1987: When the Day Comes directed by Jang Joon-hwan and written by Kim Kyung-chan is a well - meaning fictional attempt to tell the story of events leading up to the real life 1987 June Democratic Uprising in Korea. This was triggered by the death of a student protester during police interrogation which the authorities conspire to cover up. The movie starts well when focusing on the actions of the honest medical examiner and prosecutor who both are disinclined to look the other way and authorise a fake mock-up of the cause of death to cardiac arrest.

However the story line flow falters when the narrative spreads outwards to include the perspectives of police, both good and bad, journalists trying to ascertain the facts of the case, other university students, prison guards, catholic priests, people on the street and established political authorities. There simply are too many characters involved on which to concentrate one's attention. Director Kim would have been well - advised to just focus on a few key personalities instead of casting his net so far and wide, albeit with the worthy aim of reflecting the general population's demand for democratic reform.

The movie is successful though at depicting the fact that South Korea, barely a year before the 1988 Seoul Olympics was for all intensive purposes, a dictatorship, something many modern Westerners may fail to realise, aware only of the vibrant democracy that is the current Sixth Republic of South Korea. In a long roundabout fashion, 1987 does manage to reflect its genesis.

I'm Chinese, and I hope that, one day, my country can admit the fault about what happened in 1989 officially.

I shall be the first to admit that i dont know much about south korean post korean war - till present day, i do though remember the student uprising that was mentioned in norwegian news, ''crazy punks'' i thought then, but that was then. after watching 1987 that covers the run up for the june struggle ,i have got another insight angle, and do see better what they fought for, that nearly let south korea into a stand still due to protests and general strikes until the regime and president were overthrown.

this is one of the best east asian movies that i have seen. the acting are very convincing, the grave violence and brutal force that the anti commi squad were using were plausible, as where the scenes of grief , sorrow and pain. espescially the screams of the captured victims were gruelling real. there are so many actors, so to accentuate any would be unfair, because the spirit seems to be filled with pride just to be a part of this project.

the cinematography are great, the unbelievable number of locations and setups, and the direction of the crews and extras are impressive.the pace are definately not slow, the narrative story are extremely well told,the plot and timeline are easy to follow, magnificent editing and the make up and bad weather department have extended their limits of their profession..

there have been used a little bit of visual effects,and some real news coverage to fill the base of the story, very well balanced.

the high tension , and the tragic loss of lifes , did really affect me. so if you are gonna watch this flick of 10 stars , do read some political history of south korea in the 1980's before viewing the film 1987, that will enhance the impression of this historical drama. its highly recommended by the grumpy old man.