From the first Japanese horrors around the turn of the century to Lon Chaney and Nosferatu, the rise of horror films walked hand in hand with the history and development of the medium itself. Korea was no different, getting into the horror game straight from the beginning, but there's a peculiar coda to it: it was in the form of a sageuk. 1924's 장화홍련전 (The Tale of Janghwa and Hongryeon) directed by Kim Young-Hwan was in fact Korea's first ever horror film, adapting a famous novel from the Joseon Dynasty, set during King Sejong's reign. Or better, it was the first time an all Korean cast and crew shot a film at that home they couldn't call home anymore, with the constantly looming shadow of Japanese Imperialism. If the Korean title seems familiar, you won't be too far off the mark: not only it was remade over the years, once in the 30s and later in the immediate postwar. But Kim Jee-woon borrowed its Korean title for that masterful little gem of a film called 장화, 홍련 (A Tale of Two Sisters). Famous sisters, all right.
Why Koreans opted for horrors of the past in a present full of horror, and essentially kept going back to that until the Golden Age of the 60s started pumping out contemporary horror films, might have to do a lot more with cultural issues outside the film canon than simple technological matters. But it's ironic that TV, the medium which was supposed to steal viewers from the big screen, started the game once again with a very similar background. Although finding the very first horror on TV might be hard, due to the impervious conditions of TBC's early archives and the lack of info about 60-70s Korean TV, what was likely to be the first bonafide hit on TV dealing with horror was a simple but tremendously successful idea called 전설의 고향 (Hometown of Legends).
It was the fall of 1977 when it started, with its opening story 마니산 효녀 (The Filial Daughter from Mt. Mani). The idea was to show one story per week, focusing on a brand of the genre called 토종공포, "native" and very traditional horror stories, the kind of spooks the viewers' grandmother would have inherited from her childhood. Think of the 도깨비 (goblin), the 저승사자 (Korean equivalent of the Grim Reaper), and perhaps the representative tale in all the three installments of this format, the fox with nine tails. 구미호 (Gumiho, Fox with Nine Tails) is an important part of Korean folklore all right, but it's equally important in Japan with the 狐 (Kitsune, fox) and in China with the 狐狸精 (Hulijing, fox spirits), albeit the subject's treatment varies depending where you go. Gumiho were part of that canon of supernatural beings called 요괴 (Yokwe, Yokai in Japanese), in this case a seductress who could transform into a dangerous woman, or in certain cases a good-natured fox, spending her life trying to rid herself of the curse following her around.
The theme featured countless time across the first two installments of Hometown of Legends, first between the late 70s and the end of the 80s, and with the second, shorter revival in the late 90s. A quick look at the roster of former Gumiho and you'll understand how popular this character was: Han Hye-Sook in the 70s was the first to play it, but then Jang Mi-Hee (one of the most popular actresses of the 80s) and Kim Mi-Sook, more recently followed by Park Sang-Ah, Kim Ji-Young and even Song Yoon-Ah. There were even tentatives to turn the story into modern settings, with the putrid 1994 flick 구미호 (Fox with Nine Tails), one of Korea's first "blockbusters" starring Go So-Young and Jung Woo-Sung. About a decade later, the equally inexistent acting "talents" of CF Queen Kim Tae-Hee helped stink up 구미호외전 (Forbidden Love), which despite the title was about Gumiho as much as she's award material. Probably the only salvageable effort of the lot is Lee Hyung-Gon's 2006 구미호 가족 (The Fox Family), a part musical-part fantasy with charming performances but a less charming script.
구미호 (Fox with Nine Tails) was the perfect starting point for a new installment of the Hometown of Legends saga then, but instead of just calling it the long-awaited (?) return of Korean horror on TV, one should look at the genre's performance in the last few years, not only on TV but on the big screen as well. One of the reasons you'll only see one Korean horror film this summer - the already maligned 고死 (Gosa: Bloody Midterms) -- mostly stands with the fact the genre had been a mere training farm for aspiring filmmakers, a sort of blank check paid by the Bank of Sensory Overload, which asked them to wrap a tiny little bug of a script with Music Video sensibilities, the rheumatism of good old Sadako and tons of "cool," at times punctuated by some good performances.
The only ones who might really be interested in the genre for real, and have the clout to produce those films outside the old formula, are Ahn Byung-Gi and producer Lee Chun-Yeon of the 여고괴담 (Girl School Horror Stories) series. But with so many turkeys disrespecting the genre, the general reaction of the public was mostly that of generalizing and abandoning any Korean horror a priori, more or less what happened in the last two years and all those poor performances - despite gems like 기담 (Epitaph). Fans of the genre might even like this option more, as it will allow only those who really care about horror to head for that direction, but you need to produce at least four or five turds to find a possible jewel in the rough. Still, at least there were still people like that in Chungmuro. For what concerns TV, the genre has become like a desert, with the occasional spark showing up as part of Dramacity or similar short dramas. With the limitations of the format (no explicit sex, excessive violence and gore), viewers getting desensitized more and more, and imported horror films pushing the envelope of viewers' expectation, it's pretty easy to see why horror didn't work on Korean Tv.
Or at least not on network TV. A quick look at the last few years' worth of Cable dramas, and one name will stand out, Super Action's "Fusion Horror" series 도시괴담 데자뷰 (City Horror Stories - Deja Vu). Oh... no, it's not the current Korean obsession with calling just about everything except cat food "fusion something," this was fusion all right. Fusion of what?! Horror, and... well, boobs. Plenty of boobs. Taking advantage of the no-limitations clause on Cable Tv, the few stations with enough clout to produce dramas have turned their attention to this once alienated (?) genre, for a simple reason. Whereas network TV is the ajumma's territory, on cable you're getting a lot more sex because viewership tends to be oriented towards 20 to 40s males. And of course advertisement, which unlike network TV interrupts shows in the middle, and is significantly more rewarding for the stations, pays off in the long run. The usual menu you'd get on Deja Vu is a simple horror story, with Season 3 in particular dealing with various psychological problems people go through. And then, Ta Da. At about the 15 minute mark, right before the commercial break, you're getting the cliffhanger. Only what she's hanging from might not be a cliff. Uhm.
Anyhow, not exactly material which respects or even cares about the genre. So we're back to square one. Why then, of all genres, in a situation where KBS weekday miniseries have been eating dirt in the ratings for months, did they decide to go back to a 10 year old format? After a tremendous 2007, this year wasn't so kind to KBS so far, but they're still the most innovative of the three stations, for better or worse. Consider, for instance, that 최강칠우 (Strongest Chil Woo) might have its big problems in terms of production values and acting, but the script and historical accuracy beat that ratings behemoth which was 이산 (Yi San) and embarrass it in the process. It's one of the first times a sageuk so openly took the B-movie route, played around with genre conventions while at the same time managing to stick to the fundamentals. It doesn't always work, but when it does, Chil Woo can be worlds of fun.
For its countless flaws and equally convincing charms, even 대왕세종 (Sejong the Great) is innovative. What it brings to the table is another hybrid sageuk motive just like writer Yoon Seon-Ju's 불멸의 이순신 (The Immortal Lee Soon-Shin) did, but this time it turns the arid discourses of political sageuk into something more palatable for the youngsters. Results aren't very good in terms of ratings, which is why 천추태후 (Empress Cheonchu) might quickly go back to the "scream and beat the crap out of each other" flavor around Christmas. Still, we're dealing with changes. Why Hometown of Legends is important goes back to KBS' decision to terminate their short drama format Dramacity, a few years ago. The show was actually in the planning stages before the infamous decision was made, and there are other reasons (dealing with, well, ratings and dinero) this was possible.
Yet, it brings back the short drama format, using an all-Dramacity alumni roster behind the camera. It mixes acclaimed stars like Choi Su-Jong and Lee Deok-Hwa with new faces like Wang Hee-Ji - one of writer Im Sung-Han's new "discoveries" -- and Park Min-Young, brings back a familiar format like Hometown of Legends, and further advances KBS' experiments with the sageuk genre. The reason the show opened with an astounding 20.1% might have more to do with its predecessor, the desperately conventional and melodramatic 태양의 여자 (Women in the Sun), which ended its run scoring an impressive 27%. But it's very likely a lot of people remember the 'Legends franchise, and were in the mood for a little horror breeze in the crazy heat of this summer.
What those people probably didn't expect was what PD Kwak Jung-Hwan would cook for the umpteenth installment of the Fox with Nine Tails saga. Old versions would have those big names wear Gumiho masks, making a lot of what should have been scary a sort of unintentionally delirious moment (and the fun of rewatching those 90s episodes is exactly that, along with spotting all those stars, before they became stars). But the new Gumiho, played by the lovely Park Min-Young of 거침없이 하이킥 (Unstoppable High Kick), has no wig, no corny masks or awkward make-up. Just KBS' predictably top notch CG, including all those nine cute tails. There are certainly a few awkward spots, and you can't compare this to a movie production (particularly because of time constraints), but the results are satisfactory. What Park Min-Young's Gumiho represents, instead, is the most humane, the sexiest and most feminine fox with nine tails of them all. Maybe sexy is not even the right word, although young Park is certainly very pleasing to the eyes. It's that air of maturity, turning from innocent young woman to a femme fatale ready to kill those who wronged her. Park looks a lot more confident in her delivery than she's ever looked before, with the kind of maturity her past work was probably hiding. She's one to look out for in the future, for sure.
Past works would usually feature the Gumiho trying to conceal her identity, and then going batty on everyone who tried to find out. But this time we're dealing with a corrupt clan, using young maidens for their own survival (explaining how would be too much of a spoiler). It robs the show of the predictable scares some people were waiting (there isn't much to be scared about, if anything at all), but it adds a lot of well-handled drama. And those who watched Kwak's past work, the phenomenal 한성별곡-正 (Conspiracy in the Court), will certainly be happy with this change. It has the same attention to detail, from the realistic props to the social commentary that highlights the show, hinting at how people can be a lot scarier than ghosts. The soundtrack by Choi Cheol-Ho of Sejong the Great, Conspiracy in the Court and 얼렁뚱당 흥신소 (Evasive Enquiry Agency) is part sexy and part suitably spooky. If you add the usual top notch lighting of Kwak's works, and some really convincing acting, from the veterans to youngsters like Kim Tae-Ho and Lee Yeon-Doo (who looks so much like Son Ye-Jin you'd think they were twins) and Kwak's "muse" Kim Ha-Eun, Fox with Nine Tails can already be considered one of the few lights in a pretty horrible year.
What it confirms are two things essentially. One, that Kwak Jung-Hwan is one of the major talents in the industry, continuing to expand the genre sensibilities of something which once had very little flexibility; the other, that Hometown of Legends is alive and kicking (and eating cute virgins' bloody livers for breakfast!), which shouldn't just please horror fans, but anyone who cares about diversity inside those cathode ray tubes and oceans of liquid crystals. It's not much scary all right, but we've seen enough "scares" this year to complain about something this good...
RATING: 7.5
전설의 고향 (Hometown of Legends)
제1편 - 구미호 (First Episode (of 8) - Fox with Nine Tails)
KBS 수목 드라마 - Wed/Thu Drama
Aired on August 6 [KBS2]
PD: 곽정환 (Kwak Jung-Hwan) / WRITER: 하희선 (Ha Hee-Seon), 김재은 (Kim Jae-Eun)
RATINGS: 20.1%
박민영 (Park Min-Young) as Myung-Ok, 김하은 (Kim Ha-Eun) as Seo-Ok, 김태호 (Kim Tae-Ho) as Hyo-Moon, 이연두 (Lee Yeon-Doo) as In-Hong, 이대로 (Lee Dae-Ro) as the Elder, 정재순 (Jung Jae-Soon) as Lady Han, 박웅 (Park Woong) as Lord Lee, 이칸희 (Lee Kan-Hee) as In-Hong's Mother, 최당석 (Choi Dang-Seok) as Jung-Myung, 홍여진 (Hong Yeo-Jin) as Hyo-Moon's Mother, 남문철 (Nam Moon-Cheol) as In-Hong's Father