[Movie Review] North and South Korea become one with lottery prize money of 5.7 billion won ... Movie ‘6/45’

▲This photo, provided by SIDUS, shows "6/45." (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

SEOUL, August 11 (Yonhap) -- What connects South and North Korean soldiers is neither a crashed U.S. plane nor a gift box with liquor and cigarettes, but a lottery that won first prize.

The story begins with soju promo lottery distributed from the bar. Abandoned lottery, blown in the wind and loaded onto military jeep, arrives at army forces in front line. Sergeant Cheon-woo (Go Kyung-pyo), who picked up the lottery, passes out while watching Lottery draw on TV. The prize money was 5.7 billion won.

But lottery, carefully put in the bookshelf while reading a book on-guard, blows into the North side. Yong-ho (Lee Yi-kyung) picks up the lottery and after knowing what that piece of paper is from Dae-nam hacker Cheol-jin (Kim Min-ho), meets up with Cheon-woo to negotiate.

To the communist party, the lottery is just a paper that suck the blood of South Koreans, but to regular people’s army, It’s different. They can be more desperate than S.Korean soldiers.

“6/45” is a term used in North Korea to call lottery. The movie is not only humorous with the brilliant idea that winning lottery flew over the military demarcation line like North Korean flyer, but it also shows a relationship between South and North Korea.

To split the prize money, they have a meeting at Joint Supply Area. S.Korean soldiers criticize N.Korean soldiers’ threat to rip the lottery, calling it a “brinkmanship.” Soldiers from South decide on the distribution ratio with a “brave decision.” They finally write an agreement paper and read it aloud.

The stories that happen while Cheon-woo and Yong-ho work at opponent’s unit as type of captive until the prize money is divided cause laughter.

While characters’ patriotism move audiences to tears, the movie sublimate this to humor.

Soldiers suggesting two different solutions and oscillating between vigilance and cooperation with the one goal of splitting lottery prize resembles relationship between South and North Korea.

This slightly B-class movie is great to watch when killing time especially at the time when domestic comedy is rare. The movie also managed to add scenes that remind male audiences of their military lives, such as PX frozen foods and gun grooming. This is a well made comedy movie considering that the message is well delivered while excluding family stories, unnatural touching scenes, and excessive seriousness.

Director Park Gyu-tae, who directed movie “Man on the Edge” and “Hi! Dharma!,” is directing again in 15 years after “Bunt.” Director Park said, “Rather than recalling that our wish is unification, I wanted to humorously express how to live better in this land.”

The movie will be in theater on Aug. 24, with the playing time of 113 minutes. Audiences 12 or above.

(This article is translated from Korean to English by Jiwon Woo.)

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