‘We Won’t Forget You, Lee Soo-hyun’

A commemoration ceremony for Lee Soo-hyun, A 26-year-old Korean student who died trying to save a drunkard who fell onto the tracks in the Tokyo subway in 2001, was held at a hotel in Chiyoda, Tokyo yesterday.

In addition to attendees from the Lee Soo-hyun Asia Scholarship Foundation, a commemorative scholarship foundation in Lee’s honor, a number of Japanese also attended and paid homage to a humanity that transcended nationality.

Lee’s portrait was covered with chrysanthemums from 300 people who came to pay their respects.

Makito Tanaka, the former Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs, attended the event in person and placed a flower to honor Lee, while Taro Aso, Minister of Foreign Affairs, sent a note saying “five years later, Japanese citizens still remember, and I hope that the sacrifice will serve as a bridge in heightening the understanding and friendship between the two countries.”

During the event, the filming locations for the Korean-Japanese movie “We Won’t Forget You,” which traces Lee’s life, were announced.

Lee Sung-dae, Lee’s father, stated, “I’m curious about how our Soo-hyun will be reborn through this movie.” Chung Dong-hwan, who plays Lee Sung-dae in the movie, related a story about meeting Lee’s father before filming the movie.

“I was told by Soo-hyun’s father to make a movie that is human-oriented, and which precludes commerciality. I never once forgot his words while filming the movie, and I never will.”

Junji Hanado, who is directing the project, said, “I wanted to know about Japan and the Japanese as reflected in Lee’s eyes, as well as the things that he loved and the world that he dreamed about. It won’t be merely a conventional story. The movie will be invested with a beautiful spirit.”

Though it was his first time visiting Japan, Lee Tae-sung, who will play the role of Lee Soo-hyun, spoke fluent Japanese upon his commitment to the movie and received warm applause from Japanese.

The movie ‘We Won’t Forget You’ will open in 2007 and will be filmed in Japan.

Kwang-Am Cheon iam@donga.com