News and reviews, contemplations and considerations of Asian films and filmmakers. With the occasional piece on manga, dance, music, or whatever else Asian that might be of interest. Written by Dr. Stan Glick, a columnist for Asian Cult Cinema magazine.
The short documentary Mountain Monks will be one of the films included in Program 2 of this year's New York Japan CineFest. The mini-festival runs Wednesday, June 5th and Thursday the 6th at Asia Society, located at 725 Park Avenue at 70th Street. (Click here for map.) Each night's program is scheduled to run from 6:30 - 8:15 PM.
Synopsis:
The Yamabushi in northern Japan practice a once forbidden ancient religion. While their tradition is at risk of disappearing, it offers a way for those seeking a different path in Japan‘s society.
AsianCineFest Rating: 3.5 out of 4 stars; highly recommended documentary about a small Japanese sect.
Miss u, Love will be shown on Thursday, June 6th as one of the shorts included in Program 2 of this year's New York Japan CineFest. The mini-festival runs Wednesday, June 5th and Thursday the 6th at Asia Society located at 725 Park Avenue at 70th Street. (Click here for map.) Each night's program is scheduled to run from 6:30 - 8:15 PM.
Synopsis:
Rei is working as a “Mail-Lady” for the “Mental Health Mail-Lady Service” in Japan. Her job is to exchange emails with clients who have mental health disorders. According to her, she is the most popular “Mail-Lady” in Japan. But recently, she relocated to the United States, after a troublesome exchange with one of her clients.
AsianCineFest Rating: 3.5 out of 4 stars; an intriguing film that is highly recommended.
New York Japan CineFest, the annual mini-festival of recent shorts by emerging Japanese and Japanese-American filmmakers, will return to Asia Society NYC for the eighth time next Wednesday, June 5th and Thursday, June 6th. There will be separate programs each day beginning at 6:30 PM. The Day 1 Program on Wednesday will be followed by a reception.
Information about the Day 1 Program can be found here; Day 2 Program info is available here.
Asia Society NYC is located at 725 Park Avenue at 70th Street. (Click here for map.)
Starring : Jun Gianna, Lee Jung-jae, Ha Jung-woo, Oh Dal-soo,
Cho Jin-woong, and Choi Deok-moon
South Korea, 2015, 140 minutes, Digital
In Korean with English subtitles.
When: Tuesday, December 1, 2015 at 6:30 PM
Where: Asia Society 725 Park Avenue at 70th Street, NYC
Free Admission; all seating is first come, first served
Doors open @ 6 pm
The master of Korean ensemble blockbusters, director Choi Dong-hoon (The Thieves), is back with a historic espionage action drama set in Shanghai and Seoul in 1933, during Japanese colonial rule. The Korean government in exile has given one of its top undercover operatives, Agent Yem (Lee Jung-jae, New World), a mission: recruit three people to infiltrate occupied Seoul and assassinate the Japanese general along with a Korean collaborator. He selects steely-eyed female sniper Ahn (Gianna Jun, The Thieves), a brawler Big Gun (Jo Jin-ung, A Hard Day), and an explosives expert (Choi Deok-mun). But Agent Yem is a double-agent for the Japanese and he hires a hitman Hawaii Pistol (Ha Jung-woo, The Terror Live, The Chaser), to kill the assassins.
Free Admission; all seating is first come, first served
Doors open @ 6 pm
As the greed and excess of a corrupt monarchy threatens to destroy the once-glorious Goryeo dynasty, three legendary warriors lead a revolt to overthrow the empire and save its people. But when deceit and betrayal costs the life of a master swordsman, a feud for justice and revenge is set into motion, which rages on for decades between the two survivors. Starring Lee Byung-hun (Terminator Genisys), Jeon Do-yeon (winner of Best Actress award at Cannes for Secret Sunshine), and Kim Go-eun (winner of Rising Star award at the New York Asian Film Festival for Eungyo), Memories of the Sword is a lavish epic that blends tragic historical drama with thrilling swordplay and martial arts.
Free Admission; all seating is first come, first served
Doors open @ 6 pm
The Centerpiece Presentation of the 12th New York Asian Film Festivalin July 2013 and one of the most popular Korean Movie Night New York films, Secretly, Greatly is based on artist Hun’s widely popular webtoon Covertness. This film broke several box office records and is the most successful Korean webtoon adaptation to date with 7 million movie theater admissions.
This action comedy-drama follows the fortunes of a group of elite North Korean spies, trained since youth, who have been dispatched to South Korea. They assume various undercover identities, including a village idiot, an aspiring singer, and a high school student. Heartthrob Kim So-hyun plays Won Ryu-hwan, a highly accomplished North Korean agent, whose cover is that of the village idiot. A sequel to the original Covertness webtoon is currently running on the Daum porta.
I saw Secretly, Greatly at a special screening of Korean Movie Night in September 2103. I found it quite enjoyable, warranting a 3 out of 4 star AsianCineFest Rating; solidly recommended.
Tuesday's screening of Secretly, Greatly is part of Korean Movie Night New York’s Webtoon Comes to the Big Screen series (Sep. 9 - Oct. 20, 2015)
Free Admission; all seating is first come, first served
Doors open @ 6 pm
The Neighbors is an ensemble cast suspense thriller based on Kang Full’s 2008 webtoon of the same title. Schoolgirl Yeo-sun (Kim Sae-ron) is found dead after not returning home from school. Her stepmother (Kim Yunjin from ABC’s Lost) suffers from enormous guilt for failing to pick her up from the bus stop. Things are not made any easier by the presence of Soo-yeon (Kim Sae-ron), another girl in the same apartment complex who bears a striking resemblance to Yeo-sun. One of the residents of the building has been acting strangely and although his neighbors begin to suspect him, for mysterious reasons they choose to hold back from telling anyone about their suspicions.
This screening of The Neighbors is part of Korean Movie Night New York's Webtoon Comes to the Big Screen series (Sep. 9 - Oct. 20, 2015)
Free Admission; all seating is first come, first served
Doors open @ 6 pm
Moss is a psychological mystery thriller adapted from Yoon Tae-ho’s webtoon of the same, and directed by Korea’s leading blockbuster filmmaker of the 1990’s and 2000’s, Kang Woo-Suk (Two Cops, Public Enemy, Silmido). In a small rural village, the god-like Ryu Mok-hyeong (Heo Jun-ho) is trying to forge a haven for those wishing to be reborn and live untouched by the world's evil. Flash forward to Mok-Hyeong's good-for-nothing son Ryu Hae-Guk (Park Hae-Il, War of the Arrows) arriving for Mok-Hyeong's funeral and who, in attempting to settle his father's estate, discovers a web of interconnected secrets and lies and abuse of power that may ultimately point to murder. Note: English-language version of “Moss” webtoon has debuted on Huffington Post’s Spottoon on August 3rd.
My September 2012 review of the 2-disc Special Edition DVD of Moss, which I rated at 3.5 out of 4 stars, can be found here.
The September 9th screening of Moss is part of Korean Movie Night New York’s Webtoon Comes to the Big Screen series of three films that euns Sep. 9 - Oct. 20, 2015.
Webtoons, also known as webcomics, are online-based comics or graphic novels which have become a pop-culture phenomenon in Korea. The dynamic graphic form is breathing new life into Korea’s comics industry and keeping the young generation engaged with one of the long standing elements of popular culture from a pre-digital era.
The boom in webtoons started in 2003, facilitated by ever expanding web portals available to the Korean online community, including Naver and Daum, as well as the almost universal spread of smartphones.
Meanwhile the most popular webtoons have rapidly leapt from the small monitor and smartphone to the big screen with a number of phenomenally successful TV and film adaptations, becoming a force in the lively world of Korean movies.
The Webtoon Comes to the Big Screen series will feature three of the best films based on webtoons by critically acclaimed webtoon artists. It is planned in conjunction with the exhibition Webtoon at Gallery Korea, Korean Cultural Service NY (460 Park Avenue, 6th Floor, NYC), on view from September 8 to October 16, 2015.
Korean Movie Night New York is an ongoing, approximately twice-a-month film program that introduces the full spectrum of contemporary and classic Korean cinema to New York audiences, from popular blockbusters, independent films, and documentaries to animation and family movies.
Free Admission; all seating is first come, first served.
Doors open @ 6 pm
Ha Jung-woo, one of Korea’s biggest stars, directs and acts in this understated period comedy-drama, based on the best-selling novel of the same title by the Chinese writer Yu Hua. Just after the Korean War, a factory worker (Ha Jung-woo) falls for the most beautiful girl in his village (Ha Ji-won). Penniless, he sells his blood to fund the courtship and before long they are married. Eleven years later, the couple have three sons and live a comfortable life. One day, their lives are upended when a blood test reveals that their eldest boy is not the worker's son.
Free Admission; all seating is first come, first served.
Doors open @ 6 pm
“Sporting a pair of terrific turns from Jung Woo-sung and LEE Som in a story that stealthily sidles through genres, Scarlet Innocence is a stylish neo film noir with a distinct Korean flavor”
– Toronto International Film Festival
This startling romantic thriller soaked in lust and revenge is the latest offering from YIM Pil-sung, director of the 2007 horror Hansel and Gretel. Heartthrob JUNG Woo-sung (Cold Eyes and The Good, The Bad, The Weird) and emerging star LEE Som set the screen on fire in a cautionary tale of desire and punishment. College professor Hak-kyu (JUNG Woo-sung) abandons his young student lover Deokee (LEE Som) after a torrid affair. Eight years later, as he is losing his eyesight, the professor befriends a young neighbor who turns out to be Deokee, who has returned and is hell-bent on revenge.
“This reassessment of the golden years of South Korea’s Western-style folk music scene follows a trio of musicians through the turbulent era... Realistically showcasing the interior of C'est Si Bon, with its devoted coterie of youthful, enthusiastic music fans and rotating roster of idolized performers” – Hollywood Reporter
CJ Entertainment released C'est Si Bon in select theaters in the U.S. and Canada this past February.
New York Japan CineFest is an annual two day mini-festival that highlights short films by emerging, talented Japanese and Japanese American filmmakers. This year's iteration concludes this evening at Asia Society with a program of four short films by female directors. Program 2 will be followed by a Q&A with directors Ema Ryan Yamazaki (Monk by Blood) and Hazuki Aikawa (Reflection).
Last night I attended Program 1. Each of the four films were very good. I was especially taken with Confession Ranking of Girlfriend, directed by Shinichiro Ueda and by A Warm Spell, which was directed by Toshimichi Saito.
Ueda''s film is a hilarious comedy about a young woman making 17 confessions to the man who has proposed marriage and vowed that he would love her no matter what. It ends with a revelation even wilder than some of the bizarre confessions that have been made.
A Warm Spell is about the death of the mother of two sons. The elder brother, a doctor, cared for her during her final illness and has brought her back to her home village, where the younger son previously had come to be with her. At times, the film is quite comical, at others, it is very touching. I understand that the 40 minute film, developed from director Toshimichi Saito’s NYU thesis short film, is currently being expanded by him to a full length feature. Quite frankly, my feeling is that as a feature, A Warm Spell has the possibility of becoming another Departures, Yôjirô Takita's 2008 film that went on to represent Japan at the 2009 Oscar's and win the Best Foreign Language Film of the Year award.
Of the films being shown tonight, I have only had the time to watch Monk by Blood in advance. It's a very interesting documentary about 21-year-old Scion Sasaki, who as the eldest son, is expected to take over his family’s Buddhist temple in Kyoto, a temple that is 800 years old and has been managed by 23 generations of his family. The film follows Scion, who was born in California and is currently a college student in Vancouver, as he returns for a brief visit to Japan. His duty to his family and the temple's congregation is juxtaposed against his personal interests in becoming a cook and working as a DJ in clubs. Program 2: Friday, June 5, 2015, 6:30 pm Tickets: $8 members; $10 students/seniors; $12 nonmembers.
Monk By Blood
Dir. Ema Ryan Yamazaki. 2013. Japan. 25 min.
Reflection
Dir. Hazuki Aikawa. 2014. Japan. 23 min.
Tsuyako
Dir. Mitsuyo Miyazaki. 2011. Japan. 25 min.
Oh Lucy!
Dir. Atsuko Hirayanagi. 2014. Japan. 21 min.
Note: the films may not necessarily be shown in the above order.
Click here for more information and to buy tickets.
Highlighting some of the most exciting new voices in cinema, New York Japan CineFest is an annual event that features works by emerging Japanese and Japanese American filmmakers. Two programs of short films are presented in this year's edition. Program 1 on Thursday, June 4 is followed by a reception. Program 2 on Friday, June 5 is followed by a discussion.
Free Admission; all seating is first come, first served.
Doors open @ 6 pm
East Coast Premiere
The last film in Korean Movie Night NY's Emerging Talent film series is Alive, which will be shown next Thursday, May 27th, 2015.
A follow up to Park Jung-bum’s powerful debut neorealist drama The Journals of Musan, Alive is a continuation of the director/writer/actor’s exploration of the issues of poverty, inequality, and human suffering in contemporary capitalist societies. In this film, he portrays a construction worker in the Gangwon province who tries to make ends meet and support his mentally unstable sister and young niece. The more effort he puts into improving their living condition, the more odds stack up against him. The film offers a powerful portrait of survival in the worst circumstances and conveys Park’s compassion for those struggling on the margins of society.
Free Admission; all seating is first come, first served.
Doors open @ 6 pm
East Coast Premiere
Gangnam is an area of three districts, or local wards, in southeast and south Seoul that is known for its expensive real estate. It came to international attention with the 2012 release of the song "Gangnam Style" by South Korean singer Psy, which became not only a mega-hit but also a viral video. But Gangnam was not always a wealthy, trendy area, nor was it originally a part of Seoul proper.
Gangnam Blues, as several title cards indicate at the beginning of the film, takes place in the 1970s when it was little more than a shantytown and farmland area. Two gangs, the Yeongdeungpo (YDP) and the Myeongdong (MD) sought control of the real estate which politicians had earmarked for Seoul's necessary expansion.
Jong-dae (Min-ho Lee) and Yong-gi (Rae-won Kim) are two young men who met when they were in an orphanage and who eke out a living as rag-men picking up and selling discarded clothing and such things on the streets. They come to get work for a gang that is going to trash the convention of the Peace Party. During the melee, they get separated and Jong-dae, unable to locate Yong-gi, comes to the conclusion that he is dead. Such is not the case, but rather the two come to be aligned with rival gangs.
As each group seeks to obtain the upper hand in the acquisition of valuable real estate, violent confrontations, shifting alliances, and dastardly betrayals occur on both sides. Jong-dae and Yong-gi meet one-another in these circumstances, and whether or not the brotherhood that they had previously forged will prove stronger than the claims of their rival gangs is a major plot point.
Gangnam Blues is a smart and welcome addition to an already impressive roster of South Korean gangster films. (For an excellent article on the evolution of Korea's gangster cinema, see Samuel Jamier's "Boody Ties" in the May/June 2015 issue of Film Comment. It's part of a 30 page midsection on South Korean movies in that issue.)
The two leads are very good in their roles, as are the numerous older
actors who play various politicians and gang bosses and under-bosses.
There are several very good action set pieces, including a massive one that takes place in the rain at a funeral.
AsianCIneFest Rating: 3.5 out of 4 stars; very good, highly recommended.
Free Admission; all seating is first come, first served.
Doors open @ 6 pm
East Coast Premiere
Directed by veteran filmmaker YOO Ha (A Dirty Carnival, A Frozen Flower), Gangnam Blues (a.k.a. Gangnam 1970) is a sleek and stylish action thriller about childhood friendship, brotherhood, and betrayal set in the 1970s, during the height of social-political turmoil.
Two friends who grew up in the same orphanage, Jong-dae (TV drama star LEE Min-ho in his film debut) and Yong-gi (KIM Rae-won), struggle to make ends meet and wind up working for two competing gangs. Politicians, real estate magnates, and gangsters vie with blood for territories south of the Han river, a district that would become the world-famous and hip Gangnam.
Released in January in South Korea, Gangnam Blues will stand as one of the biggest box office hits of the year.
Free Admission; all seating is first come, first served.
Doors open @ 6 pm
East Coast Premiere
Ho-chan (BAEK Jong-hwan) is a college student who dreams to become a TV producer, but since his family is struggling with financial difficulties, he has signed up a 6-month paid internship in a government agency office. Despite the mundane clerical work, Ho-chan takes his responsibilities seriously and is beloved by his colleagues. The young man learns office politics and reality the hard way when a permanent position becomes available and he must fight for it to help his family stay afloat. Lee Yong-seung’s directorial debut and graduation project at Dankook University, 10 Minutes offers a sharp critique of Korea’s highly cut-throat corporate culture.
Free admission. First-come, first-served.
North American Premiere
The new Korean Movie Night NY series Emerging Talent, co-sponsored by Koreqan Cultural Servie and Asia Society, begins with a free screening this coming Tuesday of The King of Jokgu, a wonderful comedy.
While serving his stint of compulsory military service, Sergeant Manseob Hong was known as "The King of Jokgu." And just what is "Jokgu"? Well, it's a hybrid sport that combines volleyball and soccer, but with the net that divides the two teams set at a height close to that used in tennis. (More information can be found at the Wikipedia entry for Jokgu.)
After being discharged, Hong returns to college where he resumes his studies in Food Science Technology in the Department of Food and Nutrition. He also comes across his friend Changho Park. Both of them loved playing Jokgu, but are upset that the university's only court has been converted for tennis. They initiate a drive to get the university to build a new Jogku court. Their efforts are ridiculed, the fact that Jokgu sounds like "jerk off" being a prime reason.
Hong also very much wants a girlfriend and falls for the
beautiful Anna Suh, who's in his English language class. She agrees to
be his partner in an assignment to perform a scene from a movie, but she
already has a boyfriend, Kangmin, who was once a member of the national
soccer team but couldn't make the big leagues because of an
(unspecified) injury.
Hong's fortunes, both with regard
to Anna and to getting a Jokgu court built, are improved immensely
after he defeats Kangmin in an informal one-on-one game of Jokgu. Videos of the match, taken
by student spectators, go viral across the campus, and Jokgu becomes both
popular and respected.
The King of Jokgu, like
the game itself, is somewhat of a hybrid. While primarily a comedy, it's
also a youth film and a sports film, and it has more than a dollop of
romance thrown into the mix. The various elements are perfectly blended, making the movie a most enjoyable watch.
AsianCineFest Rating: 3.5 out of 4 stars; charming and delightful, highly recommended.
Korean Cultural Service NY and Asia Society have announced Korean Movie Night New York’s April-May 2015 series: Emerging Talent. The series of 5 films celebrates emerging filmmakers and actors in contemporary Korean cinema and will run from April 14 to May 27, 2015 at the Asia Society. Free admission for all screenings.
While mainstream, big-budget films have dominated the Korean film market, young directors are finding room to make independent films that prove to be no less creative and inspiring despite fewer resources. Four films in this series, The King of Jokgu (Woo Moon-gi), 10 Minutes (Lee Yong-seung), Fatal (Lee Don-ku), and Alive (Park Jung-bum), are independently financed projects. Director Park Jung-bum doubles as the acting lead in Alive to impressive result. The series also includes Gangnam Blues (Yoo Ha), which features the young and hugely popular actor Lee Min-ho in his feature film debut. Known as a TV drama (City Hunter, The Heirs) heartthrob, Lee transitioned to the big screen with great fanfare in this action thriller by veteran director Yoo Ha.
The films in this series follow a coming-of-age theme. Youthful dreams give way to adult reality in The King of Jokgu and 10 Minutes; life-altering experiences threaten to spin out of control in Fatal and Alive; and a childhood bond is tested as two friends grow apart in Gangnam Blues.
Korean Movie Night New York is an ongoing, approximately twice-a-month film program that introduces the full spectrum of contemporary and classic Korean cinema to New York audiences, from popular blockbusters, independent films, and documentaries to animation and family movies. The series is co-presented by Korean Cultural Service NY and Asia Society. For information on the series, visit asiasociety.org/korean-movie-night or Facebook.com/KoreanMovieNY.
All screenings take place at Asia Society, 725 Park Avenue at 70th Street, New York City. All events are free admission, first come, first served. For information, call 212-517-2742.
