Maybe I am getting soft in my old age or maybe it is the recency of the Hong Kong crackdowns, but parts of this pack an emotional punch. It overcomes some very ordinary English language elements to the film and leaves you caught up in the story of Korean everyman Mr Kim and a German journalist. Elements may seem absurd, but the prominence of bus and taxi drivers was apparently a very real aspect of the protest.

After watching you may wonder why have you never heard of the Gwanju massacre. After all, the death toll was a minimum of 140 and possibly exceeded 1000. Helicopters were reportedly used to fire on civilians and the horror sounds entirely comparable to Tianemen Square. Inevitably the answer may lie in US opinion of the Chinese and South Korean governments at the time of the respective massacres.

An accessible primer for the uninitiated and a gentle tribute to those who bravely stood up for human decency. Possibly for cultural reasons I never really connect with South Korean movies but this one struck a chord.

7/10