Korean Film Screening: The Remnants (2016)

The Remnants profiles five persons, in fact victims of the Yongsan Tragedy, but instead prosecuted as perpetrators. They were accused as joint principal offenders just because they had been at the spot of the incident. The production group Yonbunhongchima, after its previous film Two Doors, attempts a different approach with this work, though an extension of it. Two Doors dealt with state violence through the police, whereas The Remnants tries to explore the reasons from within the community. The five interviewees’ confessional talk, mixed with remorse and self-examination, are captured subtly by the camera. Deep trust combined with a strong outcry for truth must have opened up their hearts to this extent. The film also catches a side view of the possibility that the last seven years of dwelling on the tragic memory might be only “my own truth”. As file pictures and evidence had limitations in Two Doors, human memories are also limited, and The Remnants points out that the search for truth cannot rely on memories alone. Truth is urgent with such limitations.