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Brothers or not? The failure of Morning of the East , the first joint Soviet–North Korean film

Bibliographic Data

ID21791727
AuthorsRoman Husarski (0000-0002-9264-6751, Jagiellonian University, corresponding author), A Sokolin (Jagiellonian University)
Year2024
Volume16
Issue1
Pages57-73
Publication date2024-01-02
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Japanese and Korean Cinema (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1756-4905 • E-ISSN: 1756-4913
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/17564905.2024.2312065
OpenAlexW4395676293
LanguageEN
References cited14

This paper studies the reasons for the banning of the first joint Soviet–North Korean film in history by North Korean authorities. Morning of the East, released in the Soviet Union as Brothers, was directed by Cheon Sang-in, Yun Yong-kyu, Vasily Losev and Ivan Lukinsky in 1957. Involving cooperation of both countries at each stage of production, it was filmed in the Gorky Film Studio and in natural locations in North Korea. Despite the significant involvement of the Korean intelligentsia and strong promotion of the film in DPRK magazines, the film was banned from distribution inside the country. The article provides historical background to the film production, and argues that the ban of Morning of the East cannot be explained by any political event alone. Rather, the film itself, heavily influenced by new trends in Soviet Thaw cinema, contrasted with the North Korean vision of socialist realism. Based on primary sources, and by providing historical context and film analysis, this article presents the history of an unsuccessful attempt to introduce the cinematic language of de-Stalinization into North Korean cinema

Ancient history · Archaeology · Art · Art history · Intelligentsia · Literature · Morning · Movie theater · Political science · Politics · Realism · Studio · Visual arts · Asian Culture and Media Studies · History · Japanese History and Culture · Korean Peninsula Historical and Political Studies · Law · Medicine

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