By Bernard Rowan
Im Kwon-taek is famous for directing many of the best Korean films. Over the last 55 years, he's created 100-plus classics for present and future audiences. I think he deserves recognition as a living national treasure. Let me tell you why.
In 2002, I saw my first film by Im, entitled "Chihwaseon." It's the story of an artist, Owon (Jang Seung-eop), following his craft through ups and downs in love and life. Set during the early 20th century, it weaves Korean history, scenery and culture seamlessly into a mesmerizing compilation. I remember many images this film fixed in my mind then up til now. They include beautiful natural scenery, winter, frustration, persistence, passion, triumph, disappointment, the hermit, Buddhism and shamanism.
That's the point of a film by master Im. He evokes the living culture of Korea in historical contexts from the past to the present. He captures the individual amid wider currents of energy and meaning. He does so in a way that represents enduring Korean values, virtues, and foibles. He respects the person. He holds in even higher regard the larger chain of being in which we suffer and celebrate life.
Im isn't shy about depicting Korean Confucianism in positive self-expression. That expression embodies acceptance of han. Acceptance of life's frustrations and disappointments, including the undeserved and accidental, is a rite of passage to harmony as an individual and in relationships. The cup may not always look half-full, but acceptance of life understands this constant reality with resignation and embrace. It prepares a deeper kind of happiness. Too many Koreans may resent this philosophy as outdated. What a mistake!
The hero of "Chihwaseon" is not a triumphant scholar, soldier, or king. He's a humble and human painter. Even though he served an aristocrat, Owon shows the importance of merit for leadership in Korean Confucian culture. He also lapsed, failed, and preferred to eke out his inspirations in the countryside and as an ordinary person. One website referred to him as "Drunken Painter-Saint."
A second important film is "Beyond the Years." This film highlights the beautiful singing style of pansori as well as the living expression of Arirang in the lives of two people who do and don't live as sister and brother. Critics and the Korean public panned the film. I viewed it on a flight to Korea years back. It's hard to forget ― even to this day. Im can lay claim to doing much to preserve traditional Korean culture. His 1993 classic, Sopyonje, repopularized pansori to a new generation.
"Beyond the Years" concerns two lovers who must accept that others consider them as siblings. This motif depicts the importance of honoring family love amid a dissonant and hidebound world. Im's films don't display the sugary sweet happiness of much popular entertainment. His happiness needs a realist's understanding.
My favorite memory of Im's films was a closing song that played while a crane flew over the landscape. This image and experience struck me as an expression of the Korean spirit. The Thousand Years Crane represents Korea and the Korean people.
My words don't do justice to the genius and lifework of this living cultural treasure. Foreigners could find no better way to learn about Korea than to watch his films. I recommend them to us all and what they represent to our living memory and cultivation of Korean civilization.
These days an online search of news about Im shows that he receives many awards. While I'm sure he's humble about it all, he deserves more. These awards often go to someone in the twilight of his or her life. I hope Im lives to make many more films and inspires many to make films in the same style. Even more, I hope that while he's alive, he'll earn Korea's designation as a living national Treasure.
Bernard Rowan (browan10@yahoo.com) is associate provost for contract administration and professor of political science at Chicago State University. He is a past fellow of the Korea Foundation and former visiting professor at Hanyang University.
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In 2002, I saw my first film by Im, entitled "Chihwaseon." It's the story of an artist, Owon (Jang Seung-eop), following his craft through ups and downs in love and life. Set during the early 20th century, it weaves Korean history, scenery and culture seamlessly into a mesmerizing compilation. I remember many images this film fixed in my mind then up til now. They include beautiful natural scenery, winter, frustration, persistence, passion, triumph, disappointment, the hermit, Buddhism and shamanism.
That's the point of a film by master Im. He evokes the living culture of Korea in historical contexts from the past to the present. He captures the individual amid wider currents of energy and meaning. He does so in a way that represents enduring Korean values, virtues, and foibles. He respects the person. He holds in even higher regard the larger chain of being in which we suffer and celebrate life.
Im isn't shy about depicting Korean Confucianism in positive self-expression. That expression embodies acceptance of han. Acceptance of life's frustrations and disappointments, including the undeserved and accidental, is a rite of passage to harmony as an individual and in relationships. The cup may not always look half-full, but acceptance of life understands this constant reality with resignation and embrace. It prepares a deeper kind of happiness. Too many Koreans may resent this philosophy as outdated. What a mistake!
The hero of "Chihwaseon" is not a triumphant scholar, soldier, or king. He's a humble and human painter. Even though he served an aristocrat, Owon shows the importance of merit for leadership in Korean Confucian culture. He also lapsed, failed, and preferred to eke out his inspirations in the countryside and as an ordinary person. One website referred to him as "Drunken Painter-Saint."
A second important film is "Beyond the Years." This film highlights the beautiful singing style of pansori as well as the living expression of Arirang in the lives of two people who do and don't live as sister and brother. Critics and the Korean public panned the film. I viewed it on a flight to Korea years back. It's hard to forget ― even to this day. Im can lay claim to doing much to preserve traditional Korean culture. His 1993 classic, Sopyonje, repopularized pansori to a new generation.
"Beyond the Years" concerns two lovers who must accept that others consider them as siblings. This motif depicts the importance of honoring family love amid a dissonant and hidebound world. Im's films don't display the sugary sweet happiness of much popular entertainment. His happiness needs a realist's understanding.
My favorite memory of Im's films was a closing song that played while a crane flew over the landscape. This image and experience struck me as an expression of the Korean spirit. The Thousand Years Crane represents Korea and the Korean people.
My words don't do justice to the genius and lifework of this living cultural treasure. Foreigners could find no better way to learn about Korea than to watch his films. I recommend them to us all and what they represent to our living memory and cultivation of Korean civilization.
These days an online search of news about Im shows that he receives many awards. While I'm sure he's humble about it all, he deserves more. These awards often go to someone in the twilight of his or her life. I hope Im lives to make many more films and inspires many to make films in the same style. Even more, I hope that while he's alive, he'll earn Korea's designation as a living national Treasure.
Bernard Rowan (browan10@yahoo.com) is associate provost for contract administration and professor of political science at Chicago State University. He is a past fellow of the Korea Foundation and former visiting professor at Hanyang University.
