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Art and Culture

It's finally Friday and our Michelle Kim is with us for our arts and culture segment. Today, she has a preview of a movie and a concert happening in Korea over the weekend.

Hello Michelle

[Reporter : ] Hello Conn-young

So what do you have for us[Reporter : ] A detective chases a serial killer who publishes a book detailing the crimes in the new action thriller "Confession of Murder", starring Park Si-hoo and Jung Jae-young The movie was released in Korea yesterday and the reviews are already full of praise, so this may be the winner for a weekend movie outing. Let's take a look.

Lee Du-seok is propelled to fame when he publishes a book about 10 unsolved murders from 15 years ago in which he claims to be the murderer.
The book, published just after the statute of limitations on the murders expires, becomes an instant bestseller, but not everyone is thrilled.
The man who worked the case, Detective Choi Hyung-goo, is suspicious of Lee's motives and sets out to find the truth.
But just as he begins his investigation, another person claiming to be the killer comes forward.
Actor Park Si-hoo made a dramatic change from his usual roles as a romantic good guy to play the ruthless serial killer.
His cold-hearted smile and the bloodthirsty look in his eyes are frightening enough to send a chill down your spine and compelling enough to keep you watching.
Park told the press how he felt about the role.

[Interview : Park Si-hoo, Actor] "I've always wanted to play the role of a serial killer, or any sort of character with dual personalities".

Jung Jae-young, one of Korea's most critically acclaimed actors, plays the persistent detective who chases Park.
In the hands of director Jung Byung-gil, who made his debut with a documentary about stunt men, the action scenes between the two lead actors are intense and tightly choreographed.
The actor described how hard it was to pull the scenes off.

[Interview : Jung Jae-young, Actor] "Just by looking at the screenplay, I could tell the action scenes the director was planning were going to be hard to do. It was definitely not an easy process".

"Confession of Murder" is in theaters now.
The movie's title, "Confession of Murder", makes it seem like one of those films that can get a bit gruesome. What is the film actually like[Reporter : ] Well, the film doesn't really have many gruesome scenes, so I don't think it will be much of a problem for people like you and I who can't stand films that do. The film focuses more on the detective's struggle to find and arrest the killer than on the murders themselves.

That's very good to hear. I guess I'll think about going to see it. And now, what else do you have for us[Reporter : ] It's been a great year for Korean film, with "The Thieves" and "Masquerade" drawing more than 10 million viewers and Kim Ki-duk's "Pieta" winning top honors at the Venice film festival.
Documentaries are also having a good year, with one in particular timed just right as election season was heating up.
As Koreans contemplate the election of a new president in December, the documentary "Remembrance of MB", released in October, invited them to think about the one that's leaving office.
The film follows the presidency of Lee Myung-bak, from his time as a candidate and his election in 2008 through his five years in office.
The documentary was extremely popular, attracting 10,000 viewers just 21 days after its release in mid-October.
One viewer said the film reminded her about the importance of voting.

[Interview : Gi Sung-eun, Seoul resident] "As I was watching the documentary, I kept thinking to myself that I had to vote".

As popular as it was, the film was just one of the many documentaries that found success at the box office this year.
The spring was flooded with documentary releases, starting with "Talking Architect", which follows maverick architect Chung Guyon, who had been diagnosed with cancer, during the last year of his life.
Five documentaries attracted 10-thousand viewers, which is an achievement because most documentaries only attract an average audience of 2-thousand.
This list includes "2 Doors", which depicts the 2009 demonstration in Yongsan involving residents protesting a redevelopment project and the police that left six people dead.
Another film on the list is "Emperor Penguins Peng-yi and Som-yi", about the friendship between two emperor penguins living in Antarctica.

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Those films look great. But if you're like me, it can be hard to keep up with documentary film releases because they aren't usually advertised widely.
I would like to see more documentaries, however, because they can give us such different perspectives on issues or stories we may think we already know about, like the Yongsan fire or the president and his election.

[Reporter : ] That's really true. I feel like every time I watch a documentary I learn something new and that my perception of people or events is changed -- in a good way.

I do, too. It's nice to see such in-depth coverage of these issues. And now to wrap things up, you have the events bulletin[Reporter : ] That's right. Today I have a concert that features top pop musicians from the 90s, a concert by Lee Seung-chul with a ticket that includes a dinner buffet catered by a world renowned hotel, and a New Year's Eve concert by Glen Check. Here are the details.

[Reporter : ed: jenny] This bulletin features 3 events.

Some of the top pop musicians from the 90s will perform together at Lotte World's Adventure and Garden Stage on December 1st and 2nd. Hosted by rapper, singer, actor and TV personality Boom, the show features Tony An from H.O.T, Eun Ji-won of Sechskies and many more.

Singer Lee Seung-chul will be performing a series of concerts for the holiday season from December 21st to 24th at Coex's Hall D. Admission to the concert includes a pre-show dinner buffet catered by the Walker Hill Hotel.

Indie-dance icon Glen Check is the star of a New Year's Eve concert at Olympic Park's Olympic Hall. The band is planning a fun-filled show that includes a countdown to the new year, video art and installations.

Thank you for the update

My pleasure

NOV 09, 2012

Reporter : dainee@arirang.co.kr

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