I shall be the first to admit that i dont know much about south korean post korean war - till present day, i do though remember the student uprising that was mentioned in norwegian news, ''crazy punks'' i thought then, but that was then. after watching 1987 that covers the run up for the june struggle ,i have got another insight angle, and do see better what they fought for, that nearly let south korea into a stand still due to protests and general strikes until the regime and president were overthrown.
this is one of the best east asian movies that i have seen. the acting are very convincing, the grave violence and brutal force that the anti commi squad were using were plausible, as where the scenes of grief , sorrow and pain. espescially the screams of the captured victims were gruelling real. there are so many actors, so to accentuate any would be unfair, because the spirit seems to be filled with pride just to be a part of this project.
the cinematography are great, the unbelievable number of locations and setups, and the direction of the crews and extras are impressive.the pace are definately not slow, the narrative story are extremely well told,the plot and timeline are easy to follow, magnificent editing and the make up and bad weather department have extended their limits of their profession..
there have been used a little bit of visual effects,and some real news coverage to fill the base of the story, very well balanced.
the high tension , and the tragic loss of lifes , did really affect me. so if you are gonna watch this flick of 10 stars , do read some political history of south korea in the 1980's before viewing the film 1987, that will enhance the impression of this historical drama. its highly recommended by the grumpy old man.