Given the explosion of the #MeToo movement in Korea, it was no big surprisethat the novel “Kim Ji-young, Born 1982” and its film adaptation were well receivedby certain audiences. But they also provoked unwelcome sentiments thatpermeate Korean society, the film industry included.
The novel “Kim Ji-young, Born 1982” gave a voice to Korea’s home-grown #MeToo movement in the autumn of 2016. Its dissection of how gender discrimination frustrates Korean women from birth to motherhood resonated across many demographics. At the same time, however, it also unleashed knee-jerk misogyny and criticism. Fast forward three years and the raw dichotomy of reactions remains no less rampant after screenings of the movie adaptation.Despite anti-feminist backlash, the movie version of “Kim Ji-young” debuted as No. 1 at the Korean box office in October 2019. This was unsurprising given the reception to the book, which had sold a million copies by late 2018. That itself was a rare feat: Koreans are not known for being avid readers. And when the book wasn’t bought, it was borrowed; “Kim Ji-young” topped library want lists in 2018 and 2019, according to the National Library of Korea.
The cover page of the novel “Kim Ji-young, Born 1982” byCho Nam-joo, published in 2016 by Mineumsa. Part of a series ofexcellent works by young writers, the novel became a bestseller, sparkingheated debates about feminism. Translated into many languages, thenovel also attracted international attention. © Mineumsa
A Bestseller-Turned-Movie
It took television scriptwriter Cho Nam-joo just two months to write her bestseller. Her storyline chronicled sexism and gender issues – both implicit and explicit – that lurk at home, school, work and in public areas. The book also became a bestseller in China, Japan and Taiwan, and publishing rights were sold to the United States and several European countries.
The lead character Ji-young (a popular female Korean name) does not lay waste to injustices like some Hollywood female protagonists did. She is a 30-something woman who quits her job to stay at home and raise her daughter. But growing increasingly tired of being glued to home, Ji-young recalls that she grew up with many dreams and was recently climbing the career ladder.
Ji-young’s recollections aren’t entirely rosy, though. As a child, her younger brother and male classmates received meals first because they were boys. She was blamed for “attracting” a stalker in her teens and was later victimized by a hidden camera installed in the restroom of her workplace by a sexual predator. One day, a passer-by nonchalantly derides her as she sips coffee on a park bench with her baby – for how she is “comfortably spending her husband’s money.”
Ji-young’s experiences reverberate strongly because she represents the average Korean daughter, mother, sister, wife and neighbor. She suffers indignation silently; to Ji-young and many other Ji-youngs throughout Korea, these abuses are simply part of life. The fact that her fate is common makes it so compelling. “Ji-young’s life isn’t much different than the one I’ve lived,” says Cho Nam-joo.
Common Frustrations
In the movie, Ji-young’s caring husband (Gong Yoo, who also starred as the protective father in the zombie movie “Train to Busan”) notices her increasingly depressive and irascible moods. He tries his best to support his wife as she finally realizes that she is emotionally unwell.
Korea largely remains governed by patriarchal social norms. The World Economic Forum ranked the country 108th out of 153 countries in its 2020 global gender gap index (with first place being the most gender equitable). The 2013 report by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime says Korea has one of the highest ratios of female vs. male homicide victims at 52.5 percent.
But even before the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements erupted in the United States amid sexual harassment allegations against Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein, Korea began to see unprecedented feminist protests of its own. Months before the release of the book version of “Kim Ji-young, Born 1982,” a young woman was murdered by a stranger at a karaoke salon near Gangnam subway station. During his trial, the defendant indicated that his motivation stemmed from being ignored by women. Citizens decorated the subway station with tens of thousands of yellow post-it notes in response to the misogynistic crime.
Scenes from the namesake movie released in October 2019, the firstfeature film by female director Kim Do-young. Announcement of thecinematic adaptation reignited fervent discussion about gender issues. © Lotte Entertainment
Overdue Exposure
A film tackling gender issues has long been overdue in mainstream Korean cinema. If this was because movie executives were fearful of negativity, their worries were not misplaced; Jung Yu-mi, upon being cast in the role of Ji-young, received a slew of hate comments via social media. A petition circulated to stop the film and web portals were bombed with bad ratings for the movie even before it was released.
Critics of the book and the film claim the narrative offers a distorted, over-generalized and sexist view of men, and that it serves to stoke gender conflict. Some even assert that the film is a female fantasy and the protagonist an egocentric, self-pitying person.Still, the movie’s effects can already be felt, due in no small part to the fact that Korea is one of the countries with the biggest movie-going populations in the world. The media have been quoting “Kim Ji-young” in stories about the gender gap in employment rates and how it spikes from 2 percent to 28 percent after marriage. In December 2019, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family announced plans to support women who re-enter the workforce after taking time off for childbirth and childrearing. Many journalists attributed the steps to “the Kim Ji-young effect.”
It is also noteworthy that the movie version of “Kim Ji-young” itself was helmed by actress-filmmaker Kim Do-young. Like Hollywood, the Korean film industry is far from achieving gender equality behind the camera. Kim is among the few women who have been given the chance to direct a major studio movie in the country. In fact, the participation rate of women in the Korean film industry only surpassed 10 percent for the first time in 2018, according to the Korean Film Council. It is hoped that “the Kim Ji-young effect” will also help change this deep-seated tendency.
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