Dachimawa Lee: Popular Hero

The 2008 South Korean film, “Dachimawa Lee”, is about the Korean spy named Dachimawa Lee who receives a mission to recover the statue of Golden Buddha, which was stolen by Japanese imperial forces during the occupation era. Lee has to find the statue because inside the statue there is a list of names of Korean Independence Movement fighters and their locations.

It is interesting how this “silly-looking” spy is so revered among the Korean population in Manchuria as we see in the train scene where Dachimawa catches and rebukes Border Lynx for his crime of stealing money from an elderly Korean woman. Also in the United States (Princeton University), Korean expatriates working for the Korean Independence Movement respect Dachimawa Lee. He is recognized everywhere he goes. Even the mentioning of his name generates fear for his enemies and reverence for his followers and supporters. Dachimawa Lee is the popular hero for many Koreans in exile communities.

Unlike the three main characters: Yoon Tae-goo, Park Chang-yi, and Park Do-won from the film, “The Good, the Bad, the Weird”, Dachimawa cares about “others”: Korean expatriates, Korean Independence Movement fighters, and Korean nationalism and identity by joining the dangerous mission to retrieve the Golden Buddha by fighting against Japanese imperial forces and Chinese bandits. He is risking his own life to “save others.” In contrast, the Good, the Bad, and the Weird seem to care about themselves and their profits such as hidden treasures, money, and fame (to see who is the best fighter in Manchuria). It is interesting how the setting is located in the same place: Manchuria, but characters in both films are not acting “homogenously.” Perhaps this indicates diversity among Korean population in Manchuria and different motives and purposes to settle in Manchuria.

Also, Dachimawa Lee, unlike Yoon Tae-goo, Park Chang-yi, and Park Do-won, would be the ideal type of popular hero for Korean expatriates especially for those living in harsh lives in Manchuria, where the majority of people (including Choe Sohae from the short story, “Escape” ) are struggling with extreme poverty, working on menial jobs, and fighting as guerillas (Choe 113).