Ro, along with several other prisoners, join the group and find new purpose in dancing.īeyond well-choreographed dance numbers, Swing Kids also comments on the brutality of war and racial tensions. To calm the restless POWs, camp authorities order an African-American soldier to organize a tap-dancing group. Billed as a musical drama, Swing Kids also incorporates significant historical and social context.ĭo Kyung-soo (popularly known as D.O.) of the hit boy band EXO headlines the film as a hardheaded North Korean soldier named Ro Ki-soo, who’s imprisoned in the infamous Geoje POW Camp during the Korean War. Released in mid-December 2018, Swing Kids was a late and charmingly unexpected addition to our list. Korean Name: 스윙키즈 (Seuwingkizeu) | Starring: Do Kyung-soo (D.O.), Park Hye-su, Jared Grimes, Oh Jung-se | Genre: Musical, Dancing, Drama, War To learn more about Default, read our full length review! 10. Korean audiences found the film really resonant, and audiences in Southeast Asia (who also experienced the 1997 crisis) and the West (who experienced the 2008 Global Financial Crisis) will find the film relevant too. It topped the charts and garnered the biggest November opening that any Korean movie’s ever had. In fact, Default did exceedingly well when it opened at the Korean box office. This allows general audiences to empathize with the struggles of Koreans during this trying period.
The movie actually focuses more on crisis’ human impacts, as opposed to technical details. This K-movie dramatizes something many Koreans consider the most traumatic event since the Korean War: 1997’s Asian Financial Crisis.Įven if you don’t have an economics Ph.D., Default is worth watching. If you enjoyed the 2015 Hollywood movie The Big Short, or just have a passion for economics and politics, then Default will tickle your fancy. Korean Name: 국가부도의 날 (Gukga-budo-eui Nal) | Starring: Kim Hye-soo, Yoo Ah-in, Jo Woo-jin, Heo Joon-ho | Genre: Drama, Political, Economic