Message from kluna

[Anonymous]

The movie I watched for this seminar is Ode to My Father (2014). I really enjoyed this movie, because it incorporated so many historic elements in a creative, cute, and tear-jerking manor. I wasn’t expecting to be on the verge of tears so many times when I pressed play. However, this movie was very informative; I found myself constantly researching things I saw during the movie, as you can tell by the links included. Here are a few parts that I would recommend to classroom use and how they could support the curriculum:

1.One of the first scenes is of North Korean refugees being taken in by the U.S. Navy. This can be used to show the U.S. involvement in the Korean War.
2.The main character later goes to Germany to work in the mines. This can also be shown in class as one of the effects of the Korean War (for more information/testimonial: http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2010/02/116_61404.html).
3.The movie also includes Korean’s involvement in the Vietnam war, as the main character and his friend go to fight against the Viet Cong. This can be used to show what war looked like it Vietnam and how the citizens of Vietnam were affected by the war.
4.Last, the movie also highlights the losses of the Korean people and the reunification of families through the Korean Broadcasting (for more information: http://www.nytimes.com/1983/08/18/world/war-scattered-korean-kin-find-their-kin-at-last.html). According to this New York Times article, over 3,000 people were reunited with their families via broadcasting announcements.

Overall, this movie has solid sections that can be shown for both U.S. and World History content. However, it also has some nudity and a lot of violence and gore, therefore I would not recommend showing it as a complete film in class. Nonetheless, I highly recommend it if you are looking for a good tear-jerker.
edited by kluna on 8/4/2016