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South Korea in 1975, was under authoritarian/military regime ruled by Park Chung Hee. It is important to know that President Park was trying to modernize South Korea into more developed country, therefore reduce agricultural production and increase industrialization. Entrance into competition of industrialization and the diminishing of US foreign aid, South Korea had to survive on its own. The movie "A Single Spark" hence illustrates the time of newly industrialized South Korea. The director has done a great job in capturing the factory conditions with one shot, by doing so the factory's poor condition of being compact and lack of security was evident. The camera always captures the village (at night time) from high angle to show the emptiness on the streets during the curfew time, since any meeting after 10 o'clock was forbidden during Park's regime. The use of flash back to illustrate labor activist Chung Tae Il; I believe is to show that labor union formation and the hardship of factory workers still exist currently or at least to the point in which the movie was produced. The scene in which Tae Il commits suicide by burning himself was very powerful. To the audience it can be seen as very unrealistic; however, screaming for labor rights while burning in fire has dramatized the situation greatly to give an impact towards the viewers. The message in which the movie wanted to deliver towards the audience was well delivered. The fact that the movie ended with Jung Tae Il, imposed an image of purity and good will, which people will remember what he has done.
ReplyDelete"A Single Spark" was a well directed movie with a very powerful ending. What I thought worked really well in this movie was how the two different time period flowed so coherently together that the movie progressed on, uninterrupted, during switches between the two different time periods. What made these alternations flow together so smoothly were the parallels that existed in both time periods. Towards the end, the past and present were even melded together at some points. At first, these parallels weren't outright obvious, but were nonetheless noticeable. The first switch occured in the rain when the boy was selling umbrellas. The scene changed to Jung Soon in the rain under an umbrella. These connections become more and more concrete as the movie progresses. It was sad to see how even the workplaces looked exactly as they had in the past, knowing that 20 years of striking and fighting for better conditions had past.
ReplyDelete“There is nowhere to wash my hands!” the factory girl cried as she coughed blood all over her hands. The film “A Single Spark” offered several dramatic and emotionally disturbing scenes to realistically convey the issues of the time period. Particularly, the scene where the factory girl faced lung trouble from breathing too much chemical in the air weighed my heart down. Additionally, the scene where the manager of the factory injects unknown substance to keep the workers “awake” which also harms their vision and mentality explicitly illustrated the harsh treatment towards the workers. The importance of color in the film is also inevitable to ignore; the alternation between the black and white frames and vivid color frames. It clearly seems that the black and white parts introduce the character Tae-Ill and his life of hardship: his long struggle to change the law for better working conditions. The color scenes introduce a revolutionist who in the end writes a book about Tae-Ill’s life. Acknowledging two different effects, I found the color blue to have a rather critical role in the film. The blue consistently appearing in the film is rather vivid; it seemed as the director wanted the color to stand out in each scenes. This blue appears on the bus, umbrellas, curtain, hallways and streets- It represented justice, freedom and courage. In the last scene where Tae-Ill is revived symbolizing his satisfaction, Tae-Ill wore a blue jacket with blue pants.
ReplyDeleteThis movie shows the lives of 2 men at different times fighting for their freedoms in labor laws. Back in the days Korea was controlled by the military under Park Chung Hee and anyone that disobeyed the government were punished. The main character was always dodging the government and he is always walking in the shadows to make himself hidden from others. I liked how the director portrayed him as a silhouette. The ending was creative how the film had the two characters looking at each other after having parallel lives.
ReplyDelete“A Single Spark” illustrates two tales that parallel each other as Yong-soo learns more about Jeon Tae-Il, a revolutionary martyr. Past and present blend seamlessly as each generation struggles for labor rights. Both Tae-Il and Yong-Soo are shown walking in or between long distances. For example, this is seen when Tae-Il goes off to work in the mountains and also when he returns. Yong-Soo can also be seen from a far shot while he waits for Jung-Soon. The great expanse serves as a symbol for how goals for labor reform are gaining advances but still have a long way to go. Similarly, symbolism can be found in fire. Tae-Il and his fellow revolutionaries ignite their passion to make a difference at the bonfire. This is clearly decided when a piece of wood is added to the fire to make it larger. Tae-Il’s burning death urges individuals to have their passion fan into flame as well. The film’s message is that while there are injustices still occurring, people can make a difference just like Jeon Tae-Il.
ReplyDeleteThe camera angles in A Single Spark are very simple, but there are multiple instances of establishing shots to showcase the Korean landscape (which I have found to be a common trend in Korean cinema). The narrative moves along with the assistance of voice overs in the film to carry the audience between sequences which gives the audience the additional information needed to follow the action in the film. Another trend that I found in this film as well as other Korean films is the reliance on nondiegetic music in sequences of emotional importance (likie when Tae-Il sets himself on fire). I feel that the nondiegetic music in A Single Spark is well placed and helps to invoke ethos from the audience. ALso the final scene uses the freeze frame before the credits begin which is supposed to imply the importance of the figure in the frame. When the boy turns around and the audience sees Tae-Il it represents that his actions have had long lasting effects on Korean society.
ReplyDelete-James Seiling
Among the films that we have watched so far, "The Single Spark" is the most radical and uncensored movie that speaks directly. Of course, the movie yells out for the proper enforcement of labor law, but there are many scenes that still stays on my mind. To start with, the first scene where an unknown man burns a book gave me pretty strong image. This scene is shown again at the end of the movie. When I watch any kinds of movie, I enjoy guessing what the movie is going to be about by the first 5 minutes of the movie. And the first scene of "the Single Spark" was more than enough to give me a general grasp of how the storyline is going to flow. Secondly, the scene where Tae-Il digs a hole and lies down in it lingers in my head. I think this scene represents the situation that Tae-Il is placed in. Tae-Il constantly seeks help from the Ministry of Labor, but is rejected helplessly. Then, it seems like things are working out when the working condition of "Sam-Dong" is published on the newspaper. However, Tae-Il burns himself to death without achieving any improvement in working condition just as the scene where he lies down in the hole indicates: Tae-Il will die without achieving anything or getting help from outside.
ReplyDeleteJunHwan Kim
"You are the home of my soul," Tae-Il says, speaking of those broken factory workers with whom he sympathizes with throughout the film. Director Park Kwang-Su is meticulous in his use of unique, engaging dialogue in "A Single Spark." The sick young girl in the factory cries, "There's nowhere to wash my hands;" Kim Young-Soo wants to make the journey to see Jung-Soon in order to "see hope." Along with Tae-Il, it seems as if most of the characters in this film portray a sort of lacking of security; a sense of being bewildered, hopeless, without a place to really call a place home. During a few scenes of the film, we see this hopelessness take over; the people succumb to the goverment authority, and they are defeated. However, Director Park also uses methods such as visual repetition and music in order to signify the people's persistance, perseverance, and progression. For instance, the use of fire is significant in that Tae-Il burns himself in order to make a strong stand for what he truly believes in. Fire is also used on the beach, when Tae-Il and the other workers are gathered around a bonfire, and show unision in confidently shouting that laws must be enforced and something must be done to help the young girls who suffer. Lastly, the rock/pop music that plays at the very end when showing the book with Tae-Il's image on the cover can signify progression and modernity.
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ReplyDeleteBy this film, I could understand circumstance of 1970s. Also this film realistically describes poot condition of labor. During modernization of South Korea in 1970s, Park Chung Hee overwhelmingly pushed the citizens. My favorite scene of this movie is the last scene. Tae Il was burning his body by himself, and yelling to the government "we are not machine! comply with labor laws!." That is the last ditch fight of minor. This was the most impressive scene of this movie.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, some of part I do understand
but as a whole it's not my favorite. The movie does not fully explain the motivation he had that drove him to the self burning to death .I believe the decision he made is too extreme to decide the death. The movie does not have enough discription of his personnel background that lead him to death.
Although most films convey their messages through the story line, in essence, it is through the picture itself how the messages are sent. In my opinion, good films use this indirect method of sending the message through the picture itself and not the apparent direct method through conversations, storylines or narrations. The director of this movie clearly uses this indirect method and hopes that the audience perceives the message through his intentions. At the end of the scene, the young laborer holding Tae-il’s biography switches to Chun Tae-il himself and we can find Tae-il in the space of color transferred from the space of black-and-white. This classical approach of black-and-white, representing the past and the color, representing the present is applied in this film implying although Tae-il burned himself to death, he is truly not dead and is living in our present lives. However, Tae-il’s revival is also achieved through the existential transition. During the film there are scenes where Young-soo switches to Tae-il and vice versa. Young-soo is the speaker and that speaker is also similarly treated as Tae-il as if the border of existence is erased. And through this method, the audience is under hallucination that we are all Tae-il ourselves through Young-soo’s point of view, exposing the director’s desire that we are all Tae-il. This desire is probably fulfilled through the list of names of the supporters at the end of the film-that they are all different names of Chun Tae-il.
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ReplyDeletethis film uses the contrast of black&white and color film to tell the story of the labor movement in korea, starting with jeon tae-il (whose story is told in black and white) and the organizers who continued the work in the mid 90s (in color). in a number of scenes the film switched between color and b&w smoothly, serving to parallel the times and show that there was in fact little difference between the two: labor still did not have a sufficient voice, though many more were protesting due to tae-il's "spark". this use of color contrast reminded me of schindler's list, which was filmed only 2 years before "a single spark". these two films are somewhat similar: both are historical dramas that focus on the impact of their central character on many people's lives. however, i found this film's portrayal of tae-il to be somewhat one-dimensional. his past and personality are not very well fleshed out, and he comes across as a single-minded champion of the worker, but not as a relatable human being. therefore when he sets himself on fire i was neither surprised nor emotionally stirred. fire and light also play a significant role in the film-- the sweatshop is dark, the road where the woman is harassed is dark. but in the light, by fire as on the beach, in the place where the man writes, and the fire of tae-il's suicide, injustice is "brought to the light".
ReplyDeleteOne thing I noticed throughout the movie was the central blue color scheme. In several shots of a hallway, a deserted alleyway, and the sam-dong building basement, the lighting is notedly blue. This blue theme even carrys over from the lighting of a few shots. Even though they are quite minor, several props that also follow this scheme include the umbrella boy's umbrellas, the paint on many doors, the majority of the fabrics created in the workhouses, Tae-il's clothing in the color shots, and Young-soo's tie. I feel that this is to add a more subdued and hopless situation to the milieu of the movie. The rather emotional scene of Tae-il's self immolation was an explosion of red, and after that Young-soo's tie also becomes red. Red is the color of action and change. This implys that each of the protagonists were able to achieve something from their actions, but if Young-soo is still fighing for the same rights Tae-il was, was there no change?
ReplyDeleteThe use of color is particularly significant in “A Single Spark.” The cool blue of many “current” shots offer no solace in escaping the black and white world of the past. In contrast, the bright green of the couple’s blanket and the vivid hues of fruit throughout the film bring hope of new life, growth, and future generations. The director also made creative use of the ambiguity that close-ups and black and white camera provide. In certain moments the camera focuses on an object or scene, then pulls back to show its relation to the rest of the world. The result is a distortion of perception: people end up minuscule against a vast landscape and the gasoline that Tae-il pours on himself has the initial look of purifying water.
ReplyDeleteThe film based on the real life story of Jeon Taeil, “A Single Spark”, portrayed the reality of labors in the factories in Korea during 1970s. Jeon Taeil, who was one of the labors in the factory, realized that labors are not same as the machine in the factories. As machines get repaired and get oil to work smoothly, labors in the factory get shots to stay awake and die when they get diseases. Through Jeon Taeil’s passion to make the factory follow the labor law, people can realize what really happened in the factory in the past. The technique of using both color and black and white screen not only differentiated the past and the present and caught attention, but it also shared the feeling of labors in the factory. The black and white screen for Jeon Taeil’s story was very effective to deliver the gloomy and depressing atmosphere in the factory.
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ReplyDeleteThe film "A Single Spark" is composed of flashbacks to the life of a labor activist named Jeon-tae. To separate the scenes of the past from the present, the film employs the use of color for the present and black and white for the past. To bridge the past and present scenes there are common elements in both scenes. For instance in one scene Jeon-tae is shown as youth selling an umbrella and then it flashes to the present where Young-soo is in the garden with his wife who happens to have the same umbrella that was being sold is the last scene. Another element worth noting is the use of music to bring emotional responses from the viewers. For instance, when Young-soo is visiting the factory, melancholy music comes on as he watches the children hustling around sewing clothes. This scene brings the audience to feel pity and
ReplyDeletecompassion for the children working endlessly and the music is a key element in accomplishing that. The organizational composition and the sound editing of the film induces the emotion of the audience. In this film, to really see the hardships of protesters and how strongly their convictions and beliefs led them to make change
even if it went against their well-being.
Compare to the other movies we have seen, as recent as this movie came out, "A Single Spark" has many elements that shows the changes and the development in Korea and in the field of Korean film industry. First, the introduction of the cast is written in Korean, not in Chinese characters. Second, the color in the film and utilizing black and white to flash back to the past to focus on Tae-il's story is striking advantage. Third, ellipse between the time is much more smooth (the music also helps to bridge the time gap). Finally, the movie is not only to entertain or make a statement, but for recording and reminding a historical figure to people. To me, the movie had the most successful effect introducing the storyline.
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ReplyDeleteThe director of the film, A Single Spark, used flashbacks in a powerful manner to retell the story of Jeon Taeil. Trotting back and forth from black and white to color scenes was creatively put together in order to form the storyline of a powerful social issue. The movie also innovatively connects Mr. Kim Youngsoo's life with the biography of Jeon Taeil through its cinematography. In one particular scene, we see Kim Youngsoo looking afar as if he is overlooking a far away path. Then, the shot immediately takes us to a black and white scene to Jeon Taeil walking along a long curvy path. The cut to a colored scene of Kim Youngsoo abruptly changing to a black and white Jeon Taeil portrays the long and painful path of hope, freedom, and human rights that both protagonists experience. Although a simple detail, the film was attentive to portraying similar hardships and connecting the lives of Kim Youngsoo and Jeon Taeil through editing of shots.
ReplyDelete“A Single Spark” exposed the lives of particularly two men and their vision to help bring labor rights and start the labor movement in Korea, specifically trying to bring change to the child laborers working in the clothing industry. Juxtaposed were the lives of these two men, the past and gone presented through black and white and the present living in the life of color. This decision to merge both old and new technology together was ingenious as it presented the viewer with a clearly discernable grasp on time. There were multiple uses of foreshadowing, which seemed much more natural and free-flowing, compared to the foreshadowing used in “A Stray Bullet”. Another aspect of this film that made it interesting for me was the cohesion of the color of the scene with the coupling of appropriate music. For instance, a wide camera shot of the initial introduction of the sweatshop revealed dimly lit hallways, presenting multiple blue hues of color. Coupled with the prevalent blue of the scene was the procession of low and melancholy music. For these reasons, it seems that Park Kwang-su has created a much more modern film while still being able to focus on issues that were important at the time the film was released.
ReplyDeleteThe film starts out with the student protests and already in this first scene the theme of the movie is shown. In this era of modernization and industrial growth a lot of people had a lot to complain about, especially students being educated and taught that what is going on my not be right. That is in part why I liked the opening scene, it was a way to introduce what this movie was mainly going to be about. I also noted the transition between the past and the present was very cleverly done, especially the scene of the present where he is sitting on the bus and the camera pans to the bus window where it is night outside, then pans back to the person sitting down, it then becomes Tae il, this in a way is mirroring and connecting their lives. Another thing I noticed that was very interesting was the use of camera shots that portrayed the life of the man with the glasses. In many shots he is hiding into shadows, and blending into the darkness trying very hard to not be seen. This also portrays the way he is living his life as well, in hiding and always having to hide himself and not cause any attention. The movie overall showed the struggle for equal working labors and the hardships that these people had to go through.
ReplyDeleteDirector Park Kwang-su plays extensively with shadow and light throughout his film, A Single Spark. Consistently, scenes are shrouded in darkness except for one limited area of light. Certainly one of the most notable scenes using this technique are the scenes with the lighters; focus is then centralized on the flame, which is accentuated by the slow-motion with which it is lit and manipulated by the figure in the scene. Additionally, light often streams out from a doorway serving as a frame inside a frame, while the rest of the space remains dark. Furthermore, faces were often hidden fully or partially in shadow, covered completely (by a newspaper, umbrella, etc), blurred, or not shown. The widespread usage of shadow, darkness, and high contrast adds to the weight and heaviness of the film’s content; it draws out the anguish of the laborers and adds power to A Single Spark’s moving depiction of torturous labor conditions and the seemingly hopeless fight for justice and humane treatment for workers.
ReplyDeleteA lighter, to a book. What use is a book of order and justice when its contents do not reflect reality? What use are laws when people suffer regardless? The traditional Korean drums, music, samulnori instruments in conjunction with labor protests speak of Korea’s “han” and the necessity to seek a truly decolonized Korea, one in which Koreans support Koreans with Korea’s independent identity, struggles, and ideas. Although Korea is no longer a colony, its situation is even worse, for it is no longer an alien enemy that perpetrates injustice against the Korean people but a group of elite who are Korean themselves. Korea under Park Chung-hee is socioeconomically, ideologically, and culturally divided. When the bourgeoisie spit out words such as “stop being lazy and make money” to those like Jeon Tae-il who must toil against life, the situation seems hopeless. It is not laziness that accords destitution. Rather, poverty rises from the Park era’s societal injustices that consistently target the poor while rewarding the rich. Blue lighting, dark spaces, dark shapes all characterize not only the oppression under Park Chung-hee but also the resisting forces that may hide for a while but will inevitably strike out in time. Yong-su, back in time, secretly watches the children being exploited in textiles factories that characterize a Korea industrialized and displaced. Those eyes that become part of the dark blue surroundings prove the resilient thought and spirit of those who are repressed – even as protestors are beaten down, the world goes on watching, remembering, never forgetting, the injustices committed against one’s own people. The responsibility of those fortunate enough to be educated in the role they should play in society is one that must be and is continually questioned throughout “A Single Spark.” This true story of Jeon Tae-il epitomizes the “han” at Korea’s heart.
ReplyDeleteThe style in which Director Park Kwang-Su shot “A Single Spark” appeals to the viewer’s emotions. I have seen several movies in which two time periods were put together to make one movie. However, this is the first time I have seen the specific method in which a character from one time period is seen in the other time period. The transitions in which Jeon Tae-Il was depicted in the 1990s for a few moments or when Kim Yong-Su was seen traveling back into the 1970s portrays how equally passionate they were about workers’ rights in the labor force and how their thoughts were so similar. They seemed to almost have walked in each other’s shoes. Another technique that was very creative was the scenes of the two umbrella boys. One, who was Jeon Tae- Il in the earlier time period and the other who was a random little boy in the 1990s whom Kim Yong-Su encounters face to face. The way Yong-Su looks into the little boy’s face was as if the little boy was himself Tae-Il. Finally, the very first shot where a man is seen lighting a book on fire with a lighter is the same exact shot as one of the very last ones where Tae-Il sacrifices himself on behalf of what he has been fighting for. The only difference is the latter is extended to the point that we can see why we were left hanging after the first shot. Where we once could not see who it was or what the point of lighting the book on fire was, we could finally put the pieces together. Putting the scenes together in this exact way made the message of the entire movie so much more powerful and nearly heart wrenching. If it were not for these specific approaches in which Director Park shot the movie, the message would have been completely different and not as compelling.
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ReplyDeleteThe last scene in "A Single Spark" shows the fading of black&white into color when one of the main characaters (Jeon Taeil) lights himself on fire and sacrafices himself to make a statement against the lack of human rights. It is mostly through the other main character, Yong-su, writing a biography of Jeon Taeil that the spectator experiences color and the modern world, which hasn't changed much compared to Jeon Taeil's day because society still practiced censorship by way of physically maintaining the masses. The interplay between color and black&white sequences emphasizes the time difference between the Yong-su (living in the 90s) and Jeon Taeil (the 70s). Although they are separated by decades, the lives they lead are not much different from each other's because they both wind up doing something taboo and sacrificing a part of their lives to doing what they believe is worthwhile. All in all, the last scene shifting into color suggests that Jeon Taeil's world and Yong-su's world collide in ideology. Also, the longetivity of Jeon Taeil's extremes and his legacy fades into the present day and continues to influence people.
ReplyDeleteWith the contrast of black and white and color scenes, this movie made me feel and re-think a lot of things. First of all, this contrast has its own meaning of comparison between previous and later modern Korea societies. Even though time flew between 2 eras, it was so sad that there were only few changes in people’s lives. Even though the individual recognition in later Korean society in the movie about labor had become much better than Tail’s generation (I could feel this with the organization of labor union), the society seldom or never changed. It was conservative and the government was still afraid of disclosure of their faults. Also, this contrast is meaningful in the sense that 2 similar people’s lives are shown in the movie. Both Young-soo in color scene and Tail in black and white scene tried to change the society with their selves-sacrifices. Their trials can seem just trivial things. As far as, I am concerned, however, with those efforts having been accumulated for a long time, Korean society has been able to be developed significantly. As I said above, this movie is special in that unlike other movies, dealing just improper love or reflecting the phase of the times, it points out the political problems which are highly related with our lives in a person.
ReplyDeleteA scene that struck me in this film was when Jeon Tae-il tries to sell an umbrella to a woman on a rainy day, only to be insulted and have his umbrella thrown onto the street. In a sense, the rain is a symbol of the abuse and oppression faced by the sweat-shop workers from their employers. The umbrella can be seen as the labor laws that are supposed to protect the workers from exploitation and abuse. And the lady that threw away the umbrella can be seen as the employer who denies his workers of their rights for fair working conditions. This scenario lays down the foundation for Jeon Tae-il's long-lasting legacy for years to come. His ultimate sacrifice contributed towards public awareness of issues regarding worker's rights and unfair working conditions in Korean sweatshops, which ultimately lead up towards the formation of labor unions in Korea.
ReplyDeleteThe most memorable technique in the film was the change of the time. The movie smoothly made the time change by placing the characters from different time period in the same place and simply changing the color. This technique also showed that the death of Jun Tae Il influenced significant number of people by having Yong Su following the path of Jun Tae Il. Moreover, the camera was motly placed outside the house for Yong Su to make people think that Yong Su is being watched and is hiding.
ReplyDeleteAs “Stray Bullet” showed a hardship in South Korea after 6.25, but 70’s still needed to develop country more. People worked for living but factory owner and labor did not getting equal amount of income and only labor worked more for factory. “A Single Spark” made in black and color scenes, black for 70’s and color for 90’s. Three people, Jeom Soon, Young Soo, and Jeon Taeil fought for law vs. reality. They hatred about labor’s rights and they wanted to change the fact about how country goes under the government ruling not by citizen’s right. A scene Young Soo watched the news at restaurant and asked for turning off the television showed his hatred about powerful ruling. Young Soo and Jeom Soon lived in color generation but he described her as Jeon Taeil. She had less work time than Taeil but no rights. She applied a bandage to her stomach to hide her pregnancy and factory gave pressure when she made a labor union. Before Jeom Taeil died, he said ‘ a new life might be certainly across the darkness.’ In the movie, people holding the book, Jeon Taeil’s book (his life and death). His death closed unfair labor’s right but the government needed to prevent another person’s death and Young Soo and Jeom Soon’s life showed that labor still need help from outside.
ReplyDeleteIn film, "A Single Spark", Park goes back and forth between two time periods, one year 1975 and the other appearing to be in the mid-1990s. In order to distinguish these two time periods, Park puts the happenings of 1975 in black and white and the other in color. The use of black and white not only symbolizes the fact that the story is taking place at an earlier time period but also seems to imply the fact that 1975 was a darker period. But in fact, things are not so bright in the latter time period as the main character is on pursuit and his wife is beaten for participating in labor union. When things are looking bad and dark, the color world meets the black and white as Jeon Tae-il appears in Kim Young-soo's house. Kim doesn't see much hope around him. But once his book is finished, the black and white world meets the colored world. The flame on Jeon in the last scene provides color and light to the black and white world. Jeon's sacrifice and especially Jeon's smile as he holds his autobiography in his hand gives a sense of new hope not only to the people in 1975 but also for those in 1990s, a hope towards a nation of better working conditions.
ReplyDeleteIn this movie the first thing that struck me was how blue everything was. Every scene from the 1990's had some kind of blue in it and most of the scenes were entirely blue, in the objects, lighting, clothing, etc. Combine this with the dark long shadows used throughout and they combine for a great effect giving the movie its cold, dreary, industrial feel. This is done to reflect the feeling of hopelessness cause by being a 'free' country that has tried hard to move towards modernization and democracy, yet still must deal with dictators on a daily basis in the for of factory owners.
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ReplyDeleteJun Tae Il, the innocent, naive boy tells us what courage really means. For his workspace's mprovement, he sets himself on the fire as he shouts out "We are not machines!" This film has two time zones; Jun Tae Il's time of 1970s in black and white and Kim Young Soo's time of 1990s in color. However, when Jun is on fire walking towards the police, for the first time his screen is in color, which represents the moment of change, the "new" era. In the last scene, Kim Young Soo sees Jun Tae Il passing by with his book, telling us that how Jun's sacrifice made such change; the labors conforming the fatory's poor policies like fools have all become "Jun Tae Il" themselves.
ReplyDeleteWhat I noticed the most in this film was the use of color. At first, the color changes between the scenes merely seemed as an aesthetic function to separate the flashbacks from the present events. However, later on this technique became rather metaphoric when Tae-il burned himself on fire at the end of the film. Even though it had occurred in the past, this scene was played in color to represent the aliveness of a past event. I feel that Park Kwang-soo took main advantage of this technique to deliver sways of emotion to the audience.
ReplyDeleteThe one thing I really liked about this film was the introduction and conclusion where Tae Il lights the book on fire but it's not until the end we see the outcome. Also, I liked how the two stories finally come together in the last scene where Tae Il and Yongsu "meet". One of my favorite scenes in the movie was where Tae Il was running down the road, sirens roaring, and I felt like it symbolized the long journey he still had to endure for making his impact on the laboring world. Lastly, I noticed how the camera was more static than dynamic and that this effect led to a more dramatic feel and also gave the viewers a chance to look at the environment as well as the characters.
ReplyDeleteThere are several things about the film that stood out for me.
ReplyDeleteFirst, there was the prevalence of the color blue (during the "modern day" parts of the movie). When we first meet Yong-su and his wife(?), it is early morning, and the entire screen has a distinct blue shade. Then, in almost every scene afterwards, there is something noticeably blue on screen; the wife's blue umbrella, the blue jeans on the street, Yong-su's shirt, the hue of the evening... So what does this blue tell us? We normally think of "blue" as being synonymous with depression, sadness, and hopelessness. Which, in a way, fits the film. But more than that, I think of blue as the color of democracy and freedom. (I'm not quite sure why, off the top of my head.) Blue has also been traditionally one of the colors that represent Korea. So, in a sense, the color blue seems to explain to the audience that this is a film that strives to identify Korea, especially the republic of Korea... if that made any sense.
Moving on to a more coherent point...
There are many parallels between the "color" generation of Yong-su and the black-and-white generation of Jeon Tae-Il. One parallel, arguably, is that (loosely speaking) Yong-su works for the laborers just as Tae-Il did, fighting for and passing on labor laws and fair treatment of factory workers. This particular parallel was shown in two specific and similar shots in the film. The first shot involved Yong-su climbing up the stairs, towards the camera, his face hidden by the bright backlight(?). The second shot involved Tae-Il walking down the stairs,away from the camera, his form again nothing but a dark silhouette against a bright backdrop. These two shots are similar and striking, and neither of them show the faces of the character in the shot. In a way, this makes both characters anonymous, and also synonymous/interchangeable with each other.
The scene that really stuck in my memory was a fairly far, still shot of Young Soo. Here we see he is surrounded by buildings, but is fairly isolated besides a few cyclists whom Young Soo pays no attention to. Though the shot is too far away to detect the emotion present on Young Soo's face, it is clear by his lack of motion and his constant gaze on the ground that he feels a sense of hopelessness. This is further perpetuated by how insignificant he appears in comparison to the large buildings surrounding him. This theme of hopelessness is fairly prevalent throughout the movie. We see that parallels are drawn between the two time periods by virtually seamless transitions from black and white to color in the middle of sequences. While this feeling dominates virtually the entire movie, at the end Young Soo sees a kid walking down the street with a book with Tae Il's face on the cover. This along with the uplifting music being played in the background does leave the audience with a sense of hope and change for the future.
ReplyDeleteA Single Spark illustrates the sufferings of industry laborers through the eyes of Jun-tae Il and the teacher. Although they are two different characters living in different time period, it is interesting to see how the two characters feel like a single person, who strives to achieve reforms for the workers and to better their lives as protected human beings. The smooth transition between the two different time periods- from the teacher’s scenes, which is in color, to Jun-tae Il’s scenes, which is in black and white- helps to draw out the similarities between the two characters. They have common ideas, emotional sufferings, goals, and dedication. Viewers get to learn and understand one character from the other. Noticeable features of this film are the frame within the frame (teacher behind the windows to show his separation from Jungsook and reformers) and the high angle shots. Rather than to focus on the characters, individual shot focuses more on the delineation of the space and the environment the characters are in: audiences become well acquainted with the space. Also, the individual scene, like a photo shot, holds aesthetic beauty. (the town, mountains, and the bystreet. Esp. composition wise)
ReplyDelete“A Single Spark” was a very political movie, where the directors main concentration was on the labor market laws and how authorities would not enforce these laws although they knew what was going on with these child labor markets. This movie had a very mellow and depressing feel to it, especially with the background music and the shadows that added to the darkness of this film. For example, this movie had a lot of scenes where it showed the main character fading into the shadows of the background so it looked as if he just disappeared from that shot. I also liked how the movie was showing two people’s lives…the main characters in the film were from different generations yet they shared the same beliefs and was trying to solve the same problems that were never fixed or even acknowledged by law enforcements in Korea. It was almost as if the main characters were one character because they shared so many same beliefs.
ReplyDeleteAfter watching the film, "A Single Spark", I learned and realized what happened and what's still happening in South Korea with labor. Due to the darkness in lighting, I could feel depression and sadness. Also, in this film, when Tae-il comes out in black and Young-soo comes out in color, but later when Tae-il burns himself, he appears in color to show the change and state a new generation is coming. I believe that Tae-il had a lot of affects in Korean society.
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ReplyDelete“A Single Spark” depicts with realism about sensitive social issue of labor law. Also, viewers can vividly observe the life of people and government condition in 70s and mid 90s and each character takes one’s role seriously. The film shows the past scenes with black and white and the present with color. Whenever scenes change into past from present, Young-Soo compares his life with Jeon Tae-il’s life and looks for the solution by writing about Jeon. The books about labor law and Jeon Tae-il are the message of this movie. Through burning himself to death with the labor law book, Tae-il was able to publicize the bad condition of labor system and environment which he could not fix anything by restrictions of the government, and employers of factories. The ending part shows with Tae-il’s smile that his sacrifice was worth and gave hope for others.
ReplyDelete"A Single Spark" is a film that successfully presents the life of Jeon Taeil without aestheticizing or glamorizing the hardships of his life as well the brutal conditions Korean laborers endured in the 70s. When anything is captured on film the subject is instantly glamorized; each meticulously composed frame is attractive and worth our attention for further analyzation. A lot of times I feel that a director's personal aesthetic and camerawork can be distracting and overwhelming with little or no relevance to the film itself. However I really felt that Park Kwang-su approached this film with great respect and thus was cautious to utilize his minimal style in a way that did not make the truth fictitious but at the same time telling a great story.
ReplyDeleteThis motion picture strongly conveys Korea’s increase in industrialization and unfair employee treatment under 박청히’s regime. The most vivid and emotional shots of this film took place in the cramped and suffocating space of the tailoring factory. One can capture the very essence of the pain and turmoil these factory workers went through simply from the scenes captured by the camera in this confined space. Watching this film, I noticed that most of my sympathy and connections with the characters were enhanced by the director’s use of light and imagery of dirt roads. There are a number of times throughout the film that a widescreen shot of a dirt, empty road was used; I translated these scenes to convey the “lost” and maybe even helpless emotions of the characters. They are endless dirt paths with no end or final destination to reach; rather, the characters just travel aimlessly with vague goals or plans. Furthermore, the use of lighting was a very significant element of the film; there were many scenes where the character would walk into a darkened space from a well-lit street. This entrance into a darker and more gloomy confinement parallels the barriers and little possibly of success that the protestors constantly faced.
ReplyDeleteAs i watched the movie, i really liked how the director used black and white to show that the time was different from the character that was writing the book. I realize that even with color the audience would be able to tell when is when, but the black and white gave the scenes a certain feel to it as if the audience is reminiscing as well. Also when the only time that 전태일 was shown in color is when he was running on fire. I felt that the camera angles in the factory made it feel as if the audience was part of the movement. The camera angels seemed as if we were actually there listening to what 전태일 was saying and we were part of the factory itself.
ReplyDeleteThe film "A Single Spark" captures the struggles of the labor activist movement in Korea. Immediately, the audience gets a sense of where this movie is headed as the opening scene depicts hundreds of protesters in the streets in slow motion as slow somber music is played in the background. This combination of visual and audio appeal invokes a sense of heroism that is about to take place. Yong-Su is an interesting character as well. Scenes involving Yong-Su typically consisted of little to no dialog at all. Often times the filmmaker would just show Yong-Su walking and observing his surroundings (visiting the sweat shop, train station where Yong Su sees Jung-Soon,etc).This seems to characterize Yong Su as an introvert, keeping troubles and worries to himself. Furthermore, the fact that he is constantly in hiding and running away from authorities portrays a sense of helplessness in his character reflecting a "struggling writer." As an audience, although we want to see Yong-Su achieve his goal of retelling Tae's story, we can't help but feel sorry for him as he puts so much devotion into his book that he often forgets that he has his own life to live(finding a stable home, caring for his future baby, taking care of his wife).
ReplyDeleteThe film "A Single Spark" portrays the hardships that the workers faced in 1970s and the social atmosphere in 1990s. Black and white technique is used to differentiate 1970s from 1990s and it effectiely conveys a sense of desperation and grief that the people felt during 1970s to the audience. Transitions between 1970s and 1990s scenes are also very smooth so the audience can hardly lose track of what is going on. The story itself is very moving and in addition, the realism in the film forces the audience to empathize.It is a great movie overall.
ReplyDeleteThe two stories in this movie are separated by the use of colors for Yongsu's story black and white for Tae-il's story. At first the separation is distinct, but as time goes on the two characters are increasingly shown in the same locations and the two are blended more and more smoothly. Eventually Tae-il's fire is shown in color, and he is shown physically in the same location as Yongsu. An interesting aspect of this use of color was how Jeon Tae-il's story was shown in black and white until the climax of his efforts: when he set himself on fire. His efforts made a drastic change in working conditions and brought more attention to the problems that he was fighting for, and I feel that that's the reason the final scenes of his story were shown in color. Similarly, Yongsu was constantly shown in the shadows of the old factories and his own home and rarely shown in broad daylight. However, as the movie goes on, he is shown more and more outside during the day, and at the end he is pleasantly sitting outside in the open, watching people talk about the book he published. The use of colors also highlighted how Jeon Tae-il's efforts still affect the people of present day; although the rest of his life was isolated from the viewer and Yong-su by being portrayed in black and white, his final efforts with fire are suddenly brought much closer to the viewer by being shown in color, which brings the event more into modern times. The fact that that scene is in color suddenly makes it seem much more recent and much more familiar, and makes it an event that affects many people even now.
ReplyDeleteAlthough "A Single Spark" is in a way an antique in Korean cinema, it made strides as a modern depiction of social struggles in Korean society. The tone of the movie was a heavy depression one, where the atmosphere seemed gloomy, and it rained quite often. The rain symbolized the dark, depressing environment where the characters lived in. One scene in particular that had a lasting impression was when Tae Il was coming out of the building after a meeting with the inspector, where a woman comes out and then goes back into the building to seek haven from the rain. Yet, Tae Il goes into the rain, without his umbrella, in a black and white scene. His umbrellas that he sold in the beginning symbolized his shelter and roof, a way to make money. But, when he left that world, he was thrust into a more darker world of abuse. Yong Su, in the future, was in a way a reincarnation of Tae Il, even walking in the rain without an umbrella, when the young boy tried to sell him one. He too, left the umbrella, to seek a conclusion to the mess and disorder of the present. He even had to keep himself away from his pregnant wife, to continue his struggle and fight. Both characters, were running away from hardships brought on by the outside, but still face those same hardships in the end, in a way that was not directly confrontational. Both were being diplomatic in their approaches, and both cared too much for what they believed in, that they continued their journeys. One can strike the parallels between the two characters. Yet, since society and culture was both different in the timelines, the end conclusion for both were different, yet the struggles were similar.
ReplyDeleteThe English title of this movie, "A Single Spark," subtly gives the mood of this movie. The main image of this movie is the contrast of hotness and coldness, shown by the flame--spark--and ice-blue toned screens. First, at the beginning of the movie, Tae-il lights the lighter and put the flame on a book. Then, when some people gathered for 바보회 and talked about the reality of laborers around the campfire, the flame blazes up high as a man shouted "Most foolish of among the fools, Jeon Tae-il." The last scene is a repetition of the first scene, which clearly was a hint of the ending: Tae-il himself bursting into flame. He becoming a flame might have been "a single spark" to cause a big flame in Korea. Fire and the color red generally symbolize bravery, passion, struggle, and et cetera. However, the second timeline--yongsu's story--is mostly dominated by ice-blue toned scenes, which is somewhat ironical because yongsu is the one who keeps the track on Tae-il's flaming life. Maybe that can be a symbolization of the reality in Korea that Tae-il's sacrifice could not do that much to change the country, or it can also be an intentional color contrast to make Tae-il's flame shine more by representing the scenes in a cold atmosphere.
ReplyDeleteIn A Single Spark, Park Kwang Su utilizes 'color' to illustrate two different eras (1970s and 1990s) through characterization of Tae Il and the man with glasses. Kwang Su goes back and forth between the story of the man and the story of Tae Il, which is seen in black and white. He contrasts two stories using color to not only differentiate differing life conditions in those eras (1990s: color was used since living improved since 1970s), but also to create differing moods for those eras- 1970s: black and white convey a sense of depression and grief; 1990s: colors, especially blue, convey a sense of hope, improvement, and life. Moreover, towards the end of the movie, Park uses color on Tae Il when he was lit up on fire. He does so to connect two storylines and to imply that Tae Il's fiery spirit and dedications did not go in vain. Park also ends the movie with a snapshot of the man with glasses and Tae Il staring back at each other to demonstrate their parallel lives that sought for a common goal, labor rights.
ReplyDeleteIt is important to understand the state at which South Korea was under. This was the beginning of the new era of industrialization in S. Korea; the beginning of the fastest developing country in the world. This film not only illustrates the industrial growth of the nation, but social and civil growth as well. The emergence of human rights riots and liberation radiate in waves across the nation from educated college students to the poor sweat shop-type labor force. 전태일's passion demonstrates the intensity of the growth and hope that Korea showed at the time. Furthermore, the release of Jungsoon from jail shed further hope for the desperate situation in Korea. Lastly, the scene of the burning of Kim Tae Il shows the martyrdom spirit of Korea when there seemed to be no home and only corruption. It was a very moving and powerful scene, and this movie was surely useful in the advancement of Korea in its developmental stage.
ReplyDeleteDirector Park Kwang Su in this film portrays Jeon Tae il's struggles in life to symbolize the labor movement in Korea in the 1970's. Tae il's struggles symbolize the despair felt by the workers in this era as well as the hardships of labor they had to endure. The color scheme Park uses not only represents the two time periods (1970's and 1990's), but also symbolizes the emotions felt by the workers in the differing periods. The black and white color scheme represents the hopelessness of improvements felt by the workers in the 1970's whereas the 1990's color scheme represents a new hope for a brighter future. Another technique used in this film is the still photography at the end to emphasize the important connection Younsoo has with Tae-il with Youngsoo facing similar struggles and obstacles that Tae-il had to face. The last photo with them making eye contact signifies their parallel lives and how Tae-il's life story along with his death was not pointless because it serves as an inspiration for Youngsoo to fight for the same cause.
ReplyDeleteThis movie has a strong editting; The use of color, elaborate juxtapositions of the past and present. By using color for present and black and white for the past, the director clearly difines the different period. However, the editting of the scenes become crucial. The director follows the main character's thought or recollection of his friend and collage them. For example, he thinks his friend when watching a crowded factory, a building that his friend fought for the rights of labor. Even a small thing like rain, became a connector to the past. The tracking camera technique also made the viewer as an observer like he did, and sometimes zooming in the facial expressions without speaking spoke louder than words.
ReplyDeleteThe English title of this film, "A Single Spark", is not exactly translated from the Korean title "아름다운 청년 전태일". I prefer the English title, because it has more significant implication and it suits better with the story. Tae-il's struggle (and death) to improve the working condition according to the Labor Law influenced others as a signle spark spreads out. Also, it was interesting to see how Tae-il's era and Yong-su's era technically overlapped. The director significantly made a difference between two eras to be shown in black-and-white scenes and color scenes. A "knock", a "window" and "Tae-il's ghost(?)" functioned to develop the scenes from Tae-il's era to Yong-su's era or vice versa. Also, when Yong-su went to see Tae-il's mother to hear the stories about Tae-il, the voice of Tae-il's mother function as a narrator. When she told how Tae-il was nice and thoughtful to his co-workers, the related scenes were shown in fragments (Tae-il, co-workers, poolppang, etc.), not every single details. These formats of the film showed that how Tae-il Jeon was brave and how much he influenced and motivated Yong-su.
ReplyDeleteThe movie "a single spark" shows South Korean workers in Pyung-hwa market who worked as slave. This movie designed both black - white and color to show Jeon Tae-il's era and Kim Youngsoo's era. As it seems, the purpose of this movie was for rememberence of Jeon Tae-il's revolution and terrible working environment during 1970s. After Tae-il's death, people like Kim Youngsoo followed Tae-il's idea and fought for better working environment. The story itself was good enough to drew worker's life in 1970s but one thing I interests about this movie was Jeon Tae-il's movement reminds me about the comment "if you try, you can do it"
ReplyDeleteThe director Park-Kwang-Su in the film "A single Spark" projects the harsh working onditions during his time period. Park-Kwang Su utilizes variety of color techniques and clearly uses the camera angles from the character Yong-Su's point of view to demonstrate a full biography of the main character Jeon Tae-II. Labour Laws were not as strictly enforced as our current society. Many workers in the past decade has worked for so many hours by beng paid below minimum wage. All of the scenes inside the factory is filmed as black and white, where all the workers did not have the rights to the Labour Laws. It is very dim, and Park-Kwang Su overlaps the workers voices with the noise of the machines inside the factory. In doing so, it implies that the workers are clearly represented as living machines who cannnot voice their own opinions. However, towards the last part of the film, the workers are filmed in color outside the factory. This may be done to show a sens of livelienss and to have them voice their rights to comply with the Labour Laws. When Jeon Tae-II lights himself on fire, that is when he receives the most attention from the public. This significant scene is the only scene where the camera is solely focused on him. As this main character is running through the crowd, he states "We are not machines, comply with Lanour Laws". This scene depicts Jeon-Tae II's accomplishment in voicing his opinion to the public about his dissatisfaction and the desire to change the condition of the Labour Laws at this time period.
ReplyDeleteThis movie depicts laborers conditions of 1970S in Korea. In that time, Korea was experiencing rapid development of economy and laborers was sacrificed without their intention. They did not really have rights to be protected as a normal citizens. They worked almost whole hours in almost every days with few wages. Tae-il Jeon burned himself to the death to shout to the world that laborers had unfair righs.
ReplyDeleteThe interesting thing in the movie is that it is black color movie when the movie is describing Tae-il Jeon's life. However when he burns himself to the death, it is not black color movie anymore. In my opinion, the director makes this scene colored because Tae-il's sacrificing brings Korea a big change and this scene alludes it.
According to Choi Chungmoo in "The Minjung Culture Movement," the foundation of the minjung movement is the popular cultural commonality the movement strives to emphasize. The hope is to unify Koreans regardless of their socio-economic status through art forms like madang. This would serve as a form of resistance which is perpetuated and represented by the symbolism of mask-dance. Although, madang provided escapism it was only temporary, and Choi notes that "symbolic protest was no longer effective" in regards to "transforming" society. Madang reminds me of Hollywood's 1930's films and their purpose was to keep people entertained in a time of war. It provided escapism but only temporarily so, because eventually the war opened up new topics and genres which are later reflected in film. Which shows that whatever content or ideas may seem popular at the time will not last given to other risingly popular ideologies.
ReplyDeletePark Kwang-su's "A Single Spark" portrays the difficulties the Korean society faced during the rapid industrialization. It alternates between the story of Jeon Tae-il and Kim Yong-su, using black-and-white and color, respectively. This was done to show the difference in time, and helps viewers understand the rapid time changes and the anti-chronological order of the story. However, it is interesting to see that at the end of the film, Jeon's suicide scene is shown in color. This was to show that although it did happen in the past, it was not just an event that lasted during that short time, but a memorable event that affected history even to Kim's time (and beyond). Although the title is different in Korean, the last scene shows how the 'single spark' of Jeon had really impacted our society, even until the modern days.
ReplyDeletePark Kwang-Su's "A Single Spark" is a comment upon the long standing struggle of workers to unionize and establish workers' rights in a quickly industrializing South Korea. The plot focuses on a writer and his subject, Kim Young-Soo and Jeon Tae-Il, respectively. Jeon's story is represented by the black and white scenes in the film while Kim's story is in color. While that structure seems to separate the two characters, we see that the parallels between the two characters and their stories are strong and unmistakable. Kim and Jeon are trying to reach their goals with the odds stacked against them. Though Jeon dies, he is offered closure in the final scene of the film, where we find out that Kim was successful in publishing Jeon's biography. Kim gets his own closure in the scene where Jeon dies by self-immolation. Jeon's constantly black and white scenes switch to color, to represent that Kim had overcome 'the darkness of Jeon Tae-Il's death' and in turn, triumphed over his own struggle to complete the biography. The use of color to represent time jumps in the film was highly effective in forcing the viewer to reconsider Jeon Tae-Il's struggle and death in the contemporary political arena.
ReplyDeleteThe movie "A Single Spark" by Park Kwang Su is set in a time when South Korea was ruled by a military force and was in a turmoil. In this film the director is accusing the law system that is failing to protect the due workers. The single unique aspect of "A Single Spark" is on its storytelling technique. The movie alternates frequently between a aclor film and the Black/white film each indicating a different time period; one in present and the other set in the past when Jun-Tae-il the student leader of the labor movement. The overlapping is not choppy at all. It is very smoothly overlapped. To prevent the abrupt overlapping the director is careful to change the senes only when it is happening at the same place or at least in similar situation. This continuous overlapping of the two time period is intended by the director is mirroring the present South Korea's situation with that of the past. Eventually to show that there is not much change in the social system although the outward appearance has changed dramatically. Through out the movie the directer repeates the massage that he hopes to see the same spirit and the same "Spart" of Jun Tae-il in today's Korea.The last scene of the movie is very symbolic/strong and beautifully put the main massagel. In the last moment of the Single Spark camera shows the bacck of a young man walking along the busy street with the book about Jun Tae-il's legacy and when he turns it is revealed that the man was Jun Tae-il himself.
ReplyDeleteAs I saw the title of this movie, I recognized the name, Chon Tae-Il right away. I remember that Chon TaeIl has been quite a significant name in Korean History. I imagined burning himself when I learned about him in the history class so I could not forget his name. However, I was not sure whom and what he was fighting for but it has been clear after watching " A Single Spark." I enjoyed dividing two different time periods by two different colors of the scenes,B/W and color. This effect was very helpful to follow the entire movie easily even though both periods were little old to be familiar with me. Besides, many of Korean movies like "A Single Spark" have narrative effects unlike western movies and I feel like being a part of the movie and the charactor is telling me a story.
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