FilmSnobReviews

Title: Free Chol Soo Lee
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Directors: Julie Ha, Eugene Yi
Starring: Chol Soo Lee, Ranko Yamada, K.W. Lee
Runtime: 1 hr 23 mins

What It Is: Chol Soo Lee is a Korean immigrant living in San Francisco’s Chinatown. When he is accused and subsequently charged with the murder of a Chinese gang he is put in jail. This injustice, a man in jail for a crime he didn’t commit did not sit well with many people including those that knew Lee and especially with investigative reporter K.W. Lee we created an organization whose sole purpose was to fix the broken system and demand a retrial for an innocent man.

What We Think: This is absolutely a stunner of a true story. If it hadn’t actually happened to a real living I probably wouldn’t have believed it. Ha and Yi do an amazing job of gathering the facts and presenting them in an honest and sincere way. Even when Chol Soo Lee isn’t necessarily a hero you’re rooting for him. You’re doing so because the facts are presented in such a way that you and we the audience realize what’s happening. A seriously impactful piece.

Our Grade: B-, There’s something to this documentary. It’s excellently done. It’s a true story and that might be the craziest thing of it all. Check out the documentary It’s certainly one that will have you angry at the justice system (something fairly easy in the year of our lord 2022) and seething at the injustice of it all. If you’re not ready to be put in a bad mood then for sure don’t watch it. But there is something refreshing about seeing the work of these brave people trying to right a wrong, even if the person they’re helping isn’t helping himself much. So there’s definitely that.