Silmido

On 21 January 1968, 31 North Korean commandos of Unit 124 infiltrated South Korea in a failed mission to assassinate President Park Chung Hee. The operation provokes a sharp state response and intensifies cross-border tension. This event sets the stage for a retaliatory plan against North Korea.

In retaliation, the Republic of Korea Armed Forces assemble 31 social outcasts, including criminals on death row and life imprisonment, to form Unit 684. The recruits are promised redemption and a new life if they succeed. The mission is framed as a means to exact revenge on North Korea.

The recruits are taken to Silmido for months of grueling training, enduring harsh drills and brutal discipline. They face harsh conditions, including branding, aimed at building loyalty and readiness. The training is designed to turn out a formidable, undaunted unit.

Near the end of training, one recruit dies after a fall from a ropes course, underscoring the lethal stakes of Unit 684's preparation. The loss reverberates through the camp and magnifies the intensity of the program. The incident foreshadows the heavy human cost of the mission.

At the culmination of training, the unit is dispatched toward North Korea, but is recalled shortly after departure as diplomatic efforts intensify. The sudden change leaves the men questioning the truth of their redemption and the value of their sacrifices. The mission is effectively canceled before it begins.

The mission is canceled; the unit returns to Silmido discouraged and frustrated by the government's abrupt shift in policy. The recruits confront a grim reality: their loyalty has not earned them freedom, and their purpose remains unresolved. Tension and resentment grow within the ranks.

Two Unit 684 members escape from their barracks and rape a female doctor, triggering immediate punitive attention. The breach reveals systemic flaws within the unit’s control and the brutal reality of the training environment. The incident heightens paranoia and fear among the soldiers.

Believing execution is imminent, the two escapees attempt suicide; one kills the other at his partner's request before being stopped. The surviving prisoner is captured and returned to camp, where he is forced to witness guards beating fellow Unit 684 members for betrayal. The punishment deepens the cycle of anger and desperation.

The unit’s commander, torn by orders to eliminate them, leaks information about the plan to kill Unit 684 to one member. The revelation fuels mutinous talk as the unit realizes they are expendable and not eligible for recognition. This moment crystallizes the collapse of secure command and loyalty.

Fearing a night of execution, the unit mutinies, attacking and killing the majority of their guards. They learn from a guard that they legally do not exist and would never be recognized for their mission, prompting a desperate decision to escape and tell their story. The mutiny marks a turning point toward a larger escape plan.

The 20 surviving members seize a civilian bus, drive toward Seoul, and trigger a state of emergency announced over the radio, labeling them as armed communist agents. Civilians on board become unintended victims as the pursuit escalates. The group's plan shifts from escape to a public confrontation.

The group charges through an army roadblock and is surrounded by soldiers in front of the Yuhan Corporation building in Dongjak District, Seoul. A brutal firefight erupts, resulting in heavy casualties on both sides, including many soldiers and civilians on the bus. The confrontation reaches its bloody climax on the streets of the capital.

To avoid further bloodshed, the surviving Unit 684 members release civilian hostages and commit suicide using their own hand grenades. The climactic act ends the unit's story with a tragic sacrifice. Seoul reels from the night's violence and the loss of its young soldiers.

An official investigation into the incident is carried out, but the report is not read and is filed away in storage. The episode ends with a sense of bureaucratic burying of facts rather than accountability. The event remains a hidden scar in the national memory.