This review may contain spoilers
Light, pacing & space set in the perfect ratio, honoring not only 1 but all K independence activists
PROLOGUE:One might criticize that historical facts about the historical figure Ahn and his person are too brief. That too much poetic license was taken with regard to the fictional comrades and opponents in this case. Even, that these guys also remain too pale as individual characters. That too little pace and tension are built up, and that there is overall too much debate in the dark.
But then, it would have been a completely different film. With a different message.
From my perception, “Harbin” does not want to tell us about historic events as it was, but to stage the dilemma, the hurdles, the challenges, the performance, the passion, the agony of the Korean resistance struggle as an epic monument. We do not get heroes in shining armor, but desperate fighters for a fairer world - for their freedom, for their country, which is their homeland, for their families or the families they cannot have themselves. "Harbin" wants to honor their price, which they paid for all those who now can actually live in freedom and relative independence today. In addition, "Harbin" is choosing a critical approach - with its focus on the struggle for perspective, hope, morality, and justification in regard of the many painful sacrifices.
TERRA NULLIUS BETWEEN LIGHT AND DARKNESS, BETWEEN RIGHT AND WRONG
Anyone who has seen "Harbin" will not forget "Harbin". This is ensured by the haunting staging, with artistic ambition consistently composed in terms of film technology, to set light, pacing, and space in the perfect ratio.
Here, preferably filmic means like camera, light, powerful scenes that burn themselves unforgettable into the memory were used! Whereas dialogues provide less contextual information but convey the personal and collective struggle for the right attitude. It's about morality and the opposite of it.
We do not learn much about the historic independence fighter Ahn, about whom one could have made a completely different film. His personality would certainly have allowed for that. And yet, in drastic scenes and moments, we learn what he deeply stands for: For an upright, just attitude that does not want to repay like with like, but wants to do better. Ahn fails in this, but he does not give up. Until the end, he stands for what he considers right. We do not learn in "Harbin" that he wrote a treatise during his imprisonment - a concept for a better world. But we have come to know him during those 108 minutes as a man to whom we can certainly trust that.
The others who work with him and against him are practically nameless and stand for the many nameless who struggled and suffered in their own way back then - under the cold, the cruelty, the hopelessness of this underground fight in the far north of Mongolia. And yet they made their contribution.
POETIC AESTHETICS OF DARKNESS
For a Western audience, "Harbin" may present a challenge in two respects. The KMovie is (like many other KMovies) not action-heavy but relies on the intensity of slowness. Even in this one, action is used sparingly. The subtle driving force is rather the aesthetic concept: This does not rely on light, but on shadow, on the poetic aesthetics of darkness and its subtle nuances, where diffuse light highlights textures and shapes. Adding sparse, precisely selected color impulses and contrasts, too.
With refined, powerful visual impression the icy bitter cold in the snow-covered forest, on the frozen river, and in the vastness of the desert landscape of Mongolia comes almost tangibly close to the viewers. Nature, in its powerfully aesthetic staging, becomes a symbol for the arduous path to freedom.
At the beginning, we are confronted with the inhospitable nature of underground life, where light is sparse and food consists of cigarettes. The cigarette smoke makes the dim light even more diffuse while the coats make the cold of the barren rooms appear even colder. And then the story catapults us abruptly and mercilessly into the unvarnished repulsive ugliness of this resistance struggle – in the scene in the icy, blood-smeared mud the bestial brutality becomes almost unbearable to watch.
All this represents and reinforces the sheer despair of the brave warriors who want to fight for their freedom from the oppressors despite all odds. Under almost hopeless circumstances. In an almost superhuman struggle with themselves and with what is right...
A TRIBUTE TO THE KOREAN UNDERGROUND STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE
This joint fight for justice, independence, and freedom deeply defines the Korean identity as a nation, just as the suffering that the people share due to injustice, dependence, and oppression - the 'Han' as a collectively shared, yet individually felt pain, mobilizing a sudden strength and unexpected collective resistance (in this case against Japan).
The willingness to make sacrifices as well as the necessity to make sacrifices are deeply rooted in tradition. This may also be deeply problematic in itself, but like everything: it has two sides. Right? Wrong? Everyone has to decide that for themselves.
However, "Harbin" is not about judgement. It is about honoring those people who had actually dedicated themselves to this conjoint resistance struggle: not wanting to be oppressed and treated as subhuman beings (by Japan). "Harbin" represents an aesthetically intensified tribute to those against all odds fearless fighters. Woo Min-ho did not want to create a historical film here. With the context of this legendary assassination the KMovie rather sets a cinematic monument not only to this legendary independence activist, but by doing so, to all of the others, too. Therefore, at the same time, with the example of this legendary assassination in Harbin it sets a monument to the entire Korean resistance struggle, too - then, before, and after.
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The second half becomes more thrilling as the plan to assassinate General Ito comes into fruition. It is packed with more action and suspense. There's a race against time to reach the general, while Japanese soldiers are riding on their coattails. One thing I loved is how they depicted the inner conflict of one of the characters. The film takes a nuanced approach to representing certain historical figures. General Itō Hirobumi is depicted as a complex individual rather than a one-dimensional villain. The movie even managed to mention some of his accomplishments. In contrast, the Japanese Army is depicted as cruel, inhumane, and barbaric.
The climax was intense. There was great use of sound editing and mixing to capture the thrill and suspense of the moment. Overall, this patriotic film is a great one time watch. I don't think I'll be watching again unless I'm a huge fan of war or historical films.
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With the knife wiped clean of blood
I'm fully here for anti-colonial struggle. And Harbin certainly provides that, depicting a fictionalised story of the events leading up to the assassination of Itō Hirobumi at the hands of Korean independence activist An Jung-geun.But this is a war film. Its purpose seems more to heroise rather than provide any real analysis or insight. I agree with Misunderst0_od's assessment of the first half of Harbin with its "boring scenes of men discussing, planning, and excessively smoking in a dark room". In the first half – and maybe the second too – the film seems more concerned with the aesthetics of anti-colonial struggle and less so its substance.
This is fine, I guess. The approach lends itself well to the strong thriller that the second half successfully delivers. Personally, I'm more interested in the tricky dilemmas along the way. I wouldn't go so far as to say that Itō Hirobumi is portrayed as a complex character, as Misunderst0_od sees it. I think he's certainly shown to be clever and self-aware, but he's very much still a straight-up Bad Guy and he is not afforded any emotional complexity. But that's ok - he's not the tricky dilemma I was interested in.
What I was far more interested in was the character with the "inner conflict" (borrowing from Misunderst0_od here again). First, what intrigued me was the inner conflict itself. How do you come to terms with betraying what you hold dear? And second, seeing how the other characters judged the actions of this conflicted character. I thought this would've been an excellent opportunity to study how people factor coercion into their judgement of others. How much can you blame a person for their actions when they've clearly been coerced into them?
Yet Harbin does not answer these questions. At least, not to my satisfaction. It instead presents what is, in my opinion, far too clean an ending. Without giving anything away, the ending seems just a bit to good to be true – and in a way that avoids a difficult moral grappling.
I will say, the cinematography did boost my star rating for Harbin. The film opens with an impressive landscape shot and then feeds you a few more epic ones along the way. You can definitely see where the budget was spent.
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This review may contain spoilers
Korea Ura
Harbin was an emotional and patriotic retelling of the Korean independence fighters' struggles for independence. Phenomenal cast, hooking plot, amazing soundtrack. It had lots of potential.Honestly, you had to be patient for the action to come. They spend a lot of time focusing on characters who didn't exist historically just to beef up the plot, such as Lee Dong Wook and Jung Woo Sung. I wish they would have kept the plot truer to the original story, instead of trying to make it more "movie-style". They could've dug deeper into the annexation of Korea rather than having the many action scenes. Nevertheless, the second half was amazing. It had me on the edge of my seat with twists at every corner. The story was a rollercoaster of emotions.
The acting was superb. You can't go wrong with Hyun Bin. His performance was deep and emotional. The other actors were phenomenal too. The soundtrack was well-made for the film as well. I was immersed the entire time. Especially, when Ahn shot Hirobumi and began shouting "Korea Ura", that's when my heart broke. Long live Korea.
Most of these independence fighters dedicated their life for their country's independence, yet never lived to see it. They left their families to fight for Korea. Ahn Jung Geun's life story is way deeper than the movie shows. I would suggest researching him and the righteous army militias. It is truly heartbreaking. The last moments of Ahn's life were gutwrenchingly sad, and not portrayed in the film. I wish they would've spent more time on showing the consequences of Hirobumi's assassination. These fighters fought so hard and made Korea what it is today.
Overall, Harbin was a good look into Korean independence. It had potential to be better, but it was still sufficient as is. The movie was an emotional ride. The film honored and shed a light on the independence fighters. I hope that this history of Korea is never forgotten. Korea Ura.
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Intensely heartbreaking
The most impressive portrayal to date of the independence fighter Ahn Jung-geun in Korean cinema, and also the most heartbreaking approach ever as it is an absolutely traumatizing process of what led to this real historical event that lit up the Korean independence movement. The movie has really deep sensitivity into the historical figures, the plot is extremely well designed which keeps the historical accuracy intact while serving cinematic needs with a solid structure of suspense. The technical aspects are even more brilliant, cinematography is extremely classy with some of the most insane shots and that silent suspense is freaking mindblowing, audio mixing is powerfully done and acting performances are just so captivating, it'll be hard to top this level of perfection anytime soon.Was this review helpful to you?
It's not about the action
The guts of this film isn't the plot or action, it's the moral complexity of people committing and suffering inhumane acts in the name of their cause, and the sacrifices they make when they choose to fight. It's beautifully shot and crafted, and is appropriately set in a cold, bleak landscape. Great storytelling on every level, well worth watching.Was this review helpful to you?
