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Paper short abstract:

This presentation aims to shed light on how "Anarchist from Colony" revealed the conflicting nature of being "anti-Japanese" in the contemporary relationship between South Korea and Japan.

Paper long abstract:

"Anarchist from Colony" received critical and popular acclaim in South Korea in 2017. Directed by Lee Joon-ik, this film depicts the life of actual independence activist Park Yeol (1902-1974), with a special focus on the relationship between Park and Kaneko Fumiko (1903-1926), his Japanese partner, memorializing them as heroes against Japanese colonial oppression.

When limitedly released in Japan in 2018, however, while receiving some positive reviews, it also drew harsh criticisms mainly for its depictions of Kaneko. Some Japanese movie critics considered the movie "totally historically inaccurate," and even labeled it as an explicit expression of "anti-Japanese sentiment" among South Korean people. The depictions of Kaneko, the only leading Japanese character in the film, stood at the center of such criticisms.

Here two questions arise: did the South Korean movie critics and audience acclaim the film because it is, by Japanese standards, "anti-Japanese"? What does it mean for South Korean films to be "anti-Japanese" in the eyes of contemporary Japanese movie-goers?

To answer these questions from the socio-political perspective, this presentation explores the following four issues :1) Japanese colonial rule depicted in contemporary South Korean films :2) the ways in which the creators of "Anarchist from Colony" paid attention to its historical accuracy; 3) the ways in which South Korean film critics and audience acclaimed the film; 4) and the ways in which Yomota Inuhiko, one of the leading Japanese film scholars and critics, reviewed the film.

In doing so, this presentation aims to shed light on how "Anarchist from Colony" revealed the conflicting nature of being "anti-Japanese" in the contemporary relationship between South Korea and Japan.