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Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood Of War
Directed by Je-gyu Kang
Ok I gotta say it. I think this movie is even better than Steven Spielberg's popular war masterpiece Saving Private Ryan and Clint Eastwood's new film Flags Of Our Fathers. It is. I think this film is much more touching than both of them. Both are great films...this one is just better. Haha.
This film starts out like a few other war films of this nature in that it begins in the present time and flashes back to the war (The Korean War of the early 1950's). Saving Private Ryan did this. Both films are really graphicly violent. I thought the violence in Tae Guk Gi was even MORE extreme than that in Saving Private Ryan in fact! You might not be able to visualize that but I think it's even MORE violent in fact.
Tae Guk Gi is about 2 brothers. Jin Tae and Jin Seok. They are just trying to get through life. Jin Seok is in school and trying to make something of himself. Jin Tae shines shoes so he can help his family with funds. That way his brother can continue going to school. Unfortunately the North Korean army ends up attacking South Korea therefore beginning the Korean War.
Jin Seok has some problems with his heart sometimes and although he doesn't have problems most of the time, every once in a while the problem kicks in. Their family decides to leave their homes and flee before the war is right in front of them. As they are leaving the armed forces show up and ask that everyone 18-30 years old step forward. Jin Seok steps forward not knowing that he'll soon be on his way to war. Jin Tae finds out and when he finds his brother on the train with all the soldiers, he starts a fight with them to help his borther escape. Unfortunately, both end up getting taken to the battlefields.
Throughout the film, Jin Tae is trying to find some way to get Jin Seok sent home. This way, he can continue his studies as well as carry on the family name. But as we see Jin Tae try some heroics in order to gain some leverage, we begin to wonder; is he trying to earn a medal to have enough say to get his brother sent home, or is he also just enjoying his new found power on the field?
I'd love to explain more of what happens to you but quite frankly, this film is SOOOOO good that you'll hate me for saying much more if you see it....which you SHOULD. You NEED to. If you've ever enjoyed seeing a war film before, this film will touch your heart and just warm your soul. Not having a brother I cannot understand the great connection these two men have with each other, however, the acting and script is so good that you'll begin to grasp the connection just by seeing these two onscreen.
This film saw me with tears in my eyes. This is one of the VERY BEST war films I've ever seen. And I've got to say...South Korea has been making some of the VERY BEST films coming out now. And that's a fact! Oldboy and Lady Vengeance are 2 of my favorite films. BOTH Korean.
Overall I give this film
I give this film
[5/5]
I loved this movie and it REALLY touched me. The acting is FANTASTIC and the writing is great. These characters all act realistically and no one seems out of place. I HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend this film!!!
P.S. OH! Also be on the look out for Su-ro Kim as an Anti-Communist Federation Leader (he's the one in the black shirt). He was in Volcano High and one of my other Korean favorites Attack The Gas Station! ALSO look out for Choi-min Sik!!! He plays a North Korean Commander who has to be captured in one scene. He played as Oh-Dae Su in my FAVORITE film Oldboy as well as Mr. Baek in one of my other favorite films Lady Vengeance. But seriously. Watch all of these flicks! You won't be disappointed!!!
September 13 , 2010
ILLegal Alien: Jedi Link of USA.
Of all the muthafuckas in the world, he's the muthafuckest.
This one is a bizarre case. Some places he fits in, others he stands out. No matter where you find him, he'll always be the same guy as he never puts up a facade for any reason. A filmmaker on the rise he has a vast knowledge of useless garbage. If it's in a movie he's seen it. Thanks to the internet he's seen worse. This one is severely scarred by an incomprehension of how retarded people can be. Generally a loner, he knows few, those few don't always support him so he stands on his own.
He is relentless in his pursuit as a filmmaker and refuses to be left out of a business he wants to see improve. He also has ADD which explains the somewhat "all over" nature of his own description.