YMCA Baseball Team

YMCA Baseball Team
Theatrical poster
Hangul	YMCA
Hanja	YMCA
Revised Romanization	YMCA Yagudan
McCune–Reischauer	YMCA Yagudan
Directed by	Kim Hyun-seok
Produced by	Shim Jae-myung
Written by	Kim Hyun-seok
Starring	Song Kang-ho Kim Hye-soo Kim Joo-hyuk Hwang Jung-min
Edited by	Kim Sang-bum
Distributed by	Myung Films
Release date	10 October 2002 (2002-10-10)
Country	South Korea
Language	Korean
Box office	US$8,271,113

YMCA Baseball Team (Hangul: YMCA 야구단; RR: YMCA Yagudan) is a semi-historical 2002 South Korean comedy film.

In 1905, there was a confluence of international events leading to the loss of Chosŏn Korean sovereignty, and by 1910, Japan formally annexed Korea outright. The Japanese, having already defeated Qing China (1895) and signed an alliance with the United Kingdom (1902), defeated Imperial Russia (1905), and signed a secret agreement with the United States (1905) to respect each other’s "sphere of influence" in the Pacific. In these chaotic times, an eclectic group of Koreans find refuge in the quintessentially American pastime.

The film plays out as a flashback, experienced by a young Korean boy, as he, like his great-great grandfather prepares to play baseball. The flashback opens with the protagonist of the film, Yi Ho-chang, and his friend in a field. The two are supposed to be studying; however Yi Ho-chang is preoccupied with his soccer ball, which he accidentally kicks into a nearby property. Ho-chang climbs the gate to retrieve his ball, and finds himself within the walls of the American Christian missionary school. There he discovers a much smaller and harder ball, which he comically mistakes for his shrunken soccer ball. At this point a Christian missionary appears and explains to the confused Ho-chang that he is in fact holding a baseball. Ho-chang quickly flees the premise; however his fascination with the new sport ensures his return for further investigation. Ho-chang, accompanied by several interested Koreans return to the school to join the YMCA baseball league. The unlikely group, and their female coach, Min Jung-rim prove to be successful, and quickly become the pride of their town.

Throughout the film Ho-chang falls madly in love with his un-interested female coach, adding to the comic relief. One day while headed to practice the team is confronted by a group of Japanese soldiers, who claim that their practice ground is a new Japanese training camp. To settle the dispute one of the team members, Oh Dae-hyeon, who went to school in Tokyo with the Japanese Officer, suggests a competitive game of baseball. The game would not only settle the dispute, but it would also be a way for the Koreans to establish themselves against Japan, and for the players to further prove themselves to the skeptics of their town. Meanwhile, a more serious dispute is going on between the Korean diplomats and the revolutionary thinkers, over the signing of the Eulsa Treaty that officially made Korea a protectorate of Japan. Coincidentally, Oh Dae-hyeon and Min Jong-rim are members of the Anti-Eulsa League, an organization formed in protest of the Five Eulsa Traitors, which one of their teammate’s, Kwang-tae, father belongs to. Due to all of the suppressed tension, the YMCA team loses to the Japanese, also losing their chance to dignify themselves in the face of their suppressors. Devastated over the loss, the team members decide to abandon baseball and return to more practical roles in society. Ho-chang fulfills his fathers wish and takes over the family school, despite his desires to become a great baseball player. In the end, the team reunites for one final and quite dramatic rematch against the Japanese. The Koreans victory in this rematch symbolizes their unity in baseball, and their ability to come together despite the social and cultural issues facing the changing country.