Directors Julie Ha and Eugene Li, making their documentary feature debut, deftly combine the standard ingredients of interviews and archival materials in this history trip, nonfiction legal drama, intimate character profile and social tragedy.
A young Korean American unlucky in life, Chol Soo Lee ignited a movement in the Asian American community nearly five decades ago, when he was racially profiled, wrongfully convicted of murder and sent to prison, where, for a decade, he struggled to cope and survive. Long existing under the radar, his story is now the subject of a documentary opening Friday at the Roxie Theater. Expect to feel stirred by “Free Chol Soo Lee.
In 1973, the 20-year-old Lee, who had a felony conviction for grand theft on his record, was arrested and sentenced to life in prison for the murder of a Chinatown gang leader. While members of the Chinatown community knew that Lee didn’t commit the crime, police and prosecutors pursued a conviction. An inaccurate ballistics report and incorrect witness testimony, along with a poor performance by Lee’s court-appointed lawyer, helped bring about the guilty verdict.
“Comforting the afflicted and afflicting the comfortable” is how the quotable K.W. Lee has described what print journalism does. The group’s efforts resulted in a retrial for Lee, who, with better attorneys this time, was acquitted of the Chinatown murder charge.Triumph alternates with tragedy in Lee’s story, however. Spending 10 years in prison made it hard for Lee to thrive in society. Symbolizing a movement was a high-pressure responsibility. Lee feared that he couldn’t meet supporters’ expectations. He lacked adequate education and employment skills. He got hooked on drugs. An arson job left him severely burned.
“Lee had humanity,” Ha says. “He was resilient. People described him as a fighter. He cared deeply about those who supported him.”
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