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# Review

A Taxi Driver, not to be confused with Scorsese’s tour de force, tells the story of Gwangju Uprising in 1980 where the South Korean military killed around 2,000 pro-democracy protestors. The story is told from the perspective of a real-life Seoul cab driver Kim Man-seob (Song Kang-ho) who gives a ride to Peter Hinzpeter (Thomas Kretschmann), a real-life German journalist sent to cover the unrest in Korea. Little does Man-seob know, the trip to Gwangju turns into a nightmare as the military cracks down on the protests.

The story is one that has been (still is) censored and now is finally being told in a mass market way. The writing and storytelling are great; the story at its core is a group of likeable, ordinary people standing up to an oppressive and violent regime. The film is lighthearted at times but can quickly get very heavy. The portrayal of the government crackdown is both visceral and terrifying. Song’s Man-seob is incredibly relatable because he makes selfish and cowardly (rational) decisions yet as the film progresses his character develops into a real hero. The supporting cast, which includes Kretschmann’s formal Peter, Yoo Hae-jin’s kindhearted Tae-sool, and Ryu Jun-yeol’s passionate Jae-sik, were fantastic as well. The cinematography is great and conveys the mood of each scene; I especially enjoy watching the subtle details depicting a South Korean city in 1980. Yes there are definitely many cliché and embellishments, but overall, based on what I’ve read, this film captures the events of the Uprising in vivid detail.

# Conclusion

A heartfelt telling of the Gwangju Uprising.

# Overall rating: 8.0

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