JSA - Joint Security Area
Before Oldboy, before The Handmaiden, visionary filmmaker Park Chan-wook helmed this gripping tale of deceit, misunderstanding and the senselessness of war.
Gunfire breaks out in the demilitarised zone between North and South Korea, leaving two North Korean soldiers dead while a wounded South Korean soldier (Lee Byung-hun, The Good, the Bad, the Weird) flees to safety. With the tenuous peace between the two warring nations on a knife-edge, a neutral team of investigators, headed by Swiss Army Major Sophie Jean (Lee Young-ae, Lady Vengeance), is dispatched to question both sides to determine what really happened under cover of darkness out in no-man’s land.
The recipient of multiple accolades, including Best Film at South Korea’s 2001 Grand Bell Awards, JSA – Joint Security Area showcases Park’s iconic style in an embryonic form, and demonstrates that humanity and common purpose can be found in the most unlikely places.
Technical Specifications
Supplements
- New audio commentary by writer and critic Simon Ward
- Isolated music and effects track
- Newly recorded video interview with Asian cinema expert Jasper Sharp
- The JSA Story and Making the Film, two archival featurettes on the film’s production
- About JSA, a series of archival introductions to the film by members of the cast
- Behind the scenes montage
- Opening ceremony footage
- Two music videos: Letter from a Private and Take the Power Back
- Theatrical trailer
- TV spot
- Image gallery
- FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing by Kieran Fisher