By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter
Cinema has seen its fair share of uncanny elderly heroines, from Miss Daisy (not) behind the driving wheel to the cross-dressing Mrs. Doubtfire, but feisty Korean grannies turning into larger-than-life bank robbers in the whim of a late-life crisis, is a first.
"Yukhyeolpo Gangdodan" ("
Revolver Gangsters' Gang") is like a hearty bowl of "makgeolli". It's brewed from vintage humor like the traditional rice wine -- the physical farce, crude jokes and other comic formulas may not be strikingly novel but they are just the stuff that make local audiences drunk with laughter.
But the family comedy is also determined to inspire tears with a dose of heartfelt drama, and Charlie Chaplin's famous saying comes to mind -- "Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up but a comedy in long-shot".
Basically, three senior citizens decide to rob a bank, or more precisely, recla...
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Singer Seo Ji-yeong has changed. She said that she is more passionate for acting.
She is in the drama, "Daring Woman" and is determined to succeed in her acting career.
Seo is truly daring.
She costarrs with Kim Soo-mi, Lee Chang-hoon, and Lee Yoo-ri. Seo wears outfits more fashionable than they and also talks more. We will be able to see her in very dif...More
By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter
Funnyman
Im Chang-jeong returns opposite yet another screen beauty,
Park Ye-jin, in the slapstick "
Fortune Salon". It appears difficult for the "
Sex Is Zero" star to shed his typecast character in this half-way sex (rather than romantic) comedy, which rather strenuously tries to show that love (or lust) can prevail in the face of cruel destiny.
But more often than not, fate laughs at chance.
It's a shame because the movie could have done so much more with the classic premise of fate versus free will set against the exotic shamanist subculture that exists in modern Korea. Instead, it makes a disgrace out of one of the oldest traditions/religions here.
South Korea has long been rooted in shamanist beliefs. The fortune-telling market here amasses up to 3 trillion won annuall...
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By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter
Cinema allows artistry to soar high and far, allowing reality to mix freely with products of far-fetched imagination. However, there exists a marked difference between being surreal and just plain baffling. While visually pleasing, "Delivering Love" ("Beyong All Magic"), the directorial debut of
Jo Nam-ho, is, unfortunately, the latter. The movie thoroughly disappoints, particularly since it stars some of South Korea's biggest actresses like
Shim Hye-jin and
Kim Soo-mi.
Unfolding in a rural village with scenic fruit plantations and quaint traditional houses, the film is a visual delight. A painter character does wonders to an old truck and other mundane spaces. But the film fails to keep the narrative on track and viewers will ultimately find themselves lost. If not, then you will be most likely be distracted by th...
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