2009 Lost Memories
Encyclopedia
2009 Lost Memories is a 2002 South Korean science fiction
action
thriller film directed by Lee Si-myung. It was distributed by CJ Entertainment
and was released on February 1, 2002.
, Japanese Bureau of Investigation (JBI) agents Masayuki Sakamoto and Shojiro Saigo thwart a hostage crisis at a museum in Keijo
(Seoul
) by a terrorist group known as the Hureisenjin. The exact motivation for the hostage situation is unknown, but during the investigation, Sakamoto discovers a museum artifact, a crescent-shaped rock known as the "Lunar Soul", found by one of the slain terrorists. After discovering a history of the Hureisenjin targeting the Inoue Foundation, a
group founded around the artifacts collected by the second Resident-General of Korea, Sakamoto begins to suspect the Hureisenjin were attempting to stealing the Lunar Soul. The Hureisenjin ambush the convoy shipping the foundation's artifacts back to Japan and take the Lunar Soul. The terrorists confront Sakamoto and Saigo in a gunfight, where Sakamoto encounters Oh Hye-rin, the organization's female leader.
Sakamoto's questioning and accusations against the influential Inoue Foundation lead to him being thrown off the case, with the execution of Sakamoto's father as a traitor for aiding in a thwarted attack by the Hurisenjin on a cargo ship in Vladivostok
in 1985 being cited by his suspicious superiors. Sakamoto pursues the investigation, traveling to Harbin
to learn more about the Lunar Soul, and is then suspended from the JBL. That night, an unknown assailant murders Sakamoto's mentor, Takahashi, at his apartment and he is arrested for the crime. Sakamoto, however, escapes from the JBI with the help of Saigo, who vows to be his enemy the next time they meet.
A wounded Sakamoto stumbles into the Hureisenjin's hideout and Saigo is visited by the head of the Inoue Foundation, with both learning the truth: that he is living in an alternate timeline. Due to a large stone temple uncovered by a joint Chinese-Korean-Japanese archaeological expedition, with the ability to allow time travel
, and its exploitation by the Japanese right-wing nationalist group Uyoku dantai
, a man named Inoue prevents the assassination of Resident-General Itō Hirobumi
on October 26, 1909. Itō's survival and Inoue's knowledge of future events allows for Japan, instead of being defeated with the other Axis Powers in the Second World War, to ally with United States against Nazi Germany
. With the war ending in the atomic bombing of Berlin, rather than Hiroshima and Nagasaki
, Japan becomes a a military and economic superpower with a permanent seat on the UN Security Council, with its colonial empire intact. Inoue goes on to become the second Resident-General of Korea and his descendants found the Inoue Foundation, while a Korean female researcher who followed Inoue and attempted to stop him becomes the founder Hureisenjin and passes along the story of the truth of the altered timeline.
Knowing about the altered history, Sakamoto allies with the Hureisenjin, who have located the temple stone and are planning their final attack. However, the JBI raid their hideout and kill almost everyone before being wiped out by an improvised explosive. Carrying the Lunar Soul with them, Sakamoto and Hye-rin escape to a tanker ship where the Inoue Foundation's artifacts are being held. They find the temple stone and place the Lunar Soul in it, which activates in the middle of a gunfight with the JBI. Hye-rin is killed, leaving Sakamoto as the only person left to fix the timeline. Sakamoto sends himself to Harbin in 1909, but is pursued by Saigo, who wants to retain the current timeline (in order to prevent his wife's family from potentially perishing in the bombing of Hiroshima). Sakamoto wounds Saigo before heading to the railway station where the assassination is supposed to occur. He is about to stop Inoue from killing An, but Saigo once again confronts him. Sakamoto kills Inoue, then guns down Saigo to prevent him from shooting An. An assassinates Itō and history is reverted back to normal. Moments later, Sakamoto is seen planting explosives to destroy the temple stone, when he meets the female Korean researcher who had originally followed Inoue.
The film ends in the year 2009 at the Independence Hall of Korea
, where a photo of Sakamoto and the woman is seen among the gallery of Korean heroes.
, Il Mare
, and Bungee Jumping of Their Own
.
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
action
Action film
Action film is a film genre where one or more heroes is thrust into a series of challenges that require physical feats, extended fights and frenetic chases...
thriller film directed by Lee Si-myung. It was distributed by CJ Entertainment
CJ Entertainment
CJ Entertainment is a South Korean entertainment company which is involved in film production, investment, distribution and exhibition. It is the largest entertainment company in South Korea...
and was released on February 1, 2002.
Plot
In the year 2009, where Korea is still under Japanese ruleKorea under Japanese rule
Korea was under Japanese rule as part of Japan's 35-year imperialist expansion . Japanese rule ended in 1945 shortly after the Japanese defeat in World War II....
, Japanese Bureau of Investigation (JBI) agents Masayuki Sakamoto and Shojiro Saigo thwart a hostage crisis at a museum in Keijo
Names of Seoul
Seoul has been known in the past by the successive names Wiryeseong , Namgyeong , Hanseong or Hanyang . During the period of Japanese colonial rule , Seoul was named Keijō or Gyeongseong...
(Seoul
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
) by a terrorist group known as the Hureisenjin. The exact motivation for the hostage situation is unknown, but during the investigation, Sakamoto discovers a museum artifact, a crescent-shaped rock known as the "Lunar Soul", found by one of the slain terrorists. After discovering a history of the Hureisenjin targeting the Inoue Foundation, a
group founded around the artifacts collected by the second Resident-General of Korea, Sakamoto begins to suspect the Hureisenjin were attempting to stealing the Lunar Soul. The Hureisenjin ambush the convoy shipping the foundation's artifacts back to Japan and take the Lunar Soul. The terrorists confront Sakamoto and Saigo in a gunfight, where Sakamoto encounters Oh Hye-rin, the organization's female leader.
Sakamoto's questioning and accusations against the influential Inoue Foundation lead to him being thrown off the case, with the execution of Sakamoto's father as a traitor for aiding in a thwarted attack by the Hurisenjin on a cargo ship in Vladivostok
Vladivostok
The city is located in the southern extremity of Muravyov-Amursky Peninsula, which is about 30 km long and approximately 12 km wide.The highest point is Mount Kholodilnik, the height of which is 257 m...
in 1985 being cited by his suspicious superiors. Sakamoto pursues the investigation, traveling to Harbin
Harbin
Harbin ; Manchu language: , Harbin; Russian: Харби́н Kharbin ), is the capital and largest city of Heilongjiang Province in Northeast China, lying on the southern bank of the Songhua River...
to learn more about the Lunar Soul, and is then suspended from the JBL. That night, an unknown assailant murders Sakamoto's mentor, Takahashi, at his apartment and he is arrested for the crime. Sakamoto, however, escapes from the JBI with the help of Saigo, who vows to be his enemy the next time they meet.
A wounded Sakamoto stumbles into the Hureisenjin's hideout and Saigo is visited by the head of the Inoue Foundation, with both learning the truth: that he is living in an alternate timeline. Due to a large stone temple uncovered by a joint Chinese-Korean-Japanese archaeological expedition, with the ability to allow time travel
Time travel
Time travel is the concept of moving between different points in time in a manner analogous to moving between different points in space. Time travel could hypothetically involve moving backward in time to a moment earlier than the starting point, or forward to the future of that point without the...
, and its exploitation by the Japanese right-wing nationalist group Uyoku dantai
Uyoku dantai
Uyoku dantai are Japanese nationalist right-wing groups.In 1996, the National Police Agency estimated that there are over 1000 right wing groups in Japan with about 100,000 members in total.-Tennō period:...
, a man named Inoue prevents the assassination of Resident-General Itō Hirobumi
Ito Hirobumi
Prince was a samurai of Chōshū domain, Japanese statesman, four time Prime Minister of Japan , genrō and Resident-General of Korea. Itō was assassinated by An Jung-geun, a Korean nationalist who was against the annexation of Korea by the Japanese Empire...
on October 26, 1909. Itō's survival and Inoue's knowledge of future events allows for Japan, instead of being defeated with the other Axis Powers in the Second World War, to ally with United States against Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
. With the war ending in the atomic bombing of Berlin, rather than Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
During the final stages of World War II in 1945, the United States conducted two atomic bombings against the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan, the first on August 6, 1945, and the second on August 9, 1945. These two events are the only use of nuclear weapons in war to date.For six months...
, Japan becomes a a military and economic superpower with a permanent seat on the UN Security Council, with its colonial empire intact. Inoue goes on to become the second Resident-General of Korea and his descendants found the Inoue Foundation, while a Korean female researcher who followed Inoue and attempted to stop him becomes the founder Hureisenjin and passes along the story of the truth of the altered timeline.
Knowing about the altered history, Sakamoto allies with the Hureisenjin, who have located the temple stone and are planning their final attack. However, the JBI raid their hideout and kill almost everyone before being wiped out by an improvised explosive. Carrying the Lunar Soul with them, Sakamoto and Hye-rin escape to a tanker ship where the Inoue Foundation's artifacts are being held. They find the temple stone and place the Lunar Soul in it, which activates in the middle of a gunfight with the JBI. Hye-rin is killed, leaving Sakamoto as the only person left to fix the timeline. Sakamoto sends himself to Harbin in 1909, but is pursued by Saigo, who wants to retain the current timeline (in order to prevent his wife's family from potentially perishing in the bombing of Hiroshima). Sakamoto wounds Saigo before heading to the railway station where the assassination is supposed to occur. He is about to stop Inoue from killing An, but Saigo once again confronts him. Sakamoto kills Inoue, then guns down Saigo to prevent him from shooting An. An assassinates Itō and history is reverted back to normal. Moments later, Sakamoto is seen planting explosives to destroy the temple stone, when he meets the female Korean researcher who had originally followed Inoue.
The film ends in the year 2009 at the Independence Hall of Korea
Independence Hall of Korea
The Independence Hall of Korea is a history museum in Cheonan, South Korea. Opened on August 15, 1987, it has the largest exhibition facility in Korea with total floor area of 23,424 m²...
, where a photo of Sakamoto and the woman is seen among the gallery of Korean heroes.
Cast
- Jang Dong-gunJang Dong-gun-Early life:Spending his childhood in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, he later went on to the Korea National University of Arts, dropping out before obtaining a degree.-Career:Jang Dong-gun first entered the entertainment world in a talent contest in 1992...
as Masayuki Sakamoto, a JBI agent of Japanese and Korean descent - Toru Nakamura as Shojiro Saigo, Sakamoto's partner
- Seo Jin-ho as Oh Hye-rin, the female leader of the Korean terrorist group Hureisenjin
- Miki Yoshimura as Yuriko Saigo, Shojiro's wife
- Shin Goo as Takahashi, Sakamoto's mentor
- Ken Mitsuishi as Hideyo, a JBI employee who wears large eyeglasses
- Shōhei ImamuraShohei Imamurawas a Japanese film director. Imamura was the first Japanese director to win two Palme d'Or awards.His eldest son Daisuke Tengan is also a script writer and film director, and worked on the screenplays to Imamura's filmsThe Eel , Dr...
as a historian - Kim Min-sun as a kindergarten teacher who appears in the end of the film
- Masaaki Daimon
- Nobuyuki Katsube
- Lee Sa-pi
- Woo Sang-jeon
Timeline
The film's opening sequence shows the following differences in the historical timeline:- 1909: An Jung-geun'sAn Jung-geunAn Jung-geun or Ahn Jung-geun was a Korean independence activist, nationalist, and pan-Asianist....
assassination attempt against Itō HirobumiIto HirobumiPrince was a samurai of Chōshū domain, Japanese statesman, four time Prime Minister of Japan , genrō and Resident-General of Korea. Itō was assassinated by An Jung-geun, a Korean nationalist who was against the annexation of Korea by the Japanese Empire...
is thwarted by Inoue. - 1910: Japan annexes Korea as ChosonJoseon DynastyJoseon , was a Korean state founded by Taejo Yi Seong-gye that lasted for approximately five centuries. It was founded in the aftermath of the overthrow of the Goryeo at what is today the city of Kaesong. Early on, Korea was retitled and the capital was relocated to modern-day Seoul...
Province - 1919: The March 1st MovementMarch 1st MovementThe March 1st Movement, or Samil Movement, was one of the earliest public displays of Korean resistance during the occupation of the Korean Empire by Japan. The name refers to an event that occurred on March 1, 1919, hence the movement's name, literally meaning "Three-One Movement" or "March First...
protests are suppressed - 1921: Inoue, Itō's savior, becomes Choson's second governor
- 1932: The Assassination of Yoshinori Shirakawa by Yoon Bong-GilYoon Bong-GilYoon Bong-Gil was a Korean independence activist and assassin who worked against Japan during Japan's rule over Korea .-Shanghai bombing:...
thwarted - 1937: The United States and Japan enter World War II as allies
- 1943: Japan takes control of Manchuria
- 1945: Atomic bombs are dropped on Berlin, ending World War II.
- 1960: Japan becomes permanent member of UN Security Council
- 1965: Japan launches its first satellite, Sakura 1 (presumably as part of the Space RaceSpace RaceThe Space Race was a mid-to-late 20th century competition between the Soviet Union and the United States for supremacy in space exploration. Between 1957 and 1975, Cold War rivalry between the two nations focused on attaining firsts in space exploration, which were seen as necessary for national...
) - 1988: 1988 Summer Olympics1988 Summer OlympicsThe 1988 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad, were an all international multi-sport events celebrated from September 17 to October 2, 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. They were the second summer Olympic Games to be held in Asia and the first since the 1964 Summer Olympics...
held in Nagoya (instead of Nagoya losing by one voteNagoya bid for the 1988 Summer OlympicsNagoya 1988 was one of the two short-listed bids for the 1988 Games, and was to be held in Nagoya, Japan.Nagoya was eliminated in the first round of the ballot to select a host city at the 84th IOC sitting on September 1981 in Baden-Baden, West Germany....
to Seoul) - 2002: World Cup tournament held in Japan (instead of both Korea and Japan2002 FIFA World CupThe 2002 FIFA World Cup was the 17th staging of the FIFA World Cup, held in South Korea and Japan from 31 May to 30 June. It was also the first World Cup held in Asia, and the last in which the golden goal rule was implemented. Brazil won the tournament for a record fifth time, beating Germany 2–0...
)
Differences
- Korea is referred to as Chōsen in Japanese and Choseon in Korean, not as Hanguk (韓國)Names of KoreaThere are various names of Korea in use today, derived from ancient kingdoms and dynasties. The modern English name Korea is an exonym derived from the Goryeo period and is used by both North Korea and South Korea in international contexts...
, the name used by Republic of KoreaSouth KoreaThe Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
. Seoul is referred to as GyeongseongNames of SeoulSeoul has been known in the past by the successive names Wiryeseong , Namgyeong , Hanseong or Hanyang . During the period of Japanese colonial rule , Seoul was named Keijō or Gyeongseong...
(경성,京城; Korean) / Keijō (京城,けいじょう; Japanese), an old name for Seoul that fell out of use after Korea gained independence from Japan in the actual timeline - The Governor General BuildingJapanese General Government Building, SeoulThe Japanese Government-General Building was the chief administrative building in Keijo during the Japanese colonial rule of Korea and the seat of the Governor-General of Korea. It was a neo-classical building designed by German architect Georg De Lalande, and was completed in 1926...
still stands in front of Gyeongbok palaceGyeongbokgungGyeongbokgung, also known as Gyeongbokgung Palace or Gyeongbok Palace, is a royal palace located in northern Seoul, South Korea. First constructed in 1394 and reconstructed in 1867, it was the main and largest palace of the Five Grand Palaces built by the Joseon Dynasty...
(instead of having been demolished in 1996). - GwanghwamunGwanghwamunGwanghwamun is the main and largest gate of Gyeongbokgung Palace, located in Seoul, South Korea. As a landmark and symbol of Seoul's long history as the capital city during the Joseon Dynasty, the gate has gone through multiple periods of destruction and disrepair...
was never restored (instead of having been restored during Park Chung Hee's presidency). - A statue of Toyotomi HideyoshiToyotomi Hideyoshiwas a daimyo warrior, general and politician of the Sengoku period. He unified the political factions of Japan. He succeeded his former liege lord, Oda Nobunaga, and brought an end to the Sengoku period. The period of his rule is often called the Momoyama period, named after Hideyoshi's castle...
on a horse in full samurai gear stands in downtown Seoul (instead of a statue of Yi Sun-sinYi Sun-sinYi Sun-shin was a Korean naval commander, famed for his victories against the Japanese navy during the Imjin war in the Joseon Dynasty, and is well-respected for his exemplary conduct on and off the battlefield not only by Koreans, but by Japanese Admirals as well...
, the man credited with defeating him). - The ChungmuroChungmuroChungmuro refers to an avenue 1.75 km in length and 10∼20m in width and the area nearby the street, located in Jung-gu, central Seoul of South Korea. Since 1960s, Chungmuro has been known as the street of culture, artists, and film industry. Dansungsa, the first movie theaters of Korea is also...
district of Seoul, where Sakamoto lives, is still called Honmachi, as it was during the Japanese rule. - Traffic flows on the left side, instead of on the right. Japanese, American and German cars are shown throughout the film, as Korean car manufacturers such as HyundaiHyundai Motor CompanyHyundai Motor Company is a Korean multinational automaker based in Seoul, South Korea which, along with Kia, comprises the Hyundai Kia Automotive Group, the world's fourth largest automaker as of 2009. As of 2011, it is the world's fastest growing automaker for two years running...
do not exist.
Themes
According to Tom Vick, the theme of the film represents a desire in Korean cinema to "transcend time and memory" also reflected in other contemporary films such as Flower IslandFlower Island
Flower Island is an award-winning 2001 South Korean film directed by Song Il-gon. This was Song's first feature-length film after directing several award-winning short films.-Synopsis:...
, Il Mare
Il Mare
Il Mare is a 2000 South Korean film, starring Jun Ji-hyun and Lee Jung-jae. The title, Il Mare, means "The Sea" in Italian, and is the name of the seaside house which is the setting of the story. The Korean title, Siworae is the Korean pronunciation of Hanja characters "時越愛", which means...
, and Bungee Jumping of Their Own
Bungee Jumping of Their Own
Bungee Jumping of Their Own is a 2001 South Korean film starring Lee Byung-hun and Lee Eun-ju. It was selected to appear in the 2002 Frameline Film Festival and the 2004 Korean Film Festival DC.- Plot :...
.
See also
- History of KoreaHistory of KoreaThe Korean Peninsula was inhabited from the Lower Paleolithic about 400,000-500,000 years ago. Archeological evidence indicates that the presence of modern humans in northeast Asia dates to 39,000 years ago. The earliest known Korean pottery dates to around 8000 BC, and the Neolithic period began...
- Korean reunificationKorean reunificationKorean reunification refers to the hypothetical future reunification of North Korea and South Korea under a single government...
- List of Korean language films
- Cinema of KoreaCinema of KoreaKorean cinema encompasses the motion picture industries of North and South Korea. As with all aspects of Korean life during the past century, the film industry has often been at the mercy of political events, from the late Joseon dynasty to the Korean War to domestic governmental interference...
- Contemporary culture of South KoreaContemporary culture of South KoreaThe contemporary culture of South Korea developed from the traditional culture of Korea, and on its own path away from North Korean culture since the division of Korea in 1948. The industrialization and urbanization of South Korea, especially Seoul, have brought many changes to the way Korean...
- List of Korea-related topics
- Time travelTime travelTime travel is the concept of moving between different points in time in a manner analogous to moving between different points in space. Time travel could hypothetically involve moving backward in time to a moment earlier than the starting point, or forward to the future of that point without the...
- Alternate history
External links
- 2009 Lost Memories, review at Asian Cinema.
- Korea That Might Have Been: Seoul as a Large Japanese City (movie review) by Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times, May 20, 2005.
- Elley, Derek. 2009 -- Lost Memories (film review). VarietyVariety (magazine)Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
, July 9, 2002.