The 12th Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival (PiFan) kicks off this July 18 – 27 with the biggest line-up of genre films in Asia. Best of all are the return of high-profile Korean films to the fest and a warmer interaction with the local film industry after setbacks in previous years. KOFIC will again host a Korean film night event, this time an outdoor barbeque reception for guests during the festival.
Two Korean films will vie along with 10 foreign films in PiFan's main competition section Puchon Choice for a variety of cash awards including best feature. First is the critically praised sleeper hit
"The Chaser" by
Na Hong-jin. The tale of an ex-cop-turned-pimp on the trail of a prostitute-killer, made stars of its two leads,
Ha Jeong-woo and
Kim Yoon-seok.
Also in this section is the World Premiere of new Korean horror, "
Death Bell", by debut ...
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"
A Tale of Legendary Libido" (Garoojigi), directed by
Sin Han-sol, is loosely based on "Byeon Gang-soe Tale", one of the most notoriously decadent and sexually provocative theatrical songs which took its current form in the late 19th century.
Byeon Gang-soe is a Joseon-era version of Austen Powers, as he has an amazing sexual energy. The original tale, transmitted by word of mouth, was documented and extensively edited by Shin Jae-hyo (1812-1884). Many of the explicit sexual descriptions were cut out in the process; nevertheless, the extant version contains imagery and expressions that are shockingly frank about sexuality, even by today's relatively liberal standards.
The challenges facing director Shin were obvious. First, the highly inflated and exaggerated metaphors throughout the risque story could not be easily revised for mainstream moviegoers, including s...
MoreArt of Fighting (Ssaumui Kisol) (2005)
Seoul Selection Bookstore
At 11:00 a.m. Saturday
Directed by
Sin Han-sol, the movie revolves around a high school student who learns the
Art of Fighting to avoid being beaten by school bullies. Song Byung-tae is a timid and weak high school student bullied by his schoolmates every...
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There is an opinion in some quarters that violence and comedy cannot go hand in hand. Yet in some movies they can, and that's what director
Sin Han-sol seems to have had in mind when he sharpened the plot for "
Art of Fighting" (Ssaumui gisul).
This is the kind of movie where viewers laugh occasionally and grimace the rest of the time. But the title is somewhat misleading. It is neither a serious martial arts movie nor a full-blown comedy.
The reason for the film's ambivalent identity lies largely in the equally confusing characteristics of Oh Man-su, a "legendary fighter". The character is played by
Baek Yoon-sik, a veteran actor whose popularity is literally soaring among Korean moviegoers after showing off his renewed vigor as a notorious swindler in "
The Big Swindle", a 2004 hit movie directed by
Choi Dong-hoon.
In "
Art of Fighting", Baek turns into a sort of hermit-cum-fighter who seems both a hero and a villain. His fighting skills appear relentless - even profound - and yet his way of teaching his skills seems a total sham. He acts seriously and yet the very seriousness makes it all the more funny. Of course, the disparate features stand out dramatically largely due to the peculiar image forged by actor Baek. Kudos ...
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