ACF 677: Reminder - Free Screening of "Turn It Up To 11" September 14th

TURN IT UP TO 11
2009, 93 minutes
New York Premiere
Showtime: 7:00 PM
Doors open: 6:30 PM
Price: Free.
Seating: first-come, first served

KOREAN MOVIE NIGHT's latest series of films continues tomorrow, Tuesday September 14th with this winner of four major film awards, a documentary that spawned the Korean catch phrase, "I don't think we're gonna make it." TURN IT UP TO 11 is a rambunctious rock n'roll odyssey about Incheon's unlikeliest talent incubator: Ruby Salon.

A tiny, hole-in-the-wall club founded by aging punk Lee Kyou-Young, who moved back home to Incheon after accidentally getting his girlfriend pregnant, Ruby Salon is the seed that sprouts two bands: Galaxy Express, a tight, ambitious outfit that dreams of stardom; and Tobacco Juice, a band whose members are so lazy they can't even be bothered to show up for gigs.

As one band goes up, and the other goes down, this slacker doc follows them to shows, bars, massive concerts, antagonistic rehearsals and empty clubs in the best movie ever made about the Korean music scene.

Beyond the publicity material above, I can say that I watched a DVD screener of the film and found it fascinating and insightful. Unfortunately, and due to events totally unrelated to the film and the screening, I'm not able to put up a full review at this time. Suffice it to say that Turn It Up To 11 gets an ACF rating of 3 stars, highly recommended. And that Galaxy Express, sort of a Korean cross between The Who in the 60s and The Sex Pistols, have the energy of James Brown at his height and deserve the success they have achieved.

This latest series of KOREAN MOVIE NIGHT presentations, all of which are free, focuses on documentaries but includes a Halloween special event. It will run every other Tuesday @ 7pm through ­ October 31, 2010, courtesy of the Korean Cultural Service.