A movie about the assassination of South Korea's former president Park Chung-hee's wife, Lee Eun-suk, originally sparked controversy over "how history should be depicted." Unexpectedly, a familiar keyword soon emerged: "Chinese capital."
On September 29, in response to the claim by South Korean politicians that there was “400 billion won of Chinese capital involvement,” the film production company urgently stated that “there was absolutely no inflow of Chinese capital” during the production and investment process. The film was produced under the leadership of South Korean teams, using domestic South Korean capital for production. South Korean media such as Yonhap and East Asia Daily reported this response on the same day.
Prior to this, the film 'The Assassins' had already sparked ongoing controversy in South Korea due to its 'distorting history'. In just a few days, the debate surrounding the film spread from the screen to South Korean politics, and further implicated China's capital through discussions of controversial events in modern South Korean history.
Firstly, the controversy stems from this movie itself.
"Assassins" is a film directed by South Korean director Xu Qinhao, starring Liu Haizhen, Park Hae-il, and Lee Min-ho. It premiered on September 23. The movie is set against the backdrop of the assassination of Lu Yingxiu in 1974. Based on real historical figures and events, the film introduces fictional characters and plots, as detectives, journalists, and other characters pursue the mysteries behind the case.
On August 15, 1974, South Korean President Park Chung-hee was shot while attending a commemorative ceremony for the Liberation Day in Seoul. The shooter was Bok Chul-sung, a Korean diaspora member living in Japan and Korea. Park Chung-hee himself was not injured, but his wife, Lu Young-soo, was shot and later died from her injuries. This incident became a major event in the history of modern South Korean politics.
On August 15, 1974, South Korean President Park Chung-hee and his wife Lu Yingxiu attended the commemoration ceremony for the 29th anniversary of the Liberation at the Central National Theater. They were shot by Kim Seung-muk, a second-generation Korean diaspora writer living in Japan. Park Chung-hee survived the attack, but Lu Yingxiu was killed. This incident caused significant tension in relations between Japan and Korea, with the two countries nearly severing diplomatic ties. Wikipedia
And ‘The Assassins’ does not follow the traditional official narrative completely. Some characters in the film suggest that there might be other forces behind those shooting incidents, and it may even involve the Park Chung-hee faction or the South Korean Central Intelligence Agency.
It was this very handling that triggered strong backlash from South Korea's conservative camp.
According to a report by the South Korean Joint News Agency on the 29th, former Seoul city councilor and member of the National Forces Party, Lee Jong-pyeop, reported the director Xu Qinhao and the production team to the Seoul Police Agency. He accused the film of using false facts to damage reputation. He believes that the use of the plural form '암살자들' in the movie title implies the existence of other 'assassins' besides Moon Seung-gwang, and could create an impression among viewers that Park Chung-hee was the mastermind or involved in this matter.
Regarding this, the film production company denied it. On the 28th, the production team issued a statement saying that the movie was based on historical events from 1974. It incorporated cinematic imagination into the story, using public records, materials, books, and documentaries as its foundation. The film did not identify any specific individuals as being behind the events, nor did it present the assumptions and dramatic settings in the movie as historical facts.
However, the controversy did not stop in the film industry.
On the 29th, the Korean National Party continued to criticize the film. According to Yonhap News, the party demanded that the film be stopped from being released and that the director Xu Qinhuo and other relevant individuals be summoned to appear before the parliamentary oversight committee. Zhang Donghe, the representative of the National Party, previously proposed a movie boycott; some members of the party have linked the controversy surrounding the film to political debates over other historical events in Korea.
Meanwhile, the President Park Chung-hee Memorial Foundation also demanded that the production company apologize and stop screening the film, stating that the movie distorted a historical tragedy that caused great suffering to Park Chung-hee and his family.
Right as the debate about historical distortion was getting increasingly intense, "China Capital" got caught in the crossfire.
On September 28, Joo Jin-woo, a member of the National Force Party, suggested in his personal program that the production company behind the film might have connections with Chinese capital. He also mentioned that some media reports indicated investments of about 400 billion Korean won by Chinese capital. He further suggested that it should be investigated during national political supervision to determine whether Chinese capital could influence the film production through its investments.
According to the South Korean News Agency, Zhu Zhenyu based his claim on reports indicating an investment relationship between institutions under China’s CITIC Group and film production companies. Based on this, he raised the question of whether "Chinese capital may be influencing the situation behind the scenes." Zhu Zhenyu also expressed his desire to investigate related issues further during national government audits.
On September 29th, the production company responded positively to this issue.
According to Yonhap, the film production company Hive Media Corp issued a statement on the same day, clearly stating that "none of the Chinese capital flowed into the production and investment process of the film 'Assassins'." The production team said that the film was independently planned and produced by Korean domestic capital under the leadership of Korean teams and creators. They also stated that the investment and production funds were "objectively verifiable facts," and expressed their hope that information inconsistent with these facts would not be spread further.
The Dongya Daily also reported that the production team has formally refuted the "Chinese Capital Intervention" claims spread online and by some media outlets.
According to Yonhap News, after its release, "Assassins" remained at the top of South Korean box office charts for 5 consecutive days. However, on September 28th, it was overtaken by "Foolish Four," falling to second place for the first time. As of that day, the film had already attracted over 1.5 million viewers. The movie continued to perform strongly during the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday period, with approximately 1.407 million people watching it from September 24th to 27th.
Film "Assassins" by Yonhap News Agency
It is noteworthy that there is a significant divergence in opinions about the film on South Korean online platforms. According to Yonhap, actual viewers awarded the film 8.3 points on Naver, while netizens gave it only 2.2 points overall, indicating a clear polarization of public opinion.
Whether this controversy will ultimately remain as a dispute over the historical interpretation of a movie, or continue to evolve into a political battle in South Korean politics, remains to be seen.
