The English-release title "The President's Last Bang" may sound like an artless literal translation of the original Korean, but I'm informed by those who speak the ancestral language (thanks, Mom and Dad) that "Geuddae geusaramdeul" actually means "The People of That Time," or, more concisely, "Those People, Then." It's a title that resonates deeply for South Koreans: On the night of October 26, 1979, shortly before he was assassinated, President Park Chung-hee was being entertained at dinner by a young singer named Shim Soo-bong, who had made a splash in a college singing contest with a song called "Geuddae geusaram" - literally, "That Person, Then." Shim reportedly sang that song to Park that fateful night; as a result, both she and the song became inextricably linked to the Park killing. Hence the movie title, "Those People, Then."One of those "people then" was, of course, President Park, along with the director of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency, Kim Jae-kyu, who led the assassins and who personally shot the president (and ended up being executed for it). As portrayed in this film, KCIA Director Kim is pent up with rage and frustration; his liver is shot to hell, he feels his country is shot to hell, and he's convinced that the president and his chief bodyguard both deserve to be shot to hell as well. "The President's Last Bang" has been billed as a black comedy; some American reviewers have even likened it to Kubrick's "Dr. Strangelove," which kind of threw me. I would say, it's a very wry take on a deadly serious episode of recent Korean history. I suspect much of it comes across as absurd because the real-life events it was based on were so horrifyingly absurd.Deliberately, deliciously absurd moments abound, like the schoolchildren who refuse to stand still for the playing of the national anthem, but maybe some critics saw signs of comedy where none really exist (oh, those crazy Koreans!). For example, one reviewer was highly amused by what he saw as Kim's bungling when he supposedly runs out of bullets at the start of the assassination and must run outside to fetch another gun. Actually, Kim has plenty of bullets; it's just that his gun jammed. That's not ineptitude, just bad luck on his part.Although the main focus of the film is the president and the KCIA director, it's also worth noting characters like gum-chewing KCIA Chief Agent Ju, whose primary job consists of procuring young women for the president's personal entertainment; his disgust with the task, with the women who agree to be a party to it, and with himself is palpable. There's also Mr. Shim, the guesthouse caretaker who's as silent as a butler and seemingly privy to everything that's going on. There's the older woman who's seen at the beginning of the film, lodging a complaint about the way her daughter was treated by the president during a bedroom date; we hear her again at the end of the film, offering a sardonic post-assassination wrapup (shades of Costa-Gavras' "Z"). And then there are the two young women, brought together for the first time, who are destined to witness the assassination close-up; afterward, they end up lounging around in a side room, chatting like college roommates.From my peculiar American point of view, one wickedly fun moment is when Park and his top aides, chatting over dinner, start bad-mouthing not only the American ambassador to Seoul, but also then-U.S. President Jimmy Carter; such scenes crackle with a you-are-there authenticity. It's also morbidly fascinating to listen to the movie's Park Chung-hee rationalize his authoritarian rule by noting that he tolerates a certain degree of political opposition (there's a direct reference to Kim Young-sam, who was fated to become president himself years later).As for the president's "last bang," fans of the late President Park may actually admire the way he goes out in this film. He shows no fear; he meets his fate as the tough old bird he was reputed to be.A passing note: Whenever Korean subtitles appear, it's because the characters are speaking in Japanese (one of the fringe benefits of Japanese colonial rule being coerced bilingualism).Final thought: Could the fractured-English title "The President's Last Bang" be a deliberate Borat-like joke on the part of a Korean who speaks English all too well?

Korean cinema has made leaps and bounds in recent years. Though The President's Last Bang is slightly inferior to more recommendable Korean films, it is still a superb example in storytelling.The autocratic President Park lives the life of a typical dictator; opulent surroundings, promiscuous women and complete authority. As such, the state of the country is becoming more and more disgusting to the chief of secret police, Director Kim. On October 26, 1979, Kim concludes enough is enough and conspires with his loyal deputies. What follows are the fateful actions of those involved.The President's Last Bang created quite a controversy in its native South Korea when it was released due to divided public opinion on the former president. Filmwise, the movie is well done, idiosyncratic and morbidly humorous. When was the last time regicide made you laugh, caused compassion and intrigued? It doesn't matter, go and see The President's Last Bang.

Think of a few movies that are fictionalized versions of major political events: Raid on Entebbe, Reds, or Black Hawk Down. When I put The President's Last Bang in that category, I have to call it comparatively dull. I grew up watching the Billy Jack movies, followed by Mad Max. The oppressors weren't just bullies that abandoned little old ladies by the side of the road. They raped them first, and then through them out of the car. In The Boys From Brazil, the Nazis were unconscionable. Raid on Entebbe had shoot outs, and in Reds, the union sympathizers were badly beaten. I was furious. Not so in The President's Last Bang And on top of all that, I watched this story move forward and out of the blue, the KICA director is suddenly talking to his subordinates about shooting the president. Did I miss something? He didn't have to twist their arm to get compliance. There was no patriotic sentiment, and no pre-meditation. The script was short and required more development. It was not engaging at all. The other elements in the movie were lost to a weakly constructed story. The dolly shots, the billiard close-up, the president's palatial rooms, all were wasted on me for lack of interest. Given the nature of the politics surrounding these events, the director may have had limited access to facts. Nevertheless, in the USA, these types of stories are embellished enough to keep the viewer interested and at least give the tone of a given event, if not the whole truth (which is why I don't watch that much of this type of stuff.) I give it a 6 for craft and an 8.5 for having the guts to make the movie.

US release: fall 2005. Shown at the New York Film Festival at Lincoln Center, October 2005 After Park Chunghee became President of South Korea by military coup in 1961 he made major contributions to the country's industrialization and economic development – but became a dictator by altering the constitution and declaring martial law. He must have had many enemies, and there had already been other assassination attempts by 1979, the moment depicted in the film, when Kim Jaegyu, his KCIA chief, shot him and several of those closest to him at a private bacchanal held at a palatial KCIA safe house. The events are depicted from Kim's point of view. "The President's Last Bang," which is brutal in its unreflective, intense, present energy, is half political film and half violent actioner. It amply shows how corrupt and cynical Park was; how much Koreans at this point enjoyed kicking, punching, and slapping their subordinates in front of others; their abusive and demeaning treatment of women; and their penchants for smoking and chewing gum. After the killings – which went on to include military guards and even cooks – there was a brief period of chaos, also well covered in the film. Kim expected to get away with it, but he and his closest accomplices are soon apprehended. Director I'm includes humor amid the horror, showing the clumsiness and confusion and sheer incompetence of some of the participants. It's interesting to observe how impulsive and improvised the shootings were, and how often the ruling class shifts in their conversation to the Japanese language to be more elegant or avoid being understood by underlings. The film is effective technically and illustrates South Korean cinema's growing sophistication, but it may leave non-Korean viewers cold; the film-making style feels as hard and brutal as the events.