Bulgasari Explained

Bulgasari
Native Name:
Child:yes
Hide:no
Header:none
Hanja:불가사리
Rr:Bulgasali
Director:Kim Myeong-je
Producer:Cho Yong-jin
Screenplay:Woo Beom
Decat:yes
Child:yes
Label1:Adaptation by
Data1:Yun Beom
Cinematography:Kim Yeong-sun
Editing:Kim Myeong-je
Music:Kim Yong-hwan
Studio:Kwang Seong Films[1]
Runtime:110 minutes
Country:South Korea[2]
Language:Korean
Budget:₩3.5 million[3]

Bulgasari at the End of Songdo, or simply Bulgasari, is a lost 1962 South Korean kaiju film[4] directed and edited by Kim Myeong-je. Produced by Kwang Seong Films,[1] it was the first monster movie to be made in South Korea,[5] as well as the first Korean film to use special effects.[6] It stars Choi Moo-ryong as Nam Hyeong / Bulgasari alongside Um Aing-ran, Gang Mi-ae, Kim Dong-won, and Lee Up-dong. In the film, a martial artist is resurrected as an iron-eating monster to exact revenge on those who murdered him.

Bulgasari was reported to have begun production on November 26, 1961. It was inspired by the legendary Korean monster of the same name and heavily influenced by Godzilla (1954). On an approximately ₩3.5 million budget,[3] Bulgasari began principal photography on February 28, 1962, and wrapped on March 24.

Bulgasari premiered at the in Seoul on December 1, 1962. The film received negative reviews from critics, especially because of its unconvincing special effects, direction, and acting. Believed to have disappeared shortly after its release, the film is considered a significant feature in the history of South Korean cinema and one of the most sought-after lost kaiju films. Shin Sang-ok directed a 1985 remake of the film during his abduction in North Korea.

Plot

As Bulgasari is considered a lost film, this synopsis is derived from the review featured in the December 7, 1962 issue of The Chosun Ilbo and a summary at the Korean Movie Database.[1] A longer synopsis is featured in the April 1962 issue of Cinefan (p. 130), a pdf of which is also available on the Korean Movie Database.[7]

In feudal Korea, during the late Goryeo Dynasty, an experienced martial artist named Nam Hyeong is slaughtered by traitors. His hatred makes him resurrected as the iron-eating monster, known as Bulgasari, to seek revenge.

Cast

Cast taken from the Korean Movie Database.[1]

Crew

Personnel taken from the Korean Movie Database.[1]

Production

Bulgasari was reported to have begun production on November 26, 1961.[8] The film was inspired by the legendary Korean monster of the same name and heavily influenced by the 1954 kaiju film Godzilla.[2] Principal photography began on February 28, 1962, and wrapped on March 24,[9] on a budget of roughly ₩3.5 million.[3]

Bulgasari was the first South Korean film to use special effects. Two noteworthy special effects sequences caught viewers' attention: a witchcraft performance by the "White Lady" and her ascension into heaven.

Release

Bulgasari was promoted as Korea's first film to use special effects in its "40 year history".[10] It premiered at the in Seoul on December 1, 1962. The Korean Movie Database indicates the Korean Film Archive owns a document printed on March 26, 1963, suggesting a print of the film was made for North Korean screenings, but it is unclear whether it was ever used.

Critical response

Bulgasari was widely panned upon its release due to ineffective special effects and antiquated direction by Kim Myeong-je. At the time, historical films were the only spectacles worth watching in Korea, and this film was dubbed "third-rate entertainment".

A reviewer for The Chosun Ilbo felt its directing method was outdated, and stated Choi Moo-ryong and Um Aing-ran's acting was "not very good", adding: "it adds boredom to the chorus of breathing in every line through the first part." The reviewer also noted that they could see "the strings hanging from the dragon's head" in one scene.

Legacy

Bulgasari is currently one of the most sought-after lost films in the kaiju genre, along with Wasei Kingu Kongu, The Great Buddha Arrival, and The King Kong That Appeared in Edo.[11] It was listed No. 4 on GameRants "8 Lost Films That Need to be Found".

While the film itself is considered lost, the original screenplay is preserved at the Korean Film Archive.[12] However, the screenplay is not accessible by the public.[13]

Remake

See main article: Pulgasari.

Kim Jong Il assigned South Korean filmmaker Shin Sang-ok to direct a remake of the film in 1985, titled Pulgasari.[14] [15]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: The Iron-eating Monster (Bulgasari) . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20221030003352/https://www.kmdb.or.kr/eng/db/kor/detail/movie/K/00803 . October 30, 2022 . October 29, 2022 . . Korean Film Archive.
  2. Web site: Chung Beom . Ham . ko:1960년대 한국 SF 괴수영화와 동북아시아 영화 . 1960s Korean sci-fi monster films and Northeast Asian films . https://repository.hanyang.ac.kr/bitstream/20.500.11754/154937/1/1960년대%20한국%20SF%20괴수영화와%20동북아시아%20영화%20교류⋅관계의%20양상.pdf . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210813082022/https://repository.hanyang.ac.kr/bitstream/20.500.11754/154937/1/1960%eb%85%84%eb%8c%80%20%ed%95%9c%ea%b5%ad%20SF%20%ea%b4%b4%ec%88%98%ec%98%81%ed%99%94%ec%99%80%20%eb%8f%99%eb%b6%81%ec%95%84%ec%8b%9c%ec%95%84%20%ec%98%81%ed%99%94%20%ea%b5%90%eb%a5%98%e2%8b%85%ea%b4%80%ea%b3%84%ec%9d%98%20%ec%96%91%ec%83%81.pdf . August 13, 2021 . October 28, 2022 . . Korean.
  3. Web site: The Iron-eating Monster (Bulgasari). Korean Film Archive. dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20160307145849/http://www.koreafilm.org/english/db_detail_eng.asp?p_dataid=00803. March 7, 2016. October 31, 2022.
  4. Web site: Bottenberg . Rupert . Rupert Bottenberg . Space Monster Wangmagwi . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20220725043546/https://fantasiafestival.com/en/film/space-monster-wangmagwi . July 25, 2022 . July 25, 2022 . .
  5. Web site: Yeongjin . Lee . July 29, 2008 . ko:한국 토종 괴수들이 몰려온다 . Native Korean Monsters Are Coming . http://www.cine21.com/news/view/?mag_id=52373 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210709184818/http://www.cine21.com/news/view/?mag_id=52373 . July 9, 2021 . October 30, 2022 . . Korean.
  6. Web site: Heath . David . September 27, 2022 . 8 Lost Films That Need to be Found . October 28, 2022 . GameRant . en-US.
  7. Web site: ko:씨네팬 1962년 4월호 . https://www.kmdb.or.kr/history/magazine/2762 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20221101202659/https://www.kmdb.or.kr/history/magazine/2762 . November 1, 2022 . September 24, 2023 . Korean Movie Database.
  8. News: February 4, 1962 . ko:61년도 방화 제작 85본 거의가 사극물⋅미개봉도 50여작 . Korean . 85 productions in 1961, including almost 50 historical dramas and unopened works . 4 . The Kyunghyang Shinmun.
  9. News: March 29, 1962 . ko:김명제 감독 �불가사리� . Korean . Director Kim Myung-jae's Bulgasari . 4 . The Dong-A Ilbo.
  10. News: November 30, 1962 . ko:광고 . Advertisements . 8 . The Kyunghyang Shinmun.
  11. Web site: Mack . Andrew . June 2, 2022 . SPACE MONSTER WANGMAGWI: Long Lost Korean Monster Movie Acquired by SRS Cinema . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220617192329/https://screenanarchy.com/2022/06/space-monster-wangmagwi-long-lost-korean-monster-movie-acquired-by-srs-cinema.html . June 17, 2022 . October 28, 2022 . Screen Anarchy.
  12. Web site: ko:불가사리 . Bulgasari . https://www.koreafilm.or.kr/library/search/scenario/DCKO002943 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20221031031221/https://www.koreafilm.or.kr/library/search/scenario/DCKO002943 . October 31, 2022 . October 31, 2022 . . Korean.
  13. Web site: ko:불가사리 - 문헌자료 . Bulgasari - Literature Data . https://www.kmdb.or.kr/db/kor/detail/movie/K/00803/own/document . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20221031031854/https://www.kmdb.or.kr/db/kor/detail/movie/K/00803/own/document . October 31, 2022 . October 31, 2022 . . Korean Film Archive. Korean.
  14. Web site: Do-yeon . Lee . April 29, 2019 . ko:무주산골영화제 개막작은 북한 영화 '불가사리' . The North Korean film Pulgasari is the opening film of the Muju Mountain Film Festival . https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20190429085700005 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20221030040344/https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20190429085700005 . October 30, 2022 . October 30, 2022 . . Korean.
  15. Web site: Wiggins . Brent . October 13, 2022 . Pulgasari: A Look at the North Korean Kaiju Movie . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20221013125909/https://movieweb.com/pulgasari-north-korean-kaiju-movie/ . October 13, 2022 . October 29, 2022 . .

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Bulgasari".

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