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.
With Dada Chen at NYAFF 2013
With Dada Chen at NYAFF 2013
Showing posts with label Korean Movie Night. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Korean Movie Night. Show all posts
Inspired by the folk tale “The Story of Hong Gil-dong” (a Korean equivalent of Robin Hood), PHANTOM DETECTIVE is a stylish neo-noir thriller set in the unspecified past. Private investigator Hong Gil-dong (LEE Je-hoon, from ARCHITECTURE 101 and BLEAK NIGHT) has one goal in life: to find the one-eyed man who murdered his mother and exact revenge on him. It’s been 20 years since he witnessed the murder, and he finally has the culprit’s name: Kim Byung-duk. When he tracks him down to a hut in the countryside, instead of Byung-duk, Gil-dong finds Byung-duk’s two young granddaughters, who will become his unlikeliest sidekicks. As Gil-dong continues his pursuit, he will discover the truth behind his mother’s death and uncover a vast conspiracy.
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 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
“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.
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. 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.
Free admission. First-come, first-served.
International Premiere
Guardian is an intriguing thriller and marks the feature film debut of YOO Won-sang, who both wrote and directed the film. Tomorrow night's screening at Asia Society NY will mark its International Premiere.
LEE Jeon-mo (KIM Su-hyeon) is a retired firefighter who runs the Vitamin Flower Shop with his wife. They have two children. Their daughter Hee-jung is on the cusp of puberty and already concerned about pimples. Their younger child, Jung-sik, is a boy who loves playing video games, an activity in which his father sometimes joins. All in all they are a contented, happy family.
That is, until one evening when Hee-jung is kidnapped. The LEE family's world is turned upside down as the kidnapper calls Jeon-mo and tells him that he should think on a past sin, as the kidnapping is punishment for something LEE did wrong. The abductor demands a rather low ransom, but keeps Jeon-mo moving from one rendezvous point to another, then makes an outrageous demand for the safe return of Hee-jung.
Father, mother, and son each become increasingly unraveled and distraught as the situation becomes more and more bizarre and Hee-jung remains a captive. The denouement is a surprising reveal, although one eventually realizes that YOO has provided some hints along the way.
Guardian was YOO's graduation project at the Korean Academy of Film Arts, and it's a most auspicious beginning for what promises to be a rich career. It's well-paced overall and nicely structured, with good performances by the cast of four adults and three children.
AsianCineFest Rating: 3 out of 4 stars; solidly recommended.
Free admission. First-come, first-served.
International Premiere
In his first feature film, and also graduation project at the Korean Academy of Film Arts, director YOO Won-sang delivers an interesting take on the thriller genre. A former firefighter, Jeon-mo (KIM Su-hyeon), runs a flower shop and lives happily with his wife and two children. His world is turned upside down after his young daughter gets kidnapped, and he starts receiving instructions to follow from the abductor. One of the instructions is for Jeon-mo to kidnap another child, and then trade him for his daughter. The moral ripple effects of resulting actions will drive the narrative to a dramatic, unexpected conclusion.
10 years after his feature debut with a fantasy thriller SAVE THE GREEN PLANET! (a film I really liked), director Jang has returned with an offbeat crime drama HWAYI: A MONSTER BOY. A gang of cold-blooded robber-killers, led by Yun Seok-tae (Kim Yun-seok, the detective in THE CHASER), has raised a boy Hwa-yi (Yeo Jin-gu) they once kidnapped as their own, teaching him all of their know-how and treating him as their communal son. Only when the teenager learns about his past on his first mission, does he turn against them and their kind, with increasingly violent, nihilistic and extremely bloody results.
Well-known for his disaster film HAEUNDAE, director JK YOUN's new film, ODE TO MY FATHER. is an epic melodrama. Selected for the 2015 Berlin International Film Festival Panorama, the film guides viewers through South Korea’s modern history by following Duk-soo (HWANG Jung-min)’s struggles to support his family as he endures hardships during the Korean and Vietnam Wars, and in German coal mines. This universal tale of loyalty and love is a tribute to the generation of Korean fathers who have sacrificed everything for the sake of their families, and have in process set the stage for Korea’s rise as one of the world’s leading economic and cultural powers.
Click here to watch the trailer with English subtitles on YouTube.
L to R: "Broken," "Ode to My Father," "Hwayi: A Monster Boy."
Korean Cultural Service NY and Asia Society co-present Korean Movie Night New York
Series One: Fathers on Screen
When: Feb. 9 - Mar. 31, 2015
Where: Asia Society
725 Park Avenue (at 70 Street), NYC
Free admission
First-come, first-served Map
The popular, ongoing Korean Movie Night New York kicks off 2015 with the series Fathers on Screen, which explores different types of Korean father figures, both positive and negative, as they have been shaped by the cultural and socio-economic conditions in contemporary Korea: a hard-working, devoted family man in ODE TO MY FATHER, an authoritarian and cold blooded murderer in HWAYI, a vengeful vigilante in BROKEN, and a heroic ex-firefighter forced to commit non-heroic acts in GUARDIAN.
Korean Movie Night New York is an ongoing, 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.
On Valentine’s Day, class heartthrob Sungmin is attacked by an unseen foe, and hit with a bag of feces! A month later, a similar attack occurs on another school’s most beloved male student – and again, a month later at another school! A rumor begins spreading about what school the attack will happen at next, and the studious Kibum decides he’s going to crack the smelly case wide open! The poo could be headed toward any number of dreamy students next – and time is running out! Packed with hilarious, unpredictable humor, Attack on the Pin-Up Boys stars eleven members of the K-pop super group Super Junior!
Dae-gil’s natural skills as a gambler have earned him the reputation of having a “God’s hand”, but it’s not as skilled dealing with swindlers and, in one bad move, loses his entire fortune. Having to unite with his legendary uncle’s old partner only leads to more dangerous situations, and soon, he realizes that this is a game of life or death! Soon, a deep conspiracy turns Dae-gil into a scapegoat, and he’s forced to go on the run! Planning his revenge, Dae-gil prepares for the biggest game of his life… an event that will clear his name and reunite him with the woman he loves! Don’t miss this sensational thriller, starring T.O.P. (aka Choi Seung-hyun), the award-winning lead rapper of the K-pop group Big Band!
Korean Cultural Service New York
presents
Korean Movie Night 2014
Series Five: Blown Away by Korean Blockbusters!
At the Tribeca Cinemas
54 Varick Street, on the corner of Canal, NYC
Near the A, C, E @ #1 Canal Street subway stops Map
Admission: FREE!!!
Due to a technical hiccup at the October 14th screening of the Korean gambling action thriller The Divine Move, it will be shown again this Tuesday, October 28th, at 4:00 PM. (The July 25, 2014 AsianCineFest review of The Divine Move can be found here.)
Then, at 7:00 PM that same night, there will be the regularly planned screening of the hilarious comedy Miss Granny (The January 31, 2014 AsianCineFest review of Miss Granny is here).
So, depending on where you're coming from, get over, get down, or get up to the Tribeca Cinemas on Tuesday for a free double-dose of great Korean movie magic!
