'' The Unforgiven '' was a feature-length graduation thesis film from director Yoon Jong-bin , then an undergraduate in Chung-Ang University film school . Despite its rough edges due to technical limitations and a low budget , the film was a smash hit at the 2005 Busan International Film Festival and won the following awards : Best Korean Feature , Most Popular Film in the New Currents section , FIPRESCI , and NETPAC ( " for its critical reflection on ' masculinity ' , not only in South Korea or the military , but in contemporary society in general " ) . This generated wide publicity for the film , giving it a chance to be shown at respectable arthouse theaters in Seoul . Unfortunately , director Yoon found himself the object of litigation by the Defense Department , when the film turned out to be a far cry from the heartwarming " story of friendship inside the barracks " the Defense Department had apparently read in screenplay form , before they granted Yoon permission to shoot his film inside the authentic living quarters . Yoon acknowledged his act of deception and stated that he will accept the appropriate punishment . Not only does the film deal with the difficult and formerly taboo subject of mandatory military service in South Korea , but it does so with an admirable level of thoughtfulness and honesty . ''Koreanfilm.org '' describes the film 's last scene as " one of the most painfully honest renderings of young Korean men seen in a Korean film , whose souls are eaten away by the price they paid for having ' adjusted ' themselves to become good soldiers and upstanding ' real men ' . '' The Unforgiven '' is a must-see for anyone who seeks to gain insight into the inner psychology of South Korean men , and a stupendously promising debut for yet another talented Korean filmmaker . " The film also screened in the Un Certain Regard section of the 2006 Cannes Film Festival
2006 Cannes Film Festival
2006 Cannes Film Festival
The Unforgiven (2005 film)