In 1910, history took a drastic turn when Japan annexed the Korean Empire which had maintained its independence for centuries. Thus, the Japanese government undertook harsh measures that aimed at erasing all forms of Korean culture as well as identity however they were brutal and led to countless tragedies. Koreans were compelled to adopt the Japanese language in place of their own and any opposition was suppressed through violence while cultural objects got destroyed. In 1919, activists/students/citizens mounted what has since been recognized as the March First Movement, during which it is estimated that 7,500 people died, 16,000 were injured and 46,000 people detained. That set the tone for the rest of Japanese rule and many Koreans went to Japan in search of better opportunities.
It is this story about Zainichi or ethnic Koreans leaving Korea for Japan that Min Jin Lee tried telling through her grand novel Pachinko. The book made it to the National Book Award list for best fiction and narrates generations of an exiled family due to effects of colonization. The novelist did extensive interviews and conducted research over twenty-five years before she could finish writing this novel. Many of her subjects turned out to be real Japanese-Korean immigrants or citizens who had experienced or knew someone from their family who had lived under similar conditions with Korean immigrants in Japan.
Apple acquired rights to make a film adaptation of this novel in 2018 whereby four years later Pachinko premiered on a streaming service. It’s so shocking how the series only lasts eight episodes given how much story is crammed into the original book by Justin Chon & Kogonada directed it.. It also starred Yeon who won an Academy Award for her role in Minari, most popular stars throughout Asia Lee Min Ho as well as Jin Ha among others including Anna Sawai.
Pachinko’s cast members include 95% Asians among a total of 637 persons, thereby establishing the show as an empathic groundbreaking piece. This story was filmed in Korean, Japanese and English languages thus necessitating its global audience to listen to it through a speaker’s actual language. And maybe this is where han comes from, throughout the show. Han is a Korean concept unique in itself that describes sorrow, grief, anger and regrets-all emotions that can be used to describe the tragedies and atrocities experienced by Korea throughout its history for the past century.
In 1915 Pachinko commences just five years after the colonization took place. Before planting seeds and roots of displacement, there is a theatrical monologue which provides background information on what has come before. Over seventy years three countries are set side by side by our story while a lingering family curse will be its catalyst for what it becomes. A mother asks for an end to the family curse so that her child might live but even though she does, Sun-ja’s life would not be easy.
To anyone who wants to understand the contemporary world, they have to go back in time. The story revolves around Sun-ja who is initially a poor girl from a fishing village in the Korean countryside. Youn Yuh-jung plays her older self while Kim Min-ha plays her younger version. The writer narrates between 1989 when an aged Sun-ja reflects on her life and a far away past where women and men converged at the market dressed in hanbok, that is traditional Korean clothes.
Her entire life changes drastically after she meets Koh Hansu (Lee Min-ho) nine years after her father’s death. He sees her at the market and it appears like he falls for her instantly. He represents someone who has made it well. Currently residing in Japan, he is rich and can pretend to be a Japanese as much as possible even though he is still a Korean man. In any case, this is what attracts Sun-ja to him despite his age mismatch with her; he offers an opportunity of having another life beyond all she knows.
However, some good things are too much to be true and this occurs here. There will never be peace for Sun-ja. When pregnant she moves to Japan making kimchi every day, which she sells in the market with her cart for survival purposes only. Any immigrant finds life difficult no matter where they move to hence this theme resonates even within very specificly Korean contexts.
She stands as the sole representative of family history carrying its wounds unlike her grandson educated and living in America who cannot speak to his grandma without fusing Japanese words into their conversation because he does not know pure korean alone; His family income has been generated through their pachinko parlor since 1989 where guests play arcade games there Zainichi Koreans being unable to open their businesses due to lack of citizenships thus massive discrimination against them by non-koreans in Japan. However, this is not enough; they are ‘low-class’ and thus a derogatory term which speaks volumes about the deep-rooted racial and socioeconomic implications.
There are several instances of nostalgia. Solomon, Sun-ja’s grandson, has just returned to Japan from America and finds himself looking for remnants of his childhood. A panning camera focuses on black and white photos in the family home. Solomon tries to throw away food that was slightly burned while growing up in a time when food was scarce, Sun-ja scolds him. “Why would you waste good food?” she asks as she scoffs and flips jeon or green onion pancakes. Even after being attacked by Japanese policemen singing traditional folk songs goes on, as one of them continues to do even when others start beating him.
In spite of this, he goes out of his way to try and meet a Korean woman who declines to dispose of her land, even if Solomon may seem more Japanese and American than Korean. He feels connected to this lady because he is also ethnically Korean whose lamentation is about the children not speaking Korean any longer. His disconnection happens across generations whereby Solomon grew up in society and succeeded in financial business that yielded him much money. That’s why he cannot possibly comprehend what it took for him to have made it on earth, during which time his family underwent untold tribulations—thus “sanctifying” the uneventful trip to her house. But at the same time, being who he is will surely make him see as an outsider in Japan and most Koreans.
As far as cinematography is concerned, Pachinko is epic in scope. In each case, whether it’s a current frame showing modern Osaka or one capturing rural Korea with its seas and mountains, these shots are meticulously arranged and colored with captivating visual effects. These particular scenes provide a scenic world where there would be no suffering imaginable. However, when the camera zooms into human characters like Sun-ja’s father brutality sphere reveals the ugly underbelly of such places they reside in. Open spaces are vast and bring inner peace while any enclosed manmade spaces feel oppressive.
The juxtaposition between past and present offers a contemporary feel to the method of storytelling. In contrast to its original novel which was done chronologically, this technique was used by Pachinko television adaptation so that it bridges past occurrences into modern times as well as with reference to other people involved. The themes of intergenerational trauma and suffering are given more room for open display in subtle ways thus making it easier for viewers to read into little mannerisms or statements.
It features a stellar cast led by veterans Youn Yuh-jung and Lee Min-ho, with outstanding performances from the actresses playing Sun-ja. In such an epic story that goes across generations, it might be easy to start confusing characters for one another but all of them have managed to make out their place in the narrative. And maybe this is what sets Pachinko apart: by developing fully-fleshed characters who feel like they belong in the real world rather than being fictional creations, it becomes a novel experience for readers. Above all else, this is indicative of good storytelling because here we are dealing with history and firsthand sources.
Watch free movies on Fmovies
