Directed by: Lee Jong-pil (이종필) (The Sound of A Flower ) Starring: Go Ah-sung (고아성), Esom (이솜), Park Hye-soo (박혜수), Cho Hyun-chul (조현철) Release date: October 21st, 2020
Whether it be college entrance exams or beefing up a resume with various certifications to rise above the competition during the job application process, it is hard to convey the importance placed on exams and other standardized tests in Korean culture without having seen on experienced first hand just how much time and money is dedicated towards such pursuits here. Based on a true story, SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS is set in the year 1995 when the English language was firmly establishing itself as a core subject in schools and on such tests, thus making it a critical point of study for every Korean in their academic and professional lives. And whether they liked it or not, a new image of prestige had become attached to proficiency in English.
Being set in pre-financial crisis 1995, SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS portrays a vibrant company life for a group of women in a way that has for the most part fallen out of fashion today. The ladies work for a big company in a position typically filled by qualified high school graduates that did not attend university. Their roles are respected but mostly secretarial or custodial in nature. They spend their days preparing coffee, changing out ashtrays and making sure fresh packs of cigarettes are ready for the bosses.
SAMJIN is one such company with its large staff of aspiring career women in this position. Working in product management department three, Ja-young (Go Ah-sung) keeps the office running smoothly with her positive outlook and resourcefulness, but is simply known for being an instant-coffee brew-master. Over in the marketing department, the straightforward Yuna (Esom) is used to bail out struggling ad campaigns with her hard-hitting one-liner’s that save the day. Finally, the Mathematical Olympiad champion, Bo-ram (Park Hye-soo), finds her math wizardry skills being used to fill out fake receipts in the accounting department.
The ladies enjoy beer after work together and share in the dream of finding themselves in a better position at the company one day. In their eighth year, SAMJIN begins to offer promotions to those who score a 600 or higher on a standardized English test. This is an excellent chance for the ladies to elevate themselves into a base level job at the big company.
One day, Ja-young learns her company SAMJIN may be responsible for a hazardous chemical leak running off into the nearby countryside. But when the results from a company-sponsored laboratory test appear doctored, she suspects a cover up. With the help of her friends Yuna and Bo-ram, the three ladies utilize their wit and determination to uncover the truth. Their efforts put their futures at the company at risk as a wave of turmoil is sent roaring through the company that splashes up to the highest levels of management.
Unless coming into SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS with little to no knowledge of films like Erin Brockvitch (2000) or the more recent Dark Waters (2019), the story of the little guy going after a powerful and shady polluting company will be extremely familiar here. Thankfully, the best aspect of SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS is its colorful and lively recreation of mid 90’s Korean work culture and the entertaining performances from its lead actors. The film features an attractive, rich color palette and well-designed interiors that provide a great retro vibe void of smart phones and other modern tech while the girls employ classic detective measures such as sneaking into hotel rooms and intercepting faxes.
Go Au-sung (The Host, A Resistance) plays the ambitious central character Ja-young that drives the narrative in SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS with her heart of gold and brave spirit to seek out justice. While her performance is impressive as usual and a great anchor for the trio, the flawless character Ja-young comes across as a bit too perfect for my taste. Park Hye-soo (Swing Kids) as the quirky mathematician Bor-ram brought a great mix of laughs and melodrama to the film. Her character has a great relationship with a senior employee in her department who acts as a mentor to her that was nice to see, and may be highly relatable to office workers.
But since actress Esom (Microhabitat, Scarlet Innocence) is a personal favorite actress of mine, I may be biased when saying I like her role as Yuna the best. Everything from her hair style and wardrobe to the strong way Yuna carries herself, Esom brings an air of authenticity to the role that effectively transported me to the 90’s. And the three actresses together provide a great representation of the various female employees of the era.
The most surprising aspect of SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS was just how much of a role the actual English language played (or not). While their English class brings a moderate level of charm and identity to the movie, it plays only a minor role in the story. Without giving away spoilers, the English lessons become part of a bigger narrative of globalization and the new direction Korean companies had begun to take at the time. Looking back on history, SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS could be seen as the prequel to 2018’s Default, a film that chronicles the backroom dealings with the IMF during the financial crisis of 1997.
But as in Black Money (2019), the way westerners and bigger foreign investment in Korea is portrayed comes off as so cartoonish. As an American myself, there are moments in SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS that felt embarrassing at best and xenophobic at worst. When you have B-grade western actors speaking lines like, “Hey, where’s the McDonalds?” and “Come with us babe, it will be fun!” to women in the hotel hallways, regardless of how true it is, I was face-palming. Much like with the over-the-top Donald Trump portrayal in Steel Rain 2: Summit (2020), the filmmakers of SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS make casting and dialogue decisions that seem to run counterintuitive to the successful expansion of Korean film into global markets with such heavy mockery.
Overall, SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS is a very watchable and often enjoyable drama film that follows traditional whistleblower and underdog story beats. With the familiar story and 90’s retro vibe done so well, the film could actually pass as a movie made 25 years go if it didn’t look so pretty and come with all the technical specs of modern filmmaking. While it disappoints with overly nationalistic overtones and an underwhelming final message, SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS is one that will appeal to a wide range of viewers with its entertaining performances and a lush ‘blast from the past’ visual style.
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