ACF 685: "Yeonghwa: Korean Film Today" - complete screening schedule

Yeonghwa: Korean Film Today
September 22–30, 2010
The Roy and Niuta Titus Theaters at MoMA

“Yeonghwa” is the Korean word for film. Featured in every major international film festival, Korean cinema has become a thriving industry. The technical excellence, the wide variety of styles and subjects, the idiosyncrasies of individual expression within the perimeters of genre, the general practice of filmmakers both writing and directing their work, the development of a consistent home-grown „star‟ system for both actors and filmmakers, and its free-wheeling entrepreneurial spirit have helped to distinguish Korean film as a truly unique cinematic form.

Korean cinema, shot in a language barely understood outside the country of its origin, is an art and industry generally made for a national audience. Therefore the integrity of the artistic vision is, for the most part, unaffected by the demands of a global film market, providing a revealing window into a culture that for many Americans has seemed inaccessible.

Film Admission: $10 adults; $8 seniors, 65 years and over with I.D. $6 full-time students with current I.D. (For admittance to film programs only.) The price of a film ticket may be applied toward the price of a Museum admission ticket when a film ticket stub is presented at the Lobby Information Desk within 30 days of the date on the stub (does not apply during Target Free Friday Nights, 4:00–8:00 p.m.). Admission is free for Museum members and for Museum ticketholders.

The public may call (212) 708-9400 for detailed Museum information. Visit MoMA online at www.moma.org.

This exhibition is made possible by HyundaiCard Company.

SCREENING SCHEDULE:

Wednesday, September 22

6:30 The Housemaid (2010)
Written and directed by Im Sang-soo
Freely adapted from Kim Ki-young's 1960 film of the same title
With Jeon Do-yeon, Lee Jung-jae, Seo Woo, Yun Yeo-jung
New York Premiere

And what a house the maid has to clean - the largest film set ever built in Korea. But that‟s the least of it. The family she has to serve demands attention in many ways, not all of them in her job description. This continuously surprising erotic melodrama about class and privilege features both a top notch cast including Jeon Do-yeon of “Secret Sunshine”, and a climax that won‟t be easily forgotten. 95min. Courtesy of IFC Films.

Thursday, September 23

4:30 The Housemaid. (See Wednesday, September 22.)

7:30 Good Morning Mr. President (2009)
Written and directed by Jang Jin
With Lee Soon-jae, Jang Dong-gun,
Koh Doo-sim, and Im Ha-ryong

A delicious rumination about power and decision making that takes place largely in the executive kitchen. The settings and political relationships are as Korean as kimchee, but the pacing and domestic relationships are as American as apple pie. Jang Jin's film about three successive presidents is as winning as the best of Frank Capra. 132 min.

Friday, September 24

4:30 Good Morning Mr. President. (See Thursday, September 23.)

7:30 A Frozen Flower (2008)
Written and directed by Yoo Ha
With Zo In-sung, Joo Jin-mo, Song Ji-hyo
New York Premiere

History tells of the 31st king of the Koryo Dynasty who had his queen but loved his bodyguard, a brave and noble soldier. However, in order to maintain his dynasty, the king had to produce an heir. Keeping it all in the family he does, but… A spectacular epic about power, passion, and their lethal intertwinement. 133 min.

Saturday, September 25

1:00 Woochi (2009)
Written and directed by Choi Dong-hoon
With Gang Dong-won, Kim Yoon-suk, Lim Soo-jung, Yoo Hae-jin
New York Premiere

A whizz-bang time-traveling comic fantasy about a Taoist wizard trapped in a scroll in 1509 who in 2009 must be freed to capture (as only he can) a gaggle of evil goblins wrecking havoc in Seoul. Directed with such verve and panache, WOOCHI has one believing again in magicians and monsters. 110 min.

3:30 Sisters on the Road (2008)
Written and directed by Boo Ji-young
With Kong Hyo-jin, Shin Min-a

A first film by a young woman filmmaker chronicles a road trip across Korea. Two half-sisters, each very different and quite testy with the other, travel together reluctantly in search of their errant father and develop an uneasy relationship. 96 min. Boo Ji-young will introduce the film.

6:00 Eighteen (2010)
Written and directed by Jang Kun-Jae
With Seo Jun-yeong, Lee Min-ji
New York Premiere

In Korean the title of this realist debut feature is “whirlwind”, which describes the parental thwarting of a romance between two eighteen-year old students who can hardly wait until they turn nineteen, legal age in Korea. The filmmaker dedicates his film “to my high school years. Rest in peace, teenage years.” 95 min.

8:15 Best Seller (2010)
Written and directed by Lee Jeong-ho
New York Premiere

A first feature that‟s a first-rate thriller. A successful writer, accused of plagiarism, suffers a breakdown, and after a period of time, rents an unoccupied house remote in the countryside for her and her young daughter who “befriends” a presence there. Her new 'friend' tells her stories which she tells her mother. Her mother writes them down, and, as in any good spooky tale, bad things happen and Hollywood has already come knocking on the front door of this haunted house. 120 min.

Sunday, September 26

2:00 A Frozen Flower (See Friday, September 24.)

4:30 Land of Scarecrows (2008)
Written and directed by Roh Gyeon-tae
With Kim Sun-young, Phuong Thi Bich, Jun Du-won
New York Premiere

A transgender installation artist in search of a bride travels to the Philippines and finds one. Back in Korea a young man who believes he was once adopted from the Philippines enters the couple‟s lives, and questions of national and gender identity come to the fore in this austere sophomore feature by one of Korea‟s most „experimental‟ filmmakers. 90 min.

Monday, September 27

4:30 Sisters on the Road (See Saturday, September 25.)

Wednesday, September 29

4:30 Best Seller (See Saturday, September 25.)

7:30 Land of Scarecrows (See Saturday, September 25.)

Thursday, September 30

4:30 Eighteen (See Thursday, July 8.)

7:30 Woochi (See Saturday, September 25.)