The Critical Function of Korean Social Films of Society in the 21^st Century

【Abstract】 In the late 1990s and the 21st century， Korean films have made significant progress， which not only occupy the unshakable dominant position in its mainland，but also occupy a place in the worlds film industry with its unique style. It has become a miracle in Asian movies in terms of its unique aesthetic style. The goal of this paper is just to let Chinese films learn more from Korean films and give some advice to Chinese film industry that can make more better movies which are suitable to actual circumstances and beneficial to peoples life.

【Key words】Korean social films; critical function; real concern; social reform

【作者簡介】杜佳（1998.04-），女，滿族，黑龍江佳木斯人，中國地質大學（北京），本科，研究方向：英語。

Silence is honored as “a movie changes a country”， it was directed by a real event which happened in Gwangju from 2000 to 2004. Until Silence showed on the screen， under the pressure of the public， the Korean government survey the case again. Fortunately， in 2011， the inspection bureau has formally arrested the parties involved. At the same time， the 37th day after the movie was released， Korean parliament has passed sexual assault amendment and the law Sexual Violence Crime Punishment Special Part Revision Session has passed by the government， its also called “melting pot method”，the aim is to ensure the safety of minors. As the last line in the movie： “We fight all the time not to change the world， but to keep the world from changing us.”

Although huge darkness wants to hide the truth， the struggled people want to fight against it. Actually， public is the public， compared with those people who are powerful， we are so small and vulnerable. But in this unfair war， they dont forget the responsibility， justice and conscience， they never give up searching for the truth， searching for human rights and dignity which belong to children. Even the name of the film is Silence， we are more willing to compare the present state system， social concept， legal consciousness， human rights awakening in South Korea to a larger melting pot. The movie is just like a mirror to the reality. Children are angels who fall into the human， but those children in the movie are suffering the torture just like in the hell again and again. Deaf and minors are the protected objects in society， but they are the biggest victims and also they are the main force against evil. There has never been a movie that changed the law of a country. However， Silence is truly change the attitude of the country to the people. Behind this film， we can see the development of Korean film industry， the reflection of the country and respect for civil rights. George Simmel said in Modern People and Religion：“Only lives can understand lives.”Every life should be respected. We always use material to measure the progress of the society， but maybe the essence is whether the masses to live with dignity， the people who really need to be protected is to get the corresponding care， and this kind of investment in human feelings is a love of people， an affirmation of the persons value.

Train to Busans exploration of human nature is more profound， and the core of the film continues the torture of the system and humanity， and the emotion is strong. In Train to Busan， the scene of bloody eating is actually terrified all of people， but the most frightened and shuddered are those people who have shapes of people but with no humanity. Humans selfishness and dirt are exposed to the extreme when they face the disaster. Gustav e Le Bon said that when people gathered to be a group， the poverty and shabbiness of group spirits just appear. The lower moral standards won the individual， the conscious personality is gone. Silence is horrible， especially those good peoples silence. Those people refused to let some main characters who saved them get into the carriage. The selfishness and barbarity of the depths of humanity are exposed in the group. The most ironical thing is that they can struggle and rush to four carriages which are filled with zombies， however， they are stopped by the knot which is tied by civilized men. Tortures to the institution and human nature are obvious and strong. It makes us rethink what a real person is， what kinds of characteristics and human natures we should own， what the ugliness and beauty of humanity are. Maybe the answer is not constant， but it can provoke our deeper thoughts of these， which will be good for our society. The reality is dark， but there are still so many people who want to change the darkness of the world. They are still fighting， even though the world is filled with black mist， there is always hope in the depths of despair.

From the analysis in this paper， it is obvious that critical functions of Korean Social films on society are really powerful. By lighting set up a bridge between fact and fiction makes the filmmaker and the audience together through in reality and fantasy， makes social problem consciousness type superimposed on the space narrative presents the composition， construction and story in the design of characters， look backward past history and feel empathy or compassion or outraged， feel the reality deeper strongly and the life is not easy and be full of hope. Even if its just a movie， it can just change the law and political system of a country. At the same time， it shows the individual value and respect of each life. It just focus on three aspects： beyond the national trauma of ideology; show the misery and misfortune of the bottom; to expose the morbid reality and exploit the rich human nature.

The most important is that for Chinese directors how to embrace the era more closely， how to get rid of superficial phenomena， get out of the aesthetic pattern of Hollywood and combine the local characteristics of China， make a really good Chinese movie. Thats the biggest benefit we learn from critical functions of Korean social films on society.

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