Overview of Ode to My Father

‘Ode to My Father’ is a South Korean movie released on 17 December 2014. It is directed by Yoon Je-kyoon and penned by Park Su-jin. It features actors like Hwang Jung-min, Kim Yun-jin, Oh Dal-su, and Jung Jin-young in the lead roles. In the backdrop of the Korean War, the movie tells the story of Deok-soo and his family.

Profile

Cast

• Hwang Jung-min as Yoon Deok-soo
• Uhm Ji-seong as Young Deok-soo
• Yunjin Kim as Young-ja
• Jung Jin-young as Deok-soo’s father
• Jang Young-nam as Deok-soo’s mother
• Oh Dal-su as Dal-goo
• Jang Dae-woong as young Dal-goo
• Ra Mi-ran as Deok-soo’s paternal aunt
• Kim Seul-gi as Kkeut-soon
• Lee Hyun as Seung-gyu
• Kim Min-jae as Yoon Do-joo
• Tae In-ho as Yoon Gi-joo
• Hwang Seon-hwa as Yoon Seon-joo
• Shin Rin-ah as young Mak-soon
• Choi Jae-sub as Korean miner 1
• Jung Young-ki as Korean miner 2
• Yoo Jung-ho as Korean miner 3
• Maeng Se-chang as Korean miner 4
• Stella Choe Kim as Mak-soon Yoon
• Matthew Douma as Mak-soon’s husband (U.S native)
• Jeon So-mi as Mak-soon’s eldest daughter
• Evelyn Douma as Mak-soon’s youngest daughter
• Park Young-seo as President of the youth organization

Synopsis

The story opens during the Hungnam Evacuation of 1950. One of Deok-soo’s siblings gets lost in the crowd while the U.S. army evacuates Koreans in a naval boat. Deok-soo’s father goes in search of his lost child, Mak-soon, telling Deok-soo to take his mother and the remaining younger siblings to their aunt’s imported goods store in the port city of Busan. Also, the father tells him to take care of the family as a real man.

Obeying his father’s words, he takes the responsibility of the family on his shoulders. In 1960, the young and energetic Deok-soo emigrates to Germany in search of a job to meet the needs of his family and to pay the tuition fees of his brother. He gets a job in a coal mine. The job is extremely dangerous, and one time he brushes with death in an accident that happens at the work site.

Deok-soo returns home when his visa expires. A few months later, Young-ja, a nurse and also Deok-soo’s girlfriend, flies back to South Korea to meet Deok-soo. She finds him in South Korea and informs him that she is pregnant with his child. Soon they get married and give birth to two children.

As time marches on, Deok-soo’s aunt, the owner of the imported goods store, grows old and passes away. After her death, Deok-soo’s elder uncle raises the proposal to sell the store to meet the financial crises of the family. However, Deok-soo opposes the idea of selling the store.

To acquire financial stability, he gives up his dream of becoming a sea captain and joins the Korean Maritime and Ocean University. Later, in the 1970s, he enlists in the Korean army. By working in the army, he acquires the money to marry off his sister and buy his aunt’s goods store.

After returning from the army with an injured leg, Deok-soo and his wife start to run the goods store.

By 1983, South Korean TV programmes take the initiative to find the lost family members during the war. Deok-soo receives a call from the major broadcast station in reference to an old man’s claim to be his father.

However, in the TV show, both of them realise they are non-relatives. On another day, Deok-soo receives a second call from the television broadcast station. This time it is for his long-lost sister, ‘Mak-soon’. The young Mak-soon was adopted by an American family during the Korean War. Now, she lives in America with her family. The show reunites Mak-soon with her blood-related family members, and she visits South Korea to see them.

With the passage of time, Deok-soo grows old and decides to sell the store. Eventually, he discloses to his wife why he protected the store. Years ago, when his father asked him to take care of his family during the evacuation, his father promised Deok-soo to meet him at the goods store. It is because of the hope of meeting his father again, he protected the store at all costs. Now, he has become old and lost hope of meeting his father alive again.

Theme

‘Ode to My Father’ is a film constructed upon the foundation of the South Korean war background. It tells about the lives of people during wartime. The film was widely recognised for its emotional depth. The story revolves around themes like family, hope, love, relationships, nostalgia, and many more. Taking Daeok-soo’s life as an example, the movie discusses each theme.

Deok-soo is represented as someone who lives for his family. For the welfare of his family, he tries odd jobs both in Korea and Germany. Despite all the hardships, he manages to marry the love of his life and build a successful married life. However, he spends each day of his life in the hope of meeting his long-lost sister and his father, who go in search of her.

Apart from the context of a family, the movie discusses themes like human relationships, love, sacrifices, and hope in general in the backdrop of war.

Awards

• 10th Max Movie Awards 2015
  Best New Actress – Kim Seul-gi
• 20th Chunsa Film Art Awards 2015
  Best Screenplay – Park Su-jin
  Special Audience Award for Best Film
• 17th Udine Far East Film Festival 2015
  Audience Award
• 10th APN Awards 2015
  Recipient – Yoon Je-kyoon
• 19th Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival 2015
  It Star Award – Oh Dal-su
• 24th Buil Film Awards 2015
  Buil Readers’ Jury Award
• 52nd Grand Bell Awards 2015
  Best Film
  Best Director – Yoon Je-kyoon
  Best Actor – Hwang Jung-min
  Best Supporting Actor – Oh Dal-su
  Best Screenplay – Park Su-jin
  Best Cinematography – Choi Young-hwan
  Best Editing – Lee Jin
  High Technology Special Award – Han Tae-jeong, Son Seung-hyeon, Kim Dae-jun, Kim Jeong-su, Akira Kai (Visual Effects)
  Best Sound Recording – Lee Seung-cheol, Han Myung-hwan
  Best Planning
• 36th Blue Dragon Film Awards 2015
  Best Supporting Actor – Oh Dal-su
  Best Art Direction – Ryu Seong-hui
  Audience Choice Award for Most Popular Film

Interesting Facts about Ode to My Father 

1. ‘Ode to My Father’ was a domestic hit. The movie reached 14 million viewers.
2. Yoon Je-kyoon, the director, made the movie ‘Ode to My Father’ with the intention of conveying the sacrifices made by the people during the Korean War, especially during the Hungnam Evacuation.
3. Yoon Je-kyoon was inspired by his father about his experience in the Korean War. Also, for the making of the film, Je-kyoon interviewed people at the age of his father to gather emotional information about the Korean War.
4. The Hungnam Evacuation, the Vietnam War, and the coal mine disaster in Germany serve as the historical background of ‘Ode to My Father’.
5. The Indian film ‘Bharat’ (2015) is the Indian remake of ‘Ode to My Father’.
6. Due to the historical background and emotional depth, ‘Ode to My Father’ gained international recognition and was filmed in various film festivals.