Taekwondo (1998 Film)

Taekwondo is a 1998 drama film co-produced by Poland and South Korea. Directed by Seung-wook Moon, the film explores the life of an expatriate living in Poland who operates a martial arts gym.

Production and Release

The film was directed by Seung-wook Moon, who also co-wrote the screenplay alongside Maria Goralczyk and Wojciech Ziminski. Production duties were handled by Ki-min Oh, Maciej Skalski, and In-taek Yoo, with cinematography by Andrzej Jaroszewicz. The feature has a runtime of 92 minutes and was released on February 14, 1998. It features dialogue in both Polish and Korean.

Plot

Kim, portrayed by Ahn Sung-Kee, left his homeland, wife, and daughter to travel across Europe before eventually settling in Poland, where he opens a taekwondo gym. Solitary by nature, Kim lives apart from the crime-ridden neighborhood around him while writing unanswered letters to his daughter. His isolated lifestyle changes through two key relationships: a growing friendship with a young woman named Jola, played by Ewa Gawryluk, and an intensive master-pupil dynamic with a young local man named Michal, played by Pawel Burczyk.

Cast

Ahn Sung-Kee as Kim
Pawel Burczyk as Michal
Ewa Gawryluk as Jola
Bartosz Opania as Young Pole
Michal Bukowski as Marek
Waldemar Barwinski as Michal's Friend
Jerzy Lapinski as Barber
Pawel Nowisz as Janitor
Hanna Polk as Cashier
Leon Charewicz as Flat Owner
Slawomir Orzechowski as Dissatisfied Customer at the Restaurant
Cezary Zak as Restaurant Owner
Janusz Bukowski as Michal's Father
Mariusz Leszczynski as Janitor at the Sports Club
Ernestyna Winnicka as Mother of the Boy Attending Taekwondo Lesson
Kim Ji-Sook as voice