Shiri (1999) and the Reunifying Korean Romantic Fantasy of Namnambungnyŏ

Abstract

The Korean specific culture-bound romantic ideal of namnambungnyŏ (南男北女, southern man northern woman) is introduced as a previously unexamined factor to addresses conceptually the local and overseas box office success of Kang Je Gyu's Shiri (Swiri, 1999). The film's ability to become the first profitable South Korean blockbuster film, in what became known as “the Shiri syndrome,” is contextualized around a number of key historical transformations. These include the return to a civilian led presidency, the Hollywoodization of the film industry, a surge in nationalist spectatorship, an end to strict film censorship laws in 1996, and the launch of the Sunshine Policy in 1998. Collectively, these forces granted Kang an ideal moment to reignite the desire for a romantic reunification of the Korean people through his own cultural Sunshine Policy that keeps alive the hope and dream for the political reunification of a Korean people that still remains ideologically divided.