Victims of sexual depictions in ‘The Glory’ and ‘Casino’

《Kim Ji-won’s KakaoTalk》
‘Today’s story that is open and harsh’. Reporter Kim Ji-won of Ten Asia harshly criticizes entertainment and broadcasting industry issues from a difficult perspective.

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Stewardesses are people who provide various services onboard to help passengers reach their destinations comfortably and safely. They are neatly dressed in uniform and always have smiling faces and treat passengers kindly and kindly. These are professional female professionals. However, they are still often sexualized in content such as some dramas, movies, and music videos. The same goes for Netflix's 'The Glory' and Disney+'s 'Casino'. It is a blind spot that is missed while following the fun and meaning of the work.

'The Glory', which depicts the revenge of a victim of school violence, is receiving favorable reviews for raising awareness of the seriousness of school violence. Choi Hye-jeong (Cha Joo-young), who was one of the people who harassed Moon Dong-eun (Song Hye-kyo) in 'The Glory', is a stewardess. Because of the scene where Moon Dong-eun sends a warning message to Choi Hye-jeong by saying "Stewardess Hye-jeong," this line is sometimes used as a catchphrase. In the play, Jeon Jae-jun (played by Park Seong-hoon), who is on an airplane, meets Choi Hye-jeong on the plane and slyly says, “Sing her a lullaby,” and “Are there any other warm services?” Jeon Jae-jun is also one of the perpetrators of school violence. Jeon Jae-jun, who believes in his family's wealth and lives a carefree life, subtly treats Choi Hye-jeong with disdain.

The same goes for the school violence perpetrators, Park Yeon-jin (played by Lim Ji-yeon) and Lee Sa-ra (played by Kim Hi-ra). On the surface, the relationship between them and Choi Hye-jeong is 'friends', but in reality, it is closer to a master-slave relationship. Choi Hye-jeong is very vain. Yeon-jin Park and Lee Sa-ra notice that Hye-jeong Choi wears designer clothes that were left at the dry cleaners, so they deliberately leave expensive designer clothes at the dry cleaners and encourage Hye-jeong Choi to come out wearing them. Choi Hye-jeong was disgraced. Park Yeon-jin insults Choi Hye-jeong by saying, “Why are you making fun of your snout instead of just drinking and making fun of your body?” In this scene, Choi Hye-jeong is wearing a white dress that clings too tightly to her body. The chest area is deep and exposes a lot of the breasts.

Even in the scene where she is trying on a wedding dress, Choi Hye-jeong's character is portrayed as unsophisticated. Choi Hye-jeong says, “I beat the competition by quite a few,” and shakes her shoulders and waist excessively, pulling up the chest of her off-shoulder dress.

Cha Hye-jeong is described as somewhat sexual and greedy. Of course, it may be the inclination and personality of Cha Hye-jeong, regardless of occupation. However, on the other hand, one could ask why the occupation of a character who is vain and enjoys wearing revealing clothes should be a stewardess.

In ‘Casino’, a female character is also sexually objectified. The role is Kim So-jeong, a former flight attendant and hotel manager played by Son Eun-seo.

‘Casino’ is a work depicting the life story of Cha Mu-sik (played by Choi Min-sik), a man who became a ‘casino legend’ in the Philippines. Cha Mu-sik, who succeeded in the casino business in Manila, and his subordinate Yang Jeong-pal (played by Lee Dong-hwi) move to Kalisz and become acquainted with Kim So-jeong, who was working at a local hotel.

Yang Jeong-pal falls in love at first sight with the elegant appearance of Kim So-jeong, who works at the hotel reception, and the two develop a friendship. When Yang Jeong-pal, who came out of the rain, said, "You'll get better if you rest," Kim So-jeong gave her a cleaned hotel room and ended up sleeping with Yang Jeong-pal even though it was work time. Kim So-jeong, who wanted to move to a better hotel, asks Yang Jeong-pal to ask Cha Moo-sik for a favor. Thanks to this, Kim So-jung gets a job as a manager at a hotel with a casino run by Cha Moo-sik. Meanwhile, he gets to know Yang Jeong-pal's colleague, Philip (Lee Hae-woo). When Philip shows interest in her and says, "Jung-pal likes me a lot," Kim So-jung firmly says, "We're not in that kind of relationship." Philip also praises Kim So-jung's stylish uniform. Eventually, the two end up sleeping together.

In ‘Casino’, Kim So-jung is portrayed as an ambitious character. In order to win the attention of Chairman Ko (Lee Hye-young), who bets billions at the casino, he goes to great lengths to say, "If you call me anytime, I'll be your drinking buddy." She does not complain when Chairman Ko touches her body, and even answers silently when asked about the color of her underwear.

It is quite understandable that a flight attendant with excellent foreign language skills and a strong service spirit would work as a manager at a foreign hotel. However, the sight of a character who seeks to achieve her ambitions by using men and the rich does not come across as pleasant.

It is coincidental that in both 'The Glory' and 'Casino', the greedy, vain, and sexually objectified character is a former flight attendant. As Choi Hye-jeong of ‘The Glory’ said, they overcome high competition and get a job as a flight attendant after intense effort. It leaves a bitter impression that she is portrayed as a dull, mean, and undignified stewardess, rather than as a professional, bright, and kind stewardess, in both 'The Glory', a work with a lot of symbolism, and 'Casino', a crime action drama.

Kim Ji-won, Ten Asia reporter bella@tenasia.co.kr