Name: Jiwonbyeong
Genre: Drama
Released: 1941-02-09
Duration: 56 min
Rating: 6
Cast: Un-bong Choe, Ye-bong Mun, Il-hae Kim

As the title suggests, along with a dedication to the Governor General, the Japanese militaristic propaganda elements of Volunteer would appear to be central to the purpose of Ahn Suk-young's film of a young Korean man finding a real direction and meaning in his life when he is finally able to join the army and serve the Japanese nation. So heavily does this theme weigh on the film that the sketchy romance and love-triangle elements that should support it come across almost as an afterthought.

After the death of his father, the stewardship of the land he looked after has been left to his son Choon-ho (Choi Wun-bong), who cultivates it well, but is not really cut out for the peasant life. The landlord Park Chang-gi (Kim Il-hae) therefore dismisses him from the post and appoints the more experienced Kim Duk-sam. Choon-ho believes that he can better serve his land and people by fighting in the war, but it is only when regulations that prevent Korean troops from joining the Japanese army are relaxed that he is able to realise his dream and enlist.

In the middle of this propaganda film, there is the inevitable love-triangle misunderstandings as Choon-ho's fiancée Boon-OK (Moon Yae-bong) becomes suspicious of his relationship with Soo-ae, the sister of landlord Park. Choon-ho for his part becomes jealous when he sees Boon-OK with another land-worker Chang-sik. The situation is muddily handled in the film, but seems to be there primarily to show that Choon-ho is out of place working there as a peasant on the land and can achieve more as a Korean citizen by progressing Japanese ideals in the army. Such dedication of purpose is of course rewarded and Choon-ho need not worry about leaving his mother behind, as the landlord Park does his duty and rewards the young man's enlistment by agreeing to look after his family in his absence.

Volunteer is attractively photographed with a good eye for the country landscapes, the Korean shore and the people working on the land  but the drama and motivation of the characters within this lack conviction. I don't know whether at 57 minutes the film is completely intact, but the way that some scenes lead nowhere, it does often feel like a couple of reels have gone missing. Historically however, the film has a number of points of interest, not just in the depiction of the period, but also for an appearance here by Moon Yae-bong, the most famous movie star of the period, as Boon-OK.

Japanese cinema is celebrated for its refined minimalist dramas and avant-garde experimentation; it also introduced popular genres like jidaigeki (samurai epics), kaiju, and anime. Across both high art and mass entertainment, it often explores morality, impermanence, and the pressures of modern life.

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The drama genre is a broad category that features stories portraying human experiences, emotions, conflicts, and relationships in a realistic and emotionally impactful way. Dramas delve into the complexities of human life, often exploring themes of love, loss, morality, societal issues, personal growth, with the aim to evoke an emotional response from the audience by presenting relatable and thought-provoking stories.

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The tale of Chun-Hoo, a young Korean man desperate to join the Japanese Army.

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Jiwonbyeong

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