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Pulgasari
1995 Japanese VHS flyer
Directed by	Shin Sang-ok
Written by	Kim Se Ryun
Based on	Bulgasari (1962) by Kim Myeong-je
Produced by	Shin Sang-ok Kim Jong Il
Starring	Chang Son Hui Ham Gi Sop Jong-uk Ri Gwon Ri Yong-hok Pak
Cinematography	Cho Myong Hyon Pak Sung Ho
Edited by	Kim Ryon Sun
Music by	So Jong Gon
Production companies	Joseon Art Film Studio Shin Films Toho Eizo Beijing Film Studio
Release dates	January 21, 1995 (1995-01-21) (VHS) July 4, 1998 (1998-07-04) (Kineca Ōmori)
Running time	96 minutes
Countries	North Korea Japan China
Language	Korean

Pulgasari is a 1985 epic kaiju film directed and co-produced by Shin Sang-ok, with special effects by Teruyoshi Nakano. A multinational co-production between North Korea, Japan, and China, it is a remake of the 1962 South Korean film also depicting the eponymous creature from Korean folklore. The film stars Chang Son Hui, Ham Gi Sop, Jong-uk Ri, Gwon Ri, and Yong-hok Pak, with Kenpachiro Satsuma in the title role as the monster. Set during the late Goryeo Dynasty, it tells the story of a blacksmith's daughter whose blood brings to life a metal-eating monster envisioned by her father to defeat the monarchy.

Pulgasari was the last film made by Shin under the orders of Kim Jong Il (then-heir apparent) during he and his wife's abduction by North Korean intelligence. The film was initially put forward in February 1985. Principal photography took place in Pyongyang from June to August 1985. Several Japanese employees from Toho handled special effects photography (or tokusatsu) from September to December of that year.

Pulgasari debuted at Toho Studios in January 1986. Upon Shin and his wife fleeing to the US Embassy in Vienna in March 1986, its North Korean release was canceled, and exportation was banned. Around a decade later, several pirated copies of the film were distributed in Japan. Pulgasari officially premiered at Kineca Ōmori in Tokyo on July 4, 1998, and received licensed releases nationwide that same year. It was a critical and commercial success in Japan, with some critics comparing it positively to Godzilla (1998). In 2000, it became the first North Korean film ever released in South Korea, but underperformed. The film has since been screened in several theaters throughout the Western world and gained a cult following.

Plot

In feudal Korea, towards the end of the Goryeo Dynasty, a king controls the land with an iron fist, subjecting the peasantry to misery and starvation. The finest blacksmith in the land, Takse, is imprisoned for defending his people. Shortly before his death, he makes a tiny rice figurine of a monster and asks the gods to make his creation a living creature that protects the rebels and the oppressed. The blacksmith's daughter, Ami, soon receives the figurine and it springs to life upon contact with her blood after she accidentally wounds herself while sewing. It becomes a giant metal-eating monster dubbed "Pulgasari" by Ami, which is the name of the mythical monster her father used to mention as an eater of iron and steel. Pulgasari now shares a special bond with Ami and evolves into a giant and powerful figure after eating some of the farmer's tools.

After much suffering, the peasants form an army, storm the palace of the region's Governor, and kill him. Soon after the evil king becomes aware that there is a rebellion being planned in the country and he intends to crush it, but he runs into Pulgasari, who fights with the peasant army to overthrow the corrupt monarchy. Pulgasari wins many battles because of his unending hunger for all kind of metal, readily provided by its enemies. Nevertheless, after capturing and executing the leader of the rebellion (who is betrothed to Ami), the king's army threatens to kill Ami if Pulgasari does not surrender. Pulgasari lets itself be trapped to save the woman, and the royal army seemingly kills the creature by burying it under the ground. After escaping, Ami revives Pulgasari by again pouring some of her blood on the burial site. Pulgasari grows strong once more and attacks the king's palace, destroying it and simultaneously killing the king.

After the king's defeat, Pulgasari becomes a new problem, since he starts eating the rebels' weapons and farmers' tools given to the creature without objection since the peasants still believe Pulgasari is a benign savior. Ami realizes that Pulgasari's hunger will never stop, and that the monster is inadvertently oppressing the people he fought for. She decides to sacrifice herself by hiding inside a big bell that Pulgasari finds and quickly eats. Pulgasari yells in anguish as Ami's presence in its system causes it to turn to stone and crumble into pieces, tragically killing both of them, but saving the people once and for all.

Cast

• Chang Son Hui as Ami, the blacksmith's daughter
• Ham Gi Sop as Inde
• Jong-uk Ri as Ana
• Gwon Ri as Takse, the blacksmith
• Yong-hok Pak as the King
• Riyonun Ri as General Fuan
• Gyong-ae Yu as Inde's mother
• Hye-chol Ro as Inde's brother
• Sang-hun Tae as Rebel Forces
• Gi-chon Kim as Rebel Forces
• In-chol Ri as Rebel Forces
• Pong-ilk Pak as the Governor
• Kenpachiro Satsuma as Pulgasari (uncredited)
• Masao Fukazawa as the baby Pulgasari (uncredited)

Production

Background and development

Kim Jong Il was a lifelong admirer of South Korean filmmaker Shin Sang-ok, as well as cinema in general. A collection of around 15,000 to 20,000 titles were reported to be in his possession, with new releases from around the globe being added shortly after opening in theaters. In 1978, Kim arranged the kidnapping Shin and his wife, famed actress Choi Eun-hee, with the specific purpose of making propaganda films for the North Korean government. Kim also produced all of Shin's films during the abduction period, with Pulgasari being their third film of 1985 (following Salt and The Tale of Shim Chong), and last collaboration overall. Shin recalled that Kim was "very supportive" of Pulgasari's production despite never being present during filming.

Pulgasari was a remake of Kim Myeong-je's 1962 South Korean film, Bulgasari, with the story itself based around the legendary creature Pulgasari (or "Bulgasari") from Korean folklore. The 1962 film, which is now considered lost, was the first ever Korean kaiju film, predating Yongary, Monster from the Deep and Space Monster Wangmagwi by five years. Another inspiration for the film was the 1984 Japanese kaiju film The Return of Godzilla, which is believed to have been the reason that Kim and Shin sought Toho employees to create the special effects for Pulgasari.

According to suit actor Kenpachiro Satsuma, Pulgasari was pitched in mid-February 1985, and soon became a co-production between North Korea, Japan, and China. In early April, location scouting commenced in Pyongyang and Beijing and Satsuma accepted an invite to work on the film, having been deceived into believing it would be filmed in Hollywood. On April 20, art director Yoshio Suzuki flew to North Korea and attended the first meeting between the film's Japanese and North Korean crews, with the help of an interpreter. The meeting was held at a studio near the Taedong River that produced films about Kim Il Sung and his family, which had been set up as a temporary office for Shin's production team while a larger studio was under construction for the film. Later that month, on April 28, the Japanese crew began developing the Pulgasari suit in Japan and completed it in late May.

In April, Shin told Suzuki his plans to set the film in China during the Three Kingdoms period if the historical research and costumes make it "match up well". He also said that if this turned out to be successful, he would start filming on August 15 and "ask the Chinese side to adjust it accordingly". Although the film itself would ultimately take place in Goryeo, the King's palace was based on the Forbidden City complex in Beijing, and the special effects crew specifically reffered to it as the Hall of Supreme Harmony during production.

Filming and special effects

On a reportedly limitless budget, principal photography took place in Pyongyang from June to August 1985 while special effects photography followed from September to December. For Shin to create the film, Kim Jong Il ordered the construction of Munsu Studio, an immense complex described by Satsuma as a "state-of-the-art film studio", which covered approximately 20,000 pyeong (66,000 square meters). The facility featured four studios (the largest two each covered 400 pyeong while the other two were 200 pyeong), as well as six screening rooms, six recording studios, and around 300 waiting rooms and other spaces to store art equipment. Munsu Studio was still in development when used for special effects photography.

In mid-September, before departing their home country, the Japanese special effects crew filmed the Pulgasari suit wandering around a miniature village in Studio 9 at Toho Studios, but this was omitted from the film's final cut. Satsuma and an assistant director flew from Tokyo to Beijing via Shanghai, on China Airlines Flight 930 on September 11, 1985. On September 14, they began working at Beijing Film Studio to prepare the miniature palace and set for the film's climax, which the Chinese crew had already been creating. Conflict soon arose between the two crews, with the Chinese believing that the Japanese team "just walked in and started damaging the set that we put our heart and soul into building for three months." Regarding destroying the palace in the Pulgasari suit for the film, Satsuma reflected that he was "impressed that the Chinese government could allow such an ambitious filming, even if it was just a movie".

Later, when arriving in North Korea, Satsuma recalled that his passport was confiscated. He and the other Japanese were kept as guests at Kim Jong-il's villa for one-and-a-half months to shoot the film, where each of them had a large, well-ventilate, room featuring a bed, TV, bookshelf, and radio. Kim often visited the villa, but refused to meet the Japanese guests and avoided them. Satsuma also said that they were working at Shin's studio around October 1985 and it "felt like mid-winter" because the windows in the building featured no glass.

The film was completed in December 1985.

Release

Pulgasari was first screened at Toho Studios in January 1986. Kim initially wanted Pulgasari to be released worldwide later that year. However, he ordered plans to screen the film in North Korea to be canceled and banned all exports in the wake of Shin and his wife's escape in March of that year. According to Vanity Fair, it has never been released in North Korea since the cancelation of its intial release.

Eventually, Pulgasari was released to the public for the first time in any format on January 21, 1995, via VHS in Japan. Although this and other releases of the film that occurred around the same time were allegedly pirated. The film's first authorized screening took place at the Kineca Ōmori in Tokyo on July 4, 1998, where it remained until September due to high demand. The film was also released in several other Japanese cinemas and on home video later that same year.

A month after the June 15th North–South Joint Declaration in 2000, it became the first North Korean film ever released in South Korea.

In 2001, ADV Films distributed Pulgasari on VHS in the United States. Thereafter, it received several screenings in the US, United Kingdom, and Canada. In 2006, Pulgasari made its New York debut at the end of Columbia University Japanese culture center's year-long "Godzilla festival."

Reception

Box office

In Japan, Pulgasari was an instant success at the Kineca Ōmori theater, achieving several records for a single-theater screening, and attracting over 11,000 attendees before ending its run at the cinema. On the other hand, it was a massive box-office bomb in South Korea, attracting under 1,000 theatergoers.

Critical response

Japanese critic Jun Edoki [ja]—one of the film's main advocates—referred to it as "one of the greatest monster movie masterpieces in history, something that neither Hollywood nor Japan can ever replicate". The film was positively compared to TriStar's Godzilla (1998) by Japanese reviewers at the time, who believed that Pulgasari was not "sophisticated" like that film and "reminds the viewers of Japanese monster movies of their good old days".

Western critics have been more critical of the film. Film Threat felt that the film should have been parodied in an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000. In August 2014, Simon Fowler of The Guardian ranked it the third best North Korean film ever made, but noted that "it's to get lost in the ridiculousness of it all". In March 2024, Collider ranked the film No. 10 on their "10 Best So-Bad-They're-Good Monster Movies" list, and Vulture called it "quite bad as a film"; both agreed that its behind-the-scenes story is more facinating than the film itself.

Participants' response

In April 2005, The New Yorker cited Shin had called the film's special effects "primitive". Satsuma often spoke positively about Pulgasari, and was once quoted saying that he wanted to return to North Korea to work on a sequel.

Legacy

Interpretations

According to Jonathan Ross, the film was intended by the North Korean government to be a propaganda metaphor for the effects of unchecked capitalism and the power of the collective.

There has been some speculation that the director Shin Sang-ok included a hidden message of his own in the film. The film's titular monster is often interpreted as both a metaphor for Kim Il Sung betraying a people's revolution for his own purposes. It is also considered as a plea to the North Korean people to rise up against the Kim regime, represented by Pulgasari demanding his subjects fed him more and more iron even after the former regime has been defeated, leading to the workers turning against and ultimately defeating their former savior. Shin disputed interpretions that the film has commentary on North Korea's contemporary class conflict, and said that it is instead a plea for pacifism because "there are limits to what weapons can do".

Remake

A decade after escaping North Korean supervision, Shin (under the pseudonym "Simon Sheen") worked on a second, looser, adaptation of the Pulgasari legend. Directed by Sean McNamara and produced by Sheen Communications, Galgameth (1996) told the story of a young prince, aided by a warm-hearted monster, reclaiming his deceased father's medieval kingdom.

See also

• Culture of North Korea
• List of North Korean films
• Propaganda in North Korea

References

Notes

1. ^ Some South Korean publications have claimed that Shin was replaced by a North Korean filmmaker towards the end of production; Shin received no credit in the film itself, with directorial duties instead credited to "Chong Gon Jo". By all accounts, "Chong Gon Jo" was merely a pseudonym used to replace Shin in the film's credits after he escaped North Korea authorities and Shin directed the entire film.
2. Contrary to popular belief, Pulgasari was never released in North Korea. The 1995 Japanese VHS release, which is the earliest recorded public release of the film, is considered to have been unauthorized, with the first authorized release being the 1998 screening at Kineca Ōmori in Tokyo.
3. Korean: 불가사리; RR: Bulgasari. The film was released in Japan as Giant Monster Pulgasari (Japanese: 大怪獣プルガサリ, Hepburn: Daikaijū Purugasari) and Pulgasari: The Legendary Giant Monster (Japanese: プルガサリ 伝説の大怪獣, Hepburn: Purugasari: Densetsu no Daikaijū) in 1995 and 1998, respectively.

Citations

1. ^ "大怪獣プルガサリ" [Giant Monster Pulgasari]. Eiga Chirashi (in Japanese). Archived from the original on October 31, 2023. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
2. ^ Do-yeon, Lee (April 29, 2019). "무주산골영화제 개막작은 북한 영화 '불가사리'" [The North Korean film Pulgasari is the opening film of the Muju Mountain Film Festival]. Yonhap News Agency (in Korean). Archived from the original on October 30, 2022. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
3. 뉴시스 (May 29, 2019). "무주산골영화제 개막작, 남 신상옥·북 정건조 '불가사리'". Newsis (in Korean). Retrieved June 23, 2024.
4. ^ "北朝鮮版の【怪獣映画】が想像以上に素晴らしい…！ 金正日が国家予算を注いだ傑作の内容とは？". TOCANA. p. 2. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
5. ^ "[신상옥의 북한영화 이야기] 불가사리". The Chosun Ilbo (in Korean). Retrieved June 23, 2024.
6. Film & Video Yearbook 1999. Kinema Junpo (in Japanese). May 14, 1999. p. 192 – via Google Books.
7. Yamada, Masami (December 1995). 大ゴジラ図鑑2 [The Pictorial Book of Godzilla 2] (in Japanese). Hobby Japan. p. 152. ISBN 4-89425-117-5.
8. ^ "A Kim Jong Il Production". The New Yorker. 18 April 2005. Archived from the original on January 22, 2015. Retrieved May 8, 2013.
9. ^ "ゴジラ俳優「薩摩剣八郎さん」死去 金正日肝いり「怪獣映画」に出演 かつて明かした北朝鮮"極寒の撮影秘話"（2ページ目）". Daily Shincho (in Japanese). December 27, 2023. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
10. "プルガサリ 伝説の大怪獣" [Pulgasari: The Legendary Giant Monster]. Eiga Chirashi (in Japanese). Archived from the original on October 31, 2023. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
11. ^ Issues 1392-1395 (in Japanese). Kinema Junpo. 2003. p. 145 – via Google Books. 1985 年、日本、中国、北朝鮮の合作で制作され、 98 年に日本公開された「プルガサリ/伝説の大怪獣」。
12. ^ "大怪獣プルガサリ" [Giant Monster Pulgasari] (PDF). Eiga Chirashi (in Japanese). p. 2. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 31, 2023. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
13. ^ Gorenfeld, John (3 April 2003). "Kidnapped by Kim Jong-il: the man who directed the socialist Godzilla". The Guardian.
14. ^ Romano, Nick (April 6, 2015). "How Kim Jong Il Kidnapped a Director, Made a Godzilla Knockoff, and Created a Cult Hit". Vanity Fair. Retrieved September 25, 2017.
15. ^ Peralta, Eyder (December 19, 2011). "'Pulgasari': Kim Jong Il's Giant Monster Film". The Two-Way. NPR. Retrieved September 25, 2017.
16. Schönherr, Johannes (2012). North Korean Cinema: A History. Jefferson: McFarland. pp. 81–82. ISBN 978-0-7864-6526-2.
17. Ozaki, Kazuo (December 3, 2018). "監督との対話から見える『グエムル -漢江の怪物-』の輪郭". thecinema.jp. Retrieved May 20, 2021.
18. "Magnus Bärtås". ArtReview. February 18, 2014. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
19. Wiggins, Brent (October 13, 2022). "Pulgasari: A Look at the North Korean Kaiju Movie". MovieWeb. Archived from the original on October 13, 2022. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
20. ^ Satsuma, Kenpachiro. "東京ナラサキ研究所 - プルガサリ撮影秘話". narasaki-net.com. Retrieved June 24, 2024.
21. "プルガサリ 伝説の大怪獣 [画像ギャラリー 2/2]". Natalie (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-06-24.
22. ^ "大ヒット、「プルガサリ」". Choson Sinbo (in Japanese). Retrieved June 24, 2024.
23. "북한 영화: 한국서 북한 영화 9편 상영이 주목되는 이유" (in Korean). BBC. 2018-07-11. Retrieved 2021-08-31.
24. ^ "映画「ゴジラ」７本で"中の人"を…俳優・薩摩剣八郎さんは今｜あの人は今こうしている". 日刊ゲンダイDIGITAL. 2014-09-22. p. 3. Retrieved 2024-06-24.
25. Korea Now. Korea Herald. 2003.
26. ^ "First NK Monster Faces Hollywood-Born Godzilla in Japan". Choson Sinbo. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved June 25, 2024.
27. Przywara, Dennis (October 31, 2002). "Pulgasari". Film Threat. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
28. Fowler, Simon (August 15, 2014). "The five best North Korean films". The Guardian. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
29. Urquhart, Jeremy (March 17, 2024). "10 So-Bad-They're-Good Monster Movies, Ranked". Collider. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
30. Grebey, James (March 28, 2024). "15 Kaiju You Should Know (That Aren't Godzilla or King Kong)". Vulture. Archived from the original on March 28, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
31. Taylor, Ben (2 February 2012). Apocalypse on the Set: Nine Disastrous Film Productions. Overlook Hardcover. pp. 168–169. ISBN 978-1468300130.
32. "Pulgasari (1985) — directed by a captive, produced by Kim Jong-il". The Daily Review/Crikey. December 21, 2011. Archived from the original on January 16, 2012. Retrieved July 2, 2024.

External links

• Pulgasari at IMDb
• Pulgasari at AllMovie
• Pulgasari at Box Office Mojo
• Pulgasari at Rotten Tomatoes

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