晶]. [Translator' note]
[6] Som [섬] in Korean. [Translator's note]
[7] Chuyuso Sopkyok Sakon [注油所 襲擊 事件] in Korean, the title is translated into English also as ,em>Attack the Gas Station! [Translator' note]