Great Films About Korean History: 5 Essential Movies to Watch, Part 1
Korean cinema is one of South Korea’s greatest cultural exports—and one of my most constant sources of joy. It was also a major reason I decided to move to Korea long-term.
What makes Korean cinema especially fascinating is the way it engages with the country’s history and culture. Even films that describe themselves as merely “inspired by true events” are often rooted in well-established historical realities. They may take creative liberties, but they can also provide an engaging starting point for learning about the people, events, and social forces that shaped modern Korea.
The following list is just the beginning, so think of it as Part 1. After many years of watching and loving Korean films, I consider these movies essential viewing for two reasons: they are both educational and entertaining.
One final note before we begin: if this list seems like a tribute to Song Kang-ho, that isn’t intentional. He just happens to be an exceptionally prolific actor who has appeared in a remarkable number of films that explore Korean society and history.
So, with that out of the way, let’s start with the first film.
1. The Attorney (변호인, 2013)
Director: Yang Woo-suk
Korea has experienced some incredibly difficult periods, and The Attorney does an excellent job of portraying one of the country’s more dramatic episodes without exploiting the suffering involved.
Educational, heartbreaking, and extremely well acted, the film is inspired by the life of Roh Moo-hyun, who would later become president of South Korea.
Song Kang-ho plays Song Woo-seok, a successful tax lawyer whose life changes when he takes on the defense of students who have been tortured and falsely accused of supporting communism under South Korea’s authoritarian government in the early 1980s.
The film offers a powerful look at authoritarianism, political repression, and the struggle for human rights in South Korea. It is also a fascinating window into the experiences that helped shape one of the country’s future presidents.
If you’re interested in modern Korean history, this is an excellent place to start.
2. Default (국가부도의 날, 2018)
Director: Choi Kook-hee
I first saw Default while I was still living in the United States, at my local CGV in Los Angeles, and I remember being struck by how much it taught me about a relatively recent period of Korean history.
The 1997 Asian financial crisis and IMF crisis may feel like ancient history to younger viewers, but it really wasn’t that long ago. Many people in Korea today remember the crisis personally, including people who were directly affected by its economic consequences.
That’s what makes Default such an interesting historical film. Rather than focusing on just one person’s experience, it depicts several different groups and shows how the economic crisis affected people in very different ways.
Beyond its historical value, the film is genuinely compelling. It takes a complicated economic event and turns it into an accessible, tense, and engaging story.
If you’re interested in understanding more recent Korean history—and how the IMF crisis changed Korean society—don’t skip this one.
3. Ode to My Father (국제시장, 2014)
Director: Yoon Je-kyoon
Of all the films on this list, Ode to My Father might be the one you’ve already heard of. It’s extremely well known in Korea, and for good reason.
The film follows one man’s life through some of the most consequential events in modern Korean history, beginning with the Korean War and continuing through the country’s postwar development and the televised reunions of separated North and South Korean families in the 1980s.
The story is told through the eyes of one man at different stages of his life, with the adult version primarily portrayed by the exceptional Hwang Jung-min.
What makes Ode to My Father particularly effective is the way it connects major historical events with the ordinary people who lived through them. Rather than presenting history as a series of dates and political developments, it shows how those events affected families, work, migration, separation, and survival.
This is a real do-not-miss film if you want an emotional introduction to modern Korean history.
Just bring some tissues.
4. A Taxi Driver (택시운전사, 2017)
Director: Jang Hoon
I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve watched A Taxi Driver. Every time, I find myself thinking about the same two things:
- The real story that inspired it is absolutely mind-blowing.
- The performances bring so much emotional weight to one of the most important moments in modern Korean history.
Song Kang-ho plays a Seoul taxi driver who accepts a lucrative fare from a German journalist, played by Thomas Kretschmann. Their destination is Gwangju, where the May 1980 democratic uprising is unfolding.
To say that they have a difficult time getting there—and being there—is an understatement.
Although A Taxi Driver is not a documentary, it is based on the real-life experiences of German journalist Jürgen Hinzpeter and the Korean taxi driver who helped him reach Gwangju. The film uses their story to introduce viewers to the violence and political repression surrounding the Gwangju Democratization Movement.
What I love most about the film is the contrast between these two men. They come from completely different cultures and backgrounds, yet they find themselves witnessing the same extraordinary historical event.
It’s an emotional, suspenseful, and deeply human way to learn about a pivotal moment in Korean history.
5. The King’s Letters (나랏말싸미, 2019)
Director: Jo Chul-hyun
I have such fond memories of seeing The King’s Letters in a theater with my Korean teacher while I was still in the United States.
It’s a visually stunning film, partly because of its elaborate period costumes and historical setting. But unlike some historical costume dramas, it is not boring at all.
The film takes us back to the era of King Sejong the Great and the creation of Hangul, the Korean writing system. Song Kang-ho portrays King Sejong, who is determined to develop a writing system that ordinary Koreans can learn and use.
The movie explores the development of written Korean, the phonetic principles behind the writing system, and the political and religious tensions surrounding the project. In particular, it depicts the complicated relationship between Buddhism and Confucianism during the period.
For anyone learning Korean, the subject alone makes this film especially intriguing. Hangul is one of the most distinctive writing systems in the world, and learning about its historical development can add an entirely new dimension to studying the language.
It’s a beautiful and ambitious historical drama—and a particularly interesting choice if you’re looking for a film about King Sejong, Hangul, and Korean history.
Final Thoughts
These five films cover an enormous span of Korean history, from the creation of Hangul during the Joseon period to the political struggles, economic crises, wars, and democratization movements of modern South Korea.
More importantly, they demonstrate one of the things I love most about Korean cinema: history doesn’t have to feel like homework.
A great historical film can make you curious enough to start researching the real events behind the story, the people who lived through them, and the ways those events continue to influence Korea today.
And this is only Part 1.
There are plenty more Korean historical films worth talking about, so stay tuned for the next installment.
Ariel Schudson, Marketing Assistant
Ariel Schudson was born and raised in Los Angeles, California, about 10 minutes from Koreatown. In 2019, she sold everything she owned and moved to Korea, without a single regret. She holds two Masters Degrees from UCLA, one in Critical Film Theory and the other in Film Preservation/restoration. A longtime Songpa resident, she teaches at the Creverse campus and loves it. When not working, she’s watching too many movies, singing too much noraebang, and dedicatedly writing about women’s representation in classic Korean cinema from the 1960s-1990s. Her orange cat Wallach puts up with her. Mostly.