In this blog post, I’ll analyze the impact the movie “The Hitchhikers” had on me and examine its documentary-style elements.
Why “The Hitchhikers”?
I don’t remember exactly when, but there was a time when I decided to seek out a variety of films—not just those shown exclusively in multiplexes. I clearly remember watching it before starting college in 2014, and since the film was released in November 2013, it must have been sometime between those two dates. Before enrolling, I had majored in electrical engineering at another university, and every day felt like torture. After enduring such a grueling college life and being discharged as a reserve sergeant, I left for Jeju Island without knowing what to do next. While working as a guesthouse staff member for three months, I felt a deep sense of gratitude and a desperate longing for “leaving.” Through leaving, I saw and heard things I had never experienced before and came to know myself better, and that longing always remained in my heart. The movie ‘The Hitchhikers’, which I watched while preparing for college entrance exams, truly quenched my thirst for “leaving” that had been left unfulfilled by the exam grind. In this post, I’ll explore what it was about this movie that quenched my thirst.
‘The Hitchhikers’?
The concept of traveling around Europe for a year on 800,000 won originated from the director’s idea. This movie was born from a reckless challenge: to travel across all of Europe through barter—such as producing promotional videos for guesthouses and creating restaurant videos for lodging establishments in exchange for meals. Although various difficulties set them back right from the start, there was a compelling force that kept me watching—even though I didn’t quite understand why when I first saw the film. I’ll analyze those elements.
First is “youth.” While the older generation seems dissatisfied with today’s youth, the nature of hardships and the ways of overcoming them vary depending on the era and circumstances. The poverty and livelihood struggles faced by the older generation must have been incomparably more difficult. Thanks to their efforts, we now live without material want, but new forms of hardship have emerged. With the “3-po generation” already a thing of the past, and today’s youth facing “5-po,” “7-po,” and even “N-po,” it’s hard to fathom what else they’ll have to give up in the future. This film portrays young people who turned challenges—ones that are hard to face with courage—into action, conveying that the term “surplus” no longer carries only negative connotations. I, too, felt a sense of vicarious satisfaction watching the adversities in the film, and it inspired me to think, “I want to take on a challenge like that, too.” Seeing them turn their dreamlike ideas into reality—regardless of their majors or original aspirations—and create this film in the prime of their early twenties naturally drew my cheers and applause.
Second are the documentary elements. Perhaps these elements are the very heart of this film. Documentaries are composed of interviews, songs, subtitles, archival footage, and narration; what particularly stands out in this film are the narration, the animation, and the footage shot by the filmmakers themselves.
The director provided the narration himself. By not using a professional voice actor, the explanations of the situations come across as more authentic. Conversely, while limiting the on-screen sound carries the risk of distortion, I believe that in this case, having the subject narrate directly has a greater impact. He handled the role of narrator surprisingly well, filling in the gaps where the scenes alone weren’t sufficient.
In a documentary, excessive use of animation can diminish realism and appear like directorial intervention. However, in this film, various animations—such as maps showing the journey’s route, titles dividing major sequences, and actual promotional videos produced for the film—actually complement the documentary’s character. With almost no traditional interview format, this approach aligns well with the natural flow of conversation between the person filming and the person being filmed.
The most crucial element is the footage itself. Filmed with camcorders and DSLRs—rather than professional equipment—and without separate audio gear, the subjects’ voices aren’t picked up cleanly; instead, ambient noise and background sounds are captured as they are. The shaky camerawork and spontaneous insert shots make it difficult to find a single steady shot, but this actually creates an immersive experience, as if I were holding the camera myself. While the narration may have been staged in the later parts, I believe the raw, on-location footage is what most effectively brings out the film’s sense of reality.
Sequences from ‘The Hitchhikers’
Sequence 1: Armed with just 800,000 won and a camera, four “losers” (Ho-jae, Ha-bi, Hak, and Hwi), along with two older brothers and the sole female member, board a flight to Europe. Their plan is to travel across Europe for a year, securing room and board by producing promotional videos for lodging establishments, and ultimately shoot a music video—and with that plan in mind, they set foot in Paris for the first time. To save money, they walk and walk, eventually trying to hitchhike.
Sequence 2: Finding it difficult to find someone willing to pick up a group of seven, they split into teams to travel, with one group waiting for the other without a phone. Eventually, the older brothers and the sole female member leave after about a month, finding life in France too difficult, leaving only the remaining four members in France.
Sequence 3: They move from France to Rome, Italy, sending emails to every accommodation they can find and waiting for an opportunity, but receive no response. Every day, they wake up in the same tent, under the same blanket, wearing the same clothes. Just as they’re about to give up on their challenge after running out of money, an email arrives offering them the chance to create a promotional video for a hostel, giving them new hope when they’re on the brink of despair.
Sequence 4: As the promotional video they created for the hostel gains popularity, requests for similar videos keep pouring in, and they spend their days busy. Their lives become stable and comfortable, but since they must move to another country before their stay in Rome expires, they eventually head to Turkey—simply because they miss rice.
Sequence 5: In Turkey, they meet people who become like family, staying for a long time and forming deep bonds of friendship and affection. Their affection was so deep that they even went to another country briefly before returning to Turkey as their stay was about to expire, but in the end, they had to choose a farewell with no set date for their return.
Sequence 6: After leaving Turkey for the UK, they received a commission to produce a hotel promotional video and traveled to the UK to complete the project. They seemed to have picked up some hitchhiking skills and enjoyed the experience, working 12-hour shifts at their lodging while also juggling work on a music video.
Sequence 7: A subtle rift forms among the members when Ho-jae sends an email—without prior discussion—stating his intention to shoot a music video for a musician he admires. Rather than arguing, they accept the situation and finish the music video they were originally commissioned to make, but Ho-jae sends an email explaining that he can’t start the Arko music video he wants and won’t be able to complete it anytime soon. A heart-wrenching reply arrives from Arko.
Sequence 8: Eventually, Ho-jae leaves to secure the music video on his own, and the remaining three, worried about him, follow after him. Harvey, who usually lags behind, shows a different side of himself and, inspired by the moment, completes Arko’s music video.
You, Me, and “Surplus”
Doing nothing, feeling bored, or having nothing to do are often described as “being surplus.” In the Chinese character dictionary, “surplus” is defined as “① what remains after everything has been used up; ② the remainder.” Looking at it another way, one could say that “surplus” is the final element needed to complete the whole. I hope that all young people living in the present, wherever they may be, will become valued beings—not mere leftovers.
