OK folks here is the rebuttal to the one star dis:
Korean propaganda you say? So Hollywood is not biased? What about Hong Kong or Mainland China? What about all the Tibetan films coming out against China. What about all the Japanese assertions of superiority and denials of atrocities during WW2? Get the picture? Let me give you some parallels. If your country was invaded and your culture was systematically erased or someone attempted this and succeeded then you have the situation of Native Americans. If you were used as slave labor you have the situation of the African Americans. Japan tried to do both to Koreans and got away with a lot of it. No reparations I know of came out of it. If you think the Native Americans or African Americans are biased they have a good reason to be and you probably will write it off as the past. Don't write off the past. Don't ignore the Legacy inside people. It will come back to bite you.
So be mad all you want and call it propaganda but the people you take issue with suffered devastatingly by the people they take issue with. It is till going on today. Check out what Ichiro said about Koreans during the World Baseball Tournament and see the Korean backlash. You really weren't there or descended from either one of these people so you have a rosy picture of Koreans and Japanese. You don't even know the beginning of the injustices, cultural looting, rape and pillaging and slavery that went on. So do some research which you haven't and you will better understand why a bias in a film is nothing compared to what actually happened in real life. Don't you think the film makers wanted to create a strong reaction? If you are still reading thanks for indulging me please forgive any unpleasant tone as it was not directed to any particular group. Just toward an attitude of ignoring a whole peoples'sentiment that is more than justified. The future is a result of the past.
Heres my "biased" review Please take with a grain of salt:
Like "Yeokdosan" which is a very similar story of a Korean rising in importance to Japan, "Fighter in the Wind" shows a person who overcomes through sheer determination and stubbornness all the popular sentiment of inferiority surrounding him in a nation that is not his. Thus he rises to great status despite the discrimination and attitude of superiority against him. If you would like a less fairy tale and more realistic and slickly produced drama, I heartily recommend "Yeokdosan" which is about a Korean wrestler who becomes a star in America and a legend in Japan.
The visuals are a treat. I sense a bit of a limited budget so don't expect the most elaborate settings and extras but enjoy scenes of Power Karate instead of the Hyperkinetic wushu films of late. Yang Don Gun really did a great performance as the MAN. If you saw Rocky or any of Jackie Chan's earlier works you know the story. Underdog gets beat and then underdog finds courage and a trainer and goes back for revenge. Mas Oyama did go to the mountains and discovered something about himself there and the rest is history.
If you did just a documentary it would not have the impact that a well produced drama would. You need conflict and memorable characters purposely designed to stir a reaction. You need to show the hatred, fear and injustice to get the people into it. The greater the hardship and the odds the more memorable the story and Character/Hero.
Korean propaganda you say? So Hollywood is not biased? What about Hong Kong or Mainland China? What about all the Tibetan films coming out against China. What about all the Japanese assertions of superiority and denials of atrocities during WW2? Get the picture? Let me give you some parallels. If your country was invaded and your culture was systematically erased or someone attempted this and succeeded then you have the situation of Native Americans. If you were used as slave labor you have the situation of the African Americans. Japan tried to do both to Koreans and got away with a lot of it. No reparations I know of came out of it. If you think the Native Americans or African Americans are biased they have a good reason to be and you probably will write it off as the past. Don't write off the past. Don't ignore the Legacy inside people. It will come back to bite you.
So be mad all you want and call it propaganda but the people you take issue with suffered devastatingly by the people they take issue with. It is till going on today. Check out what Ichiro said about Koreans during the World Baseball Tournament and see the Korean backlash. You really weren't there or descended from either one of these people so you have a rosy picture of Koreans and Japanese. You don't even know the beginning of the injustices, cultural looting, rape and pillaging and slavery that went on. So do some research which you haven't and you will better understand why a bias in a film is nothing compared to what actually happened in real life. Don't you think the film makers wanted to create a strong reaction? If you are still reading thanks for indulging me please forgive any unpleasant tone as it was not directed to any particular group. Just toward an attitude of ignoring a whole peoples'sentiment that is more than justified. The future is a result of the past.
Heres my "biased" review Please take with a grain of salt:
Like "Yeokdosan" which is a very similar story of a Korean rising in importance to Japan, "Fighter in the Wind" shows a person who overcomes through sheer determination and stubbornness all the popular sentiment of inferiority surrounding him in a nation that is not his. Thus he rises to great status despite the discrimination and attitude of superiority against him. If you would like a less fairy tale and more realistic and slickly produced drama, I heartily recommend "Yeokdosan" which is about a Korean wrestler who becomes a star in America and a legend in Japan.
The visuals are a treat. I sense a bit of a limited budget so don't expect the most elaborate settings and extras but enjoy scenes of Power Karate instead of the Hyperkinetic wushu films of late. Yang Don Gun really did a great performance as the MAN. If you saw Rocky or any of Jackie Chan's earlier works you know the story. Underdog gets beat and then underdog finds courage and a trainer and goes back for revenge. Mas Oyama did go to the mountains and discovered something about himself there and the rest is history.
If you did just a documentary it would not have the impact that a well produced drama would. You need conflict and memorable characters purposely designed to stir a reaction. You need to show the hatred, fear and injustice to get the people into it. The greater the hardship and the odds the more memorable the story and Character/Hero.