Sovereign Violence : Ethics and South Korean Cinema in the New Millennium

South Korea is home to one of the most vibrant film industries in the world today, producing movies for a strong domestic market that are also drawing the attention of audiences worldwide. This book presents a comprehensive analysis of some of the most well-known and incendiary South Korean films of the millennial decade from nine major directors. Building his analysis on contemporary film theory and philosophy, as well as interviews and other primary sources, Steve Choe makes a case that these often violent films pose urgent ethical dilemmas central to life in the age of neoliberal globalization. While making reference to dozens of films from the first decade of the twenty-first century, 'Sovereign Violence' performs sustained, comprehensive readings of twenty-one of the most well-known contemporary South Korean films directed by eight auteurs: Hong Sang-soo, Im Sang-soo, Gok and Sun Kim, Kim Ji-woon, Kim Ki-duk, Lee Chang-dong, and Park Chan-wook. Drawing from contemporary film theory and philosophy, as well as reviews, filmmaker interviews, and other primary sources, Sovereign Violence argues that their often violent, contentious films pose urgent ethical dilemmas around life in the age of neoliberal globalization and subsequently point toward new modes of social existence Table of Contents Acknowledgments Introduction 1. Unredeemable Images 2. Love Your Enemies 3. Serial Sexualities and Accidental Desires 4. The Face and Hospitality 5. Forgiving the Unforgivable 6. Global Cinema in the Age of Posthumanity Conclusion: Afterlives of Sovereign Violence Notes Bibliography Index This book presents a comprehensive analysis of the work of twenty-one of the most well-known South Korean films of the twenty-first century from eight major directors.