The General's Mustache

Hailed as a masterpiece of modern Korean cinema, The General's Mustache could easily lay claim to greatness just for the short animation by artist Shin Dong-hun that's contained within it. Written by Kim Seung-ok and directed by Lee Seong-gu, The General's Mustache was adapted from Lee O-Ryoung's novel of the same name and is considered one of the best Korean films of the 1960s. While writing a novel called The General's Mustache, Kim Chul-hoon dies of carbon monoxide poisoning in the room he has been renting. Detective Park, skeptical of the cause of death, sets out to investigate, meeting people along the way who knew the writer. He also discovers more about Chul-hoon's work, a novel about a mustached general who has become a national hero. In tribute to the general, the people in the novel grow mustaches like him, but the protagonist refuses to do so and is met with scorn. (Busan International Film Festival)