'The Assassin(s),' a thriller about 1974 assassination of South Korea's first lady, will open Singapore International Film Festival as planned despite backlash
The Singapore International Film Festival will open its 37th edition with "The Assassin(s)" as planned, organizers said Wednesday, rebuffing calls from South Korea's conservative People Power Party to drop the political thriller from its opening-night slot.
In a statement to Singaporean media, the festival said it was aware of the controversy but stood by its selection. Its programmers chose the film independently, the statement added, on grounds of its artistic merit and contribution to contemporary Asian cinema.
"The filmmakers have described the film as a work of cinematic imagination that combines historical events with fictional characters and situations," the festival said. "SGIFF presents the film in that context, as a creative work."
Director Hur Jin-ho is expected to attend the Oct. 21 opening with supporting cast members Shim Eun-kyung and Park Sung-hoon. The film's team earlier in the week pulled out of all festival events at the Busan International Film Festival, which opened Tuesday, citing safety concerns.
SGIFF's response came a day after Korea's main opposition party sent a letter to the festival's executive director Jeremy Chua on behalf of all its 109 lawmakers.
In the letter, Floor Leader Jeong Jeom-sig voiced "deep regret" over the selection and urged the festival to "immediately reconsider that decision." The film, he wrote, attempts to rewrite history by spreading misinformation about a tragic event.
"The Assassin(s)" centers on the Aug. 15, 1974, shooting of first lady Yuk Young-soo at a Liberation Day ceremony in Seoul. It builds its premise off of a long-running conspiracy theory that the event was staged by Park's own men.
At home, the movie unleashed a political firestorm soon after its Sept. 23 release. Conservatives have attacked the movie as left-wing propaganda aimed at discrediting the military strongman's legacy, while progressives have defended it as a work of fiction.
That anger has turned on the cast. Police stepped up security for actor Yoo Hae-jin on Tuesday after conservative activists rallied outside what is believed to be his Seoul home.
Outside Korea, the film premiered in Toronto in September and finished runner-up for the festival's International People's Choice Award. It has since been invited to festivals in Rio de Janeiro, Paris and Hawaii.
moonkihoon@heraldcorp.com
