Too good to be true: North Korean films that double as propaganda for the South

Analysis

Too good to be true: North Korean films that double as propaganda for the South

While aimed at discouraging defection, a pair of DPRK films counterproductively exaggerates South Korea’s wealth

Tatiana Gabroussenko November 12, 2021

Too good to be true: North Korean films that double as propaganda for the South

NK News (file) | Snapshot from the 1995 North Korean film "Two Soldiers"

It used to be that official North Korean propaganda left no doubts about which Korea was the better place to live.

In the 1960s and 70s, films like “On the Way of Growth” and “Fates of Kumhui and Unhui” presented a contrast between the modernized and developed North and the dirty and archaic South. South Korean characters dream of moving to the prosperous North, and only fully armed U.S. border guards prevent them from crossing the demilitarized zone immediately.

About the Author

Tatiana Gabroussenko

Tatiana Gabroussenko obtained her PhD in East Asian Studies at the Australian National University. She is currently a professor of North Korean studies at Korea University, Seoul. Her latest book, "Soldiers on the Cultural Front: Developments in the Early History of North Korean Literature and Literary Policy," was included in the Choice magazine list of Outstanding Academic Titles of 2012.

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