Seopyeonje

Seopyeonje Hangul is a 1993 South Korean musical drama film directed by Im Kwontaek. Its story tells of a family of traditional Korean pansori singers trying to make a living in the modern world. The film was originally expected to only draw limited interest, and was released on only one screen in Seoul. At the height of its popularity, it was shown on only three screens at once in the entire city of overmillion. Nevertheless, it ended up breaking boxoffice records and became the first Korean film to draw over a million viewers in Seoul alone. When it was released, Sopyonjes success also increased interest in pansori among modern audiences. The film was acclaimed critically, both in South Korea and abroad, getting screened in Cannes Film Festival and winning six Grand Bell Awards and six Korean Film Critics Awards.

In a jumak a tavern on a small pass called Soritjae of Boseong County, South Jeolla Province, during the early 1960s, Dongho who is in his 30s, recalls his past as he is listening to a rendition of pansori sung by the jumak owner. Dongho and his sister were raised by the pansori singer Yubong, who treats them sternly and with a strict training regimen in his attempts to make serious artists of them as Yubong feels that a truly great pansori artist must suffer. Eventually Dongho runs away but his sister stays behind. Some critics have stated that this movie glorifies the fathers patriarchal power as he seeks to limit his daughters sexuality. However, most believe that the pansori singer is symbolic for South Korea, transcending a history of suffering to achieve greatness.

Source: Wikipedia