mlovmo-2
Joined Oct 2000
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mlovmo-2's rating
The original Thames Television version of this documentary is clearly the best of the Korean War documentaries. It is much more engaging and informative than both "Fire and Ice" and "The Forgotten War." This amazing documentary, "The Unknown War", includes interviews with over 100 participants and eyewitnesses in the war: Many important soldiers, civilians, historians and policy-makers from the USA, UK, Australia, North and South Korea, China, the Soviet Union and Eastern bloc. This documentary follows the chronology of military events, interspersed with important issues and controversies that make the Korean War a fascinating subject. It is composed of 6 one-hour episodes that were initially shown on BBC's Channel 4 on the following dates:
Episode 1: "Many Roads to War" June 18, 1988 Episode 2: "An Arrogant Display of Strength" June 25, 1988 Episode 3: "There is No Substitute for Victory" July 2, 1988 Episode 4: "An Entirely New War" July 9, 1988 Episode 5: "The Battle for Minds" July 16, 1988 Episode 6: "Armed Truce" July 30, 1988
After much revision and editing of its original content by WGBH/Boston, it was shown on PBS in the USA two years later. Thanks to some intense lobbying efforts, it went on the air with no sponsor, just the support of "PBS viewers like you."
The historical consultants felt that both the Thames and WGBH versions were deficient on the significance of NSC 68, considered by some to be the most important American Cold War document. NSC 68 put forth a policy of direct military confrontation, through massive capital outlays to either contain America's enemies, or eliminate them altogether. It laid the basis for the great expansion of the military and military industrial complex in the USA, one that still takes a huge percentage of the US federal budget. The Korean War was the event that inaugurated this policy change.
While the Thames version makes some astounding suggestions about the Truman-MacArthur controversy (probably the most interesting event of the war to American audiences), the WGBH version waters them down. The Thames version suggested that the Truman Administration wanted to attack China with atomic weapons, and that the firing of MacArthur was not just about civilian supremacy (as the Truman people insisted), but also an effort to get a reliable field commander in place had the president decided to implement his plans to nuke China.
The US version did expand the segment on the Incheon landing and extended the segment on African Americans in the US military in Korea. The WGBH version also added more of the South Korean's viewpoints on the war and subtracted from the North Korean's views relative to the Thames version. That neither of the Korean sides honors the complete truth of the war, or both claim exclusive possession of the truth, was not taken into consideration by the people at WGBH.
On the whole, the Thames version is better, but both versions are extremely important additions to the documentary treatment of the Korean War.
Episode 1: "Many Roads to War" June 18, 1988 Episode 2: "An Arrogant Display of Strength" June 25, 1988 Episode 3: "There is No Substitute for Victory" July 2, 1988 Episode 4: "An Entirely New War" July 9, 1988 Episode 5: "The Battle for Minds" July 16, 1988 Episode 6: "Armed Truce" July 30, 1988
After much revision and editing of its original content by WGBH/Boston, it was shown on PBS in the USA two years later. Thanks to some intense lobbying efforts, it went on the air with no sponsor, just the support of "PBS viewers like you."
The historical consultants felt that both the Thames and WGBH versions were deficient on the significance of NSC 68, considered by some to be the most important American Cold War document. NSC 68 put forth a policy of direct military confrontation, through massive capital outlays to either contain America's enemies, or eliminate them altogether. It laid the basis for the great expansion of the military and military industrial complex in the USA, one that still takes a huge percentage of the US federal budget. The Korean War was the event that inaugurated this policy change.
While the Thames version makes some astounding suggestions about the Truman-MacArthur controversy (probably the most interesting event of the war to American audiences), the WGBH version waters them down. The Thames version suggested that the Truman Administration wanted to attack China with atomic weapons, and that the firing of MacArthur was not just about civilian supremacy (as the Truman people insisted), but also an effort to get a reliable field commander in place had the president decided to implement his plans to nuke China.
The US version did expand the segment on the Incheon landing and extended the segment on African Americans in the US military in Korea. The WGBH version also added more of the South Korean's viewpoints on the war and subtracted from the North Korean's views relative to the Thames version. That neither of the Korean sides honors the complete truth of the war, or both claim exclusive possession of the truth, was not taken into consideration by the people at WGBH.
On the whole, the Thames version is better, but both versions are extremely important additions to the documentary treatment of the Korean War.
I really don't know, but this is probably the first and only Korean film that that doesn't have any reaction shots. No pans, no dolly shots...nothin'! No professional actors were cast. Very basic filmmaking. The subject matter is trivial, everyday life. Overall, it's a beautiful film to see.
I bought this film on NTSC-VHS format from an online Korean business called koreapop.com. The copy evidently had been put together from two or three diffrent copies of the film, since some parts of the film looked like they were in better shape than others, and also there were English subtitles in some parts, but not most others. (Note that I bought this film knowing that it would be in Korean, with no subtitles).
This movie features what is probably the first scene in cinematic history where a woman rapes a man- a whole 25 years before Isabella Rosellini raped Kyle McCallahan in "Blue Velvet"! As a Korean movie, it's story challenges traditional Korean propriety. The housemaid character is a castrating hose-beast: Not exactly the kind of Korean woman portrayed in most Korean movies made then or now. Director Kim Kiyoung tends to turn the conventional Korean-movie plotline on its head in this movie, since there is no real "happy-ending", in fact, things just seem to get worse and worse. The only other Korean movie similar to it in this sense, is the recently released "Kilimanjaro" (also an EXCELLENT film). This movie is indeed a Korean-movie classic. It's just too bad that the remaining copies of such classic Korean films are not given the best of care, since many, like this one, are in fairly rough shape. I hope that the Koreans will take more pride in their cinematic history and prepare for better archival storage and restoration of their nation's film legacy.
This movie features what is probably the first scene in cinematic history where a woman rapes a man- a whole 25 years before Isabella Rosellini raped Kyle McCallahan in "Blue Velvet"! As a Korean movie, it's story challenges traditional Korean propriety. The housemaid character is a castrating hose-beast: Not exactly the kind of Korean woman portrayed in most Korean movies made then or now. Director Kim Kiyoung tends to turn the conventional Korean-movie plotline on its head in this movie, since there is no real "happy-ending", in fact, things just seem to get worse and worse. The only other Korean movie similar to it in this sense, is the recently released "Kilimanjaro" (also an EXCELLENT film). This movie is indeed a Korean-movie classic. It's just too bad that the remaining copies of such classic Korean films are not given the best of care, since many, like this one, are in fairly rough shape. I hope that the Koreans will take more pride in their cinematic history and prepare for better archival storage and restoration of their nation's film legacy.