Choi Wook to Host Screening Event for 'The Assassin(s)': 'It Is a Great Watch, Such a Shame to See It Enveloped in Controversy'

Broadcaster Choi Wook, who hosts the YouTube show Maebul Show, is set to host a private screening event for the film "The Assassin(s)".

Director Hur Jin-ho, who helmed "The Assassin(s)", appeared on the October 28 broadcast of Maebul Show. During the episode, Director Hur addressed the controversy surrounding historical distortion and the tangible and intangible political attacks facing the film, saying, "I have been making films for about 30 years since my directorial debut, and this is my first time experiencing anything like this. I have never experienced civic group members visiting an actor's home to protest or a lawmaker disparaging an actor. When faced with such a situation, I cannot help but feel intimidated. On the other hand, I am also feeling the strong power of solidarity. I probably wouldn't have been able to fight this alone."

Choi Wook responded, "I watched the movie, and compared to an MBC documentary, it's very mild. It makes me wonder why there is such an uproar over it."

Director Hur stated, "Before the official release of the movie, we held audience previews for about 20,000 people. These kinds of issues were not raised back then. Furthermore, no issues regarding historical distortion or anything similar were brought up during the press screening either. I don't know why it turned out this way."

He continued, raising questions about the sequence of events that amplified the controversy surrounding the film, "The precursor was the portal site ratings. When 1-star ratings kept appearing, I thought, 'What is this?' Even the dedicated review sections for people who actually watched the movie were strange. Then, right after the Chuseok holiday, the political circle brought out framing tactics like 'filial impiety' and 'historical distortion'."

Director Hur added, "There was a wide gap between the investigation announcement in 1974 and the one released following a 2005 information disclosure request. Back in 2005, many broadcasting companies and daily newspapers covered the new facts. Therefore, it is strange for people now to claim that we are distorting history. When I started this movie, I thought I couldn't reach a definitive conclusion. If I assume I planned this incident, things wouldn't add up. Assuming North Korea orchestrated it doesn't make sense because they would have hired Mun Se-gwang, who suffered from severe myopia and had never fired a gun. Even if the KCIA was involved, it makes no sense that they let Mun Se-gwang into the event venue without even giving him a guest pass. That is why I chose to present the story in the form of questions when making it into a movie."

Journalist Bong Ji-wook, who appeared alongside him on the show, presented materials he had gathered and investigated, systematically refuting the claims of historical distortion raised by politicians. He also announced that he would host a screening event for "The Assassin(s)" on November 1, followed by a Guest Visit (GV) session featuring Director Hur Jin-ho, reporters from the Dong-a Freedom Defense Committee (Dong-a Tuwi), and Father Ham Se-woong.

Prompted by this, Choi Wook also decided during the broadcast to hold a screening event for "The Assassin(s)". He expressed, "The movie itself is entertaining. That's why this controversy is all the more regrettable," urging viewers to watch the film and evaluate it purely as a movie.

(SBS Entertainment News, Reporter Kim Ji-hye)

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