<Good Windy Day (Balambul-eo joh-eun nal) > (1980)

Director : Lee Jang-Ho
Production Company : Dong A Exports Co.
Date of Rate : 1980-08-22
Date of Theatrical Release : 1980-11-27
Running Time : 113 min.
Opening Theater : Myeong Bo Theater
Genre : Melodrama

Staff :
Writer : Choi Il-Nam
Screenplay(Adaptation) : Lee Jang-Ho
Producer : Lee Wu-Seok
Director of PhotoGraphy : Seo Jeong-Min
Gaffer : Ma Yong-Cheon
Music : Kim Do-Hyang
Art Director : Lee Myeong-Su

Cast(Actor/Actress) :
Ahn Seong-Ki, Kim Seong-Chan, Lee Young-Ho, Yoo Ji-In

Synopsis

Fresh from the country, Duk-bae (Ahn Sung-ki), Chun-sik (Lee Young-ho), and Kil-nam (Kim Seong-chan) work at a Chinese restaurant, barbershop, and motel, respectively, in a newly-developing area just outside of Seoul. They share friendship and moral support with one another in their difficult lives. Due to ongoing development, even long-established inhabitants of the area are forced to give up their farmland and leave their homes. Meanwhile, Kil-nam is in love with a hairdresser named Jin-ok, and Chun-sik has his heart set on Miss Yu (Kim Bo-yeon), who works as a shaver in the same barbershop. Simplehearted Duk-bae finds himself torn between Chun-sun (Lim Ye-jin), a bright and spirited girl from the country, and Myung-hi (Yoo Ji-in), a foul-tempered yet captivating high society girl. However, Duk-bae learns that Myung-hi, who pretended to care for him, was merely playing with him. Similarly, Jin-ok runs off without paying back the money she owes Kil-nam. Although Miss Yu loves Chun-sik, she becomes the mistress of Mr. Kim (Choi Bul-am), a regular at the barbershop, in order to pay for her father's medical fees and her siblings' tuition. Enraged, Chun-sik stabs Mr. Kim and ends up in prison. Kil-nam enlists in the military, and Duk-bae resolves to defeat the world by boxing.

Notes

"An outstanding black comedy that depicted the social contradictions born of rapid growth during Korea's regime change in 1980, through a realistic portrayal of alienated youth"
Good Windy Day is set amidst the social conditions of 1980, when poverty and alienation existed in the dark shadows of rapid growth and development. The fact that the film was made during the very historical moment when the Gwangju Democratization Movement occurred and Chun Doo-hwan became president holds deep significance. Director Lee Jang-ho was fascinated with agricultural fiction during his four-year suspension from the film industry for marijuana use. He recalls this period as the beginning of his desire to create full-fledged realist films that reflected actual social conditions. By shining the spotlight on those who were alienated from society and deprived of their land as a result of urban development, Good Windy Day exposes the contradictions inherent in a rapidly-growing social structure and exhibits clear class consciousness. Following Duk-bae realization that Myung-hi, through whom he had come into contact with the upper class, had made sport of him, the movie ends with him holding Chun-sun, who is from his own class, by the hand as they see Kil-nam off. This final scene effectively demonstrates their class consciousness. Duk-bae's stammered lines, ensconced in the genre of black comedy, reveal the arduous reality faced by these characters truthfully and tragically. "We have to grin and bear all of it pretend not to see, not to hear, not to be able to speak," says Duk-bae. But Duk-bae's boxing scene which shows him being knocked down but getting right back up again, as the background song affirms, "A new wind is blowing, blowing. The wind is blowing, and my dream is swelling"sounds a note of tragic hope. Reflecting the historical realities of the day through the endearing lives of individuals, Good Windy Day is a rare and precious gem in 1980s Korean cinema, which was dominated by erotic films and romantic melodramas as a result of Chun Doo-hwan's "3S (sex, sports, screen) Policy."

Afterword:

- Ahn Sung-ki, who debuted in Kim Ki-young's The Twilight Train (Hwanghon-yeolcha, 1957), made his comeback in Good Windy Day after taking time off from acting for school and military service. His successful self-reinvention as a mature actor in this film earned him the prestigious Daejong Award for Best New Actor for the first time in 21 years since 1959.

Director Bio: Lee Jang-ho (1945- )

Lee Jang-ho is one of the most significant directors of the 70s and 80s who made movies that were socially relevant and commercially successful. He was an assistant to director Shin Sang-ok and was thrust into stardom with the smashing success of Heavenly homecoming to stars (Byeoldeul-ui gohyang) (1974), the movie with which he made his directorial debut. He founded the film production group, "Visual Age" with Ha Kil-jong and Kim Ho-seon. He portrayed the oppression, hypocrisy, poverty and wealth of the society of his times and opened the "Age of the Youthful Writers." He used spectacular experimental visual techniques in Declaration of Idiot (Baboseon-eon) (1983) and A Wanderer Never Stops on the Road (Nageuneneun gil-e-seodo swiji An-neunda) (1987) and portrayed Korean society and its contrasting wealth and poverty in Good Windy Day (Balambul-eo joh-eun nal) (1980). He also directed popular commercial movies such as Between the Knees (Muleupgwa muleupsa-i) (1984), Eoh Wu-dong (Eo Udong) (1985) and Lee Jang-ho's Baseball Team (Lee Jang-ho-ui oeingudan) (1986). During the 90s, he produced Myong-Ja Akiko Sonia (Myeongja Akkikko Ssonya) (1992) and Declaration of Genius (Cheonjaeseone-eon) (1995). Currently, he is teaching students and is on the board of directors for the Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival.