"The Assassin," a film embroiled in controversy over allegations that it distorts the history of the assassination of late first lady Yuk Young-soo, has canceled all of its scheduled appearances at the Busan International Film Festival.
The festival said Friday that the opening ceremony attendance and outdoor stage greeting planned for the 31st Busan International Film Festival had been canceled at the production company's request.
"We respect the production company's decision, made in consideration of the safety of audiences and guests and the smooth running of the event," the festival said, asking for the understanding of audiences who had been looking forward to the events.
Lead actor Lee Min-ho had already canceled his appearance at the festival's "Actors House" program.
"The Assassin" is inspired by the 1974 assassination of Yuk Young-soo. According to the government investigation at the time, Zainichi Korean Mun Se-gwang, acting on orders from North Korea and the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan, known as Chongryon, attempted to kill then-President Park Chung-hee but failed, fatally shooting Yuk instead. Questions surrounding certain aspects of the case have consistently fueled speculation that other figures or forces may have been behind the attack.
The film has drawn criticism for allegedly implying that Park was behind the killing — portraying him as a perpetrator despite being a victim who lost his wife. Critics have also argued that raising such allegations while surviving family members, including former President Park Geun-hye, still bear the trauma crosses the line of free expression.
Director Heo Jin-ho rebuffed claims that the film advances a theory implicating Park. "I did not make a film suggesting that President Park ordered the killing of Yuk Young-soo — that would be logically contradictory and implausible," he said. "The film simply explores cinematic hypotheses based on documented records of shell casings and bullet trajectories at the scene, previously covered in terrestrial television documentaries. There is no specific political intent," he added, drawing a line against any political reading of the work.
Anger from conservative circles, led by the People Power Party, has not subsided, and smear campaigns and attacks targeting the cast and crew have themselves become a source of concern. One conservative group sparked outrage after publicly disclosing the home address of lead actor Yoo Hae-jin and announcing plans to hold a rally outside his residence.
The Korean Film Producers Association issued a statement Thursday expressing concern that "unverified information related to the production process or those involved is spreading, and that excessive criticism continues to be directed at individual creators — including the production company, director, actors and crew — simply for having participated in the project, separate from any evaluation of the work itself."
The association added that it considered it "undesirable for the healthy production environment of Korean cinema" when debate over a single film moves beyond critical assessment of the work and devolves into personal attacks on those involved in making it or the spread of unverified information.
paq@heraldcorp.com
