A MOVIE REVIEW ON “THE ADMIRAL: ROARING CURRENTS”

The movie entitled, “The Admiral: Roaring Currents” was directed and co-written by

Kim Han-min and released in cinemas last 2014. It is inspired by the true historical events that

occurred in the Battle of Myeongnyang during the Joseon period in Korea (Borowiec, 2014). To

convey a specific theme, I would like to focus on the dynamic between Admiral Yi Sun-Shin

(Choi Min-sik) and the 200 surviving sailors that were under his command. By analysing the

relationship between these two parties and how their interactions change throughout the film, we

can see one important lesson that could be taken from that interplay and applied in different

contexts in real life; and that is the importance of giving your full trust to your leaders who have

already proven themselves to be worthy of it.

In every societal setting, there will always be the role of a leader and the roles of

followers. At the beginning, some of these followers might only go along with the orders of their

leader just because they are obligated to do so but when a leader is genuine, sensible, skilled, and

able to prove himself worthy of his position, that obligation eventually turns into loyalty. One

thing that we can notice from the relationship between Admiral Yi and his men in the beginning

is that they felt more obligated to follow orders rather than loyal to him. They were trapped in

the cages of duty and responsibility of a soldier. Even a few of them ran away while sabotaging

the most powerful ship that their fleet had. However, throughout the process of their preparation

for battle, majority of them stayed not just because of honour or courage but because they are

aware of the fortitude of the man who was leading them, his impressive battles and

achievements, and they knew that he did not just deserve a half-baked sense of obedience from

his soldiers but their loyalty and respect even though they do not share the same belief as their

leader on winning the upcoming battle. This can be applied in how we initially interact with our
leaders especially if we do not truly know how they rose to their position, how they handled their

obstacles, and how their minds work. Nevertheless, Obligation being converted into a small

spark of loyalty is the first step to unconditionally trusting a leader.

According to a study conducted by management practitioners from Forbes and Strategy

+ Business, interactions based on reciprocal concern and sensibleness make employees more

trustful to their leaders and as a result, they become more productive and less likely to quit from

their jobs (Ouslis, 2019). Personally speaking, I believe that this is what Admiral Yi lacked in the

story. Perhaps it was due to his stoic and cold disposition melded by countless bloody battles,

Admiral Yi used fear to rally his troops. In reality, if leaders use fear to control their followers

then their obedience will not last. Instead, what followers should look for in their leaders is their

ability to know the right balance between values – leaders who know how to be firm yet open-

minded, strong yet empathetic, and courageous yet wise. Leaders who know how to enact justice

within their people in the right way also tend to gain more trust which in return, makes their

teams or organizations stronger and harder to defeat. If you want to start following a leader, then

determine if he possesses the necessary skills, the right mind, and a genuine heart for the job; this

way your loyalty and trust will never be in vain.

The last point I would like to leave is that the relationship between leaders and followers

is a two-way process. For a team to work, it does not solely fall on the hands of a leader. When

leaders have already proven themselves and fulfilled their jobs then that means it’s also time for

followers to reciprocate that with full trust. This means that whatever plan, command, or request

that leaders give theit followers, they must follow them without question or hesitation. In

military culture, it is heavily inculcated that no matter how questionable an authoritative figure’s

order is, the soldiers under him/her must obey. Again, this is not because of fear nor shallow
obligation, but because these leaders have already earned the trust of their followers by turning

their lip service into reality, keeping their promises, and making a conscious effort in being

supportive, confident, and dependable.

Therefore, based on the main reasons pointed out above, in any organization or team,

trust plays a valuable role in achieving success. When there is only fear instead of trust, then a

team’s environment will only be a toxic and suffocating one. In most cases, it is believed that the

leader holds all the responsibility for the success of a healthy two-way relationship, however, the

followers are supposed to be responsible for half of that as well. No matter how skilled and great

a leader is, and even if that leader is the best of the best, if the followers choose not to give their

trust then most plans can never come to fruition. Hence, trusting your leaders and respecting

their authority at all costs could be the difference between victory and defeat or life and death

itself.
 REFERENCES

Borowiec, S., (2014). Heroic tale of ‘the admiral: roaring currents’ is a hit in South Korea.

Retrieved June 23, 2021 from: https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-

et-mn-ca-korean-film-20140817-story.html

Ouslis, N., (2019). Trust in leadership – one key factor during organizational change. Retrieved

June 23, 2021 from: https://scienceforwork.com/blog/trust-in-leadership-change/