"The Murmuring" 1995

Today’s film is actually one of the few documentaries that make this list. It’s called The Murmuring (1995). It was directed by BYUN Yonug-joo, and is the first in a three part documentary series on Korea’s Comfort Women (the other two documentaries are Habitual Sadness and My Own Breathing). This documentary is about a support group for Korean Comfort Women who meet once a week to protest against the Japanese government.


During World War II, the Japanese Imperial government conscripted (many say ‘enslaved’) females to sexually service the Japanese soldiers on several fronts. Every week these survivors meet and protest, demanding not only an open apology, but reparations as well. Many of these women would settle for Japan to even acknowledge the heinous act.

The documentary is very low key and the women are allowed to be completely candid and uninhibited. We are shown their struggle to find normalcy in a world that has abused them and the discarded them without recognition of their plight.

BYUN’s film represents a blatant challenge to the patriarchal view of history and narrative and was a political time bomb for Korean/Japanese relations. BYUN’s work constantly raises challenges to patriarchal society in Korea.

The Murmuring does not shy away from details either. We learn that from 1932 to 1945 over 200,000 females were forced sex slaves of the Japanese Imperial Army. While the majority were Korean, many were from other Asian countries as well. Their whole existence was subjugation to multiple rapes daily. Over 70% died before the end of the war. Due to Confucian codes, many were thought to be unmarriageable. The documentary poignantly depicts the deep sense of shame these women felt as they were abandoned by their own families, at least the ones who were even allowed repatriation.

This documentary makes no use of dramatic reenactments. There is not a recounting of the horrors these women faced. There’s no old footage to add verisimilitude. All the clichés of the genre are wisely avoided. What is then emphasized is the strength of these women allowed to show their bond through activism. And that is pretty powerful stuff. You can find all three of these documentaries in a beautiful box set . Enjoy.