"The Controversial Scenes of the Movie Should Be Deleted"

A provisional disposition filed by the only son of former President Park Chung-hee, Park Ji-man, to ban the release of a film depicting the late Park`s assassination, was partially adopted by the court.

On January 31, the Seoul Central District Court ruled that some documentary footage of demonstrations in Busan and Masan in 1979, the mourning for President Park by Cardinal Kim Soo-hwan, and the president`s funeral should be removed from the film, "People at That Time," before its public release.

The court stated that some documentary scenes inserted in the movie might mislead audiences that the fictitious movie is describing actual history, and therefore the film could infringe upon the late former president`s personal right.

The court, however, dismissed Park Ji-man`s request to ban the release of the film, saying that since the movie is basically a fictitious black comedy with fundamental sarcasm, and that the assassination scene is a mere parody of a blockbuster Korean movie "friend," there is no actual possibility that audiences will recognize the movie as based on true events.

"Every public figure should be resigned to some level of privacy disturbance, and the nature of the movie does not constitute a major historical reassessment of the former President," the court added.

The court also ruled that the producer of the movie, KangJeGyu & Myung Film, will be subject to a 30-million-won fine every time the movie is shown to the public in theaters, on TV, on video, or DVD form without editing the scenes according to the court order.

woogija@donga.com