Disney+ K-drama Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born – Kim Tae-ri in evocative period music drama
Kim Tae-ri stars as talented young singer Yoon Jeong-nyeon whose mother (Moon So-ri) tries to stop her singing, in this Disney+ period drama
Lead cast: Kim Tae-ri, Shin Ye-eun, Ra Mi-ran, Jung Eun-chae, Kim Yoon-hye
Latest Nielsen rating: 8.2 per cent
When serious international writing about Korean screen culture began early this century, there was a lot of talk of han and jeong, concepts used to describe the unique emotional heft of Korean storytelling, and Korean culture at large.
These terms refer to a well of emotions and experiences common to all Koreans, rooted in the country’s difficult history. Simply put, jeong is the emotion that binds Koreans together, while han describes the deep-seated anger that many carry with them.
In writing about Korean culture today, we tend to steer away from these terms, not only because they risk being reductive, but also because they may not apply in the same way to younger generations for whom the darkest days of 20th century Korea are ancient history.
