He’s On Duty (also known as Banga? Banga!) was released in 2010, and it is a comedy film that takes a look at the very real racial issues present in South Korea. The film follows Tae Shik (played by Kim In Kwon) who seems to have a tough time ever finding a job, and we are lead to believe that this is due to his darker than normal skin and unusually short stature which leads other people to assume he is not Korean.
Under the influence of his exasperated friend, Yong Chul, who tells him to make use of his disadvantages, in a last bid attempt to gain employment Tae Shik dons an ethnic hat and puts on an odd accent to disguise himself as a foreigner, and tells people that he is Banga from Bhutan. Under his new identity, he immediately gets a job at a chair manufacturing factory.
Despite a shaky beginning with his foreign co-workers, Tae Shik finds himself fitting in with them well and quickly comes to see the inequality and unfair treatment of non-Koreans in his workplace. After finding a sense of camaraderie with his foreign co-workers, his loyalties unfortunately get put to the test as nearly-broke Yong Chul decides that he wants to swindle their money.
I highly recommend He’s On Duty to pretty much anyone, as even though this film holds no bars on how it depicts racism in Korea, overall this film is still a light hearted comedy! Mistaken identities and hair brained schemes are plentiful throughout, and you’ll never stop rooting for the foreigners!
Have you ever seen this film before? Planning on watching it? Let us know what you think!
