Seonsaeng Kim Bong-du (2003)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Gyu-seong Jang

Release Date:

28 March 2003 (South Korea)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Plot:

A teacher attempts to lure his handful of students in a small, rural school to Seoul so that he can move on to a better school. His efforts backfire however, and his school becomes one of the highest ranked in the nation |

Plot Keywords:

Character Name In Title

Cast

Seung-won Cha	...	Kim Bong-du
Hie-bong Byeon	...	Old Choi
Ji-ru Sung	...	Chun-shik
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jae-eung Lee

Also Known As:

My Teacher, Mr. Kim (International: English title)

Runtime:

South Korea:117 min

Country:

South Korea

Language:

Korean

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Certification:

South Korea:12

Company:

Fun and Happiness

Somewhat predictable

The title I saw it under, *My Teacher, Mr Kim*, indicates that it is from the point of view of the student(s). However, it is really Mr Kim who is the subject of this film, as he undergoes an epiphany and radical transformation.

I loved the character of Mr Kim. He starts off as selfish and shallow in so many ways, and really made me wonder how much more I could achieve if I thought of myself less often.

Mr Choi was an excellent character too, and Sun-Young the high-school drop-out city girlfriend of Mr Kim. However the character of the school caretaker was developed for no apparent reason, the children were indistinguishable from each other, and their parents just cardboard cut-outs.

Fair enough, but why then the reverent attitude to Mr Kim by the end of the film? As far as I could see, there just wasn't enough to explain the children's love for him. He left them to study alone far too much, and played soccer with them far too little, for them to love him as they did. The best thing he did for them, was spend his white-envelope money on gifts for them, and this really wasn't a materialistic type of film.

Which reminds me, there were some really nice ironic moments. Like when Mr Kim is sitting with his students in the beautiful countryside, next to a clear stream, all of them smoking fish on sticks, and he is telling them of all the modern conveniences that Seoul has to offer.

So, some good, some bad, largely predictable but not entirely so, see it if the subject matter or the location interest you - otherwise you could probably give it a miss.