Film critic Lee Dong-jin has addressed the controversy surrounding his review of the film "The Assassin(s)."

On September 30, Lee posted a statement titled "A Statement" on his blog, "Lee Dong-jin's Film Landscape – Always Like the Movies." He explained that on the afternoon of September 29, the production team of "B tv Lee Dong-jin's Phaeacia" contacted him to say that they would make his review video, uploaded on September 25, private as controversy surrounding "The Assassin(s)" continued. The video was subsequently made private.

"In the video, I expressed my views on the film's strengths and weaknesses as well as its overall quality, but controversy has continued after one passage from my remarks was quoted separately," Lee wrote.

He explained the context of his remarks, saying, "I was discussing how the film deals with questions surrounding what happened to the bullets fired at the National Theater on August 15, 1974, including questions about where they went and where they ended up, as well as aspects of the incident that cannot be readily resolved based solely on the official announcements made at the time."

He stressed, "This did not mean that every hypothesis raised by the film was factual. It had absolutely nothing to do with the claim that President Park Chung-hee was behind the shooting of First Lady Yuk Young-soo."

Lee acknowledged that different viewers may draw different meanings from the same film, but emphasized, "I did not see the claim that President Park Chung-hee was behind the assassination of First Lady Yuk Young-soo expressed in any dialogue or scene in the film."

Addressing criticism over how such a conspiracy theory could be raised while the bereaved family is still alive, Lee said, "I find that difficult to accept because it first assumes that such a claim exists and then criticizes me for making it."

He continued, "What I discussed in my review was the questions raised by the film and the way those questions are dramatically constructed. It was not an assertion that a specific individual was behind the assassination."

Lee added, "If there is going to be a debate about this film, I hope it can take place after people have watched the entire film whenever possible. I also hope that criticism of my review will be based on the context in which I made those remarks."

"Over the past 30 years of reviewing films, I have been criticized at different times by people with completely opposing views, depending on the film," he said, adding that his assessment of the film had nothing to do with his personal views on the current political situation in South Korea.
He concluded, "My assessment of ‘The Assassin(s)' as a film remains the same today. I have no intention of retracting my assessment in that review or apologizing for it. I wanted to make it clear what I did say and what I did not say."

Released on September 23, "The Assassin(s)" explores questions and suspicions surrounding the August 15, 1974 shooting of First Lady Yuk Young-soo and the figures allegedly behind the incident. The film has faced criticism over allegations of historical distortion.

(SBS Entertainment News | Kang Kyung-youn)