Korean period drama THE FORTRESS to be released on Amazon, Google Play and iTunes on May 1, 2008

International Poster Courtesy CJ Entertainment

The Fortress / Namhansanseong

Directed by HWANG Dong-hyuk

Starring LEE Byung-hun

South Korea, 2017, 140 minutes

CJ Entertainment will be releasing The Fortress, a period drama featuring popular South Korean actor, LEE Byung-hun, best known for Magnificent Seven and Terminator Genisys on Amazon, Google Play, and iTunes on May 1, 2018. This title played in 18 cities across the U.S. and Canada last Fall. It was the main feature of Korean Film Days at the Asian World Film Festival in Los Angeles, and also opened at the London East Asia Film Festival (LEAFF) in London last year. The cost is $14.99 to purchase High Definition (HD), $9.99 to purchase Standard Definition (SD), $4.99 to rent High Definition (HD), and $3.99 to rent Standard Definition (SD).

The Fortress is set in 1636, when the Chinese Qing Dynasty has invaded Korea with 150,000 troops. The Korean court flees the capital to take shelter in the Namhan Fortress, located in treacherous mountains outside the city. The Qing army, led by General Yong Gol Dae, quickly surrounds the fortress, leaving the king and the court stranded in a prolonged standoff. For a truce, the Qing general makes a humiliating proposal that they send the Crown Prince out as hostage. Unable to move forward or fight the enemy they are outnumbered by, the people of the fortress start dying from cold and hunger. The king now faces an impossible choice between protecting his people and standing up to those looking to destroy them.

This film is directed by esteemed director HWANG Dong-hyuk (Miss Granny, Silenced, My Father). His 2014 hit Korean comedy, Miss Granny (Chinese version) reached $55M in the box office and has been remade for Japan, Vietnam, and several other countries. It was remade in English with Tyler Perry’s 34th Street Films and in Spanish with Eugenio Derbez’s 3pas Studios.

HWANG’s new period drama also stars KIM Yoon-seok (Will You Be There?, The Priests, Haemoo), PARK Hae-il (The Last Princess, Eungyo, War of the Arrows) and GO Soo (The Royal Tailor, Way Back Home, The Front Line).

Korean comedy MISS GRANNY opens today in limited theatrical release

CJ Entertainment

Presents

 Miss Granny

Directed by HWANG Dong-hyuk

South Korea, 2013, 124 minutes

The delightful South Korea comedy Miss Granny opens in three U.S. markets today: Los Angeles (CGV Cinemas), New York (Bay Terrace), and New Jersey (Edgewater Multiplex). (Info and showtimes are available at the official Miss Granny website. Note- see addendum at the end of this review for three additional cities.)

Miss Granny is a transformation tale along the lines of Big (1988). In that film a young boy is magically transformed physically into the body of an adult. However in Miss Granny, the aging process is reversed: a 74 year old grandmother becomes a twenty year old version of herself.

OH Mal-soon (actress NA Moon-Hee) is the granny in question. Widowed at a young age, she raised her only child, BAN Hyun-Chul (SUNG Dong-Il, Foxy Festival, 200 Pounds Beauty), on her own. BAN is now a professor at a prestigious national university, and an authority on gerontology. OH lives with him, his wife and their teenage son BAN Ji-Ha, who writes songs and plays in a heavy metal band, and daughter.

OH works at a senior cafe. Mr. Park (PARK In-Hwan), a widower, is her neighbor and co-worker; he has cared about her for years. As a youth, he worked as a house servant in her home, so they have a long history together.

Actress NA Moon-Hee, left, as OH Mal-soon

OH is a crotchety, cantankerous old battle-ax. When OH's "suggestions" to her daughter-in-law, which are really no more than a veiled series of criticisms, result in her developing a serious heart condition, the family comes to think granny must go live in a retirement home, at least for awhile.

Dispirited, OH wanders the streets alone and comes across the Forever Young Portrait Studio. She decides to have her funeral photograph taken, and the photographer promises to make her look fifty-some years younger. Afterwards, while riding on a bus, she discovers that that is exactly what has happened. Though her mind is still that of a 74 year old, she now looks just like she did when she was twenty!

Even as a twenty year old, Miss Granny cannot resist feeding her grandson.

Taking the name of Audrey Hepburn, her favorite actress, she reinvents herself as OH Doo-Ri and is now played by SHIM Eun-Kyung (Sunny, Masquerade). Comic incidents abound as she makes the most of her new-found youth and begins to realize the dream of her youth, namely to become a singer. Only now it's with her grandson's band!

There's lots of credit to go around for the phenomenal way this film succeeds. The story was written by SHIN Dong-Ick, HONG Yoon-Jeong, and DONG Hee-sun. In addition to directing the film, HWANG Dong-Hyeuk also did the screenplay adaptation. I don't know who did the English subtitles, but whoever is responsible is to be most highly commended. Physical comedy relatively easily crosses borders, but the verbal aspects of comedy face many pitfalls. In Miss Granny, the sense of young OH Doo-Ri speaking in the vernacular of an old woman really comes across delightfully.

OH Doo-Ri (SHIM Eun-Kyun) rediscovers one of the joys of being youthful 

Which brings me to SHIM Eun-Kyung. While the entire cast puts in commendable performances, SHIM's is outstanding, a real revelation. In facial gestures, body language, and dialogue delivery, she does a remarkable job of convincingly portraying the opinionated, quarrelsome old woman inside the youthful body of a twenty year old.

ACF Rating: 3.5 out of 4 stars; very, very highly recommended.

Addendum, Monday February 3rd: The official Miss Granny website now indicates that the film is also playing in Honolulu, Toronto and Vancouver.

South Korean comedy MISS GRANNY opening at select U.S. theaters Friday

CJ Entertainment

Presents

 Miss Granny

Directed by HWANG Dong-hyuk

South Korea, 2013, 124 minutes

The delightful South Korea comedy Miss Granny is coming to North American theaters this coming Friday, January 31st. The movie will be released in Los Angeles (CGV Cinemas), New York (Bay Terrace), and New Jersey (Edgewater Multiplex).

Synopsis - Oh Mal-Soon (Na Moon-Hee) is a 74-year-old widow that realizes she is becoming a burden on her family. As she is roaming the streets, she comes across a photo studio and decides to dress up for a self-portrait. When she walks out of the photo studio, she mysteriously turns back into her twenty year old self. Making the most out of this one in a lifetime opportunity, she changes her name to Oh Doo-Ri (Shim Eun-Kyung) and decides to make the most out of her youth.

Look for a full review here at AsianCineFest later this week.