Written by Linda
March 08, 2009
A huge hit in its own country, Joint Security Area is a fast-paced, twisty military mystery that is extremely well-acted by an ensemble cast.
A neutral Swiss investigation team is brought into the Koreas to investigate a border shooting in the demilitarized zone that has left two North Korean border guards dead, another wounded, and a South Korean guard staggering back across the "Bridge of No Return" to his side of the line. The survivors from each side of the conflict have conflicting reports about what happened, and slowly the mystery starts to unravel as surprising revelations are exposed.
Humanizing the conflict between what is essentially a single culture split into two by politics and borders, Joint Security Area is not only a nail-biting thriller, but a devastating tragedy, unfortunately (and somewhat naïvely) brought about by the best intentions.