A Family (Movie - 2004)

Another side to Empress Myeongseong

Source | 2009/08/26 | 0 comments | Permalink |

Film focuses on her possible love affair

Empress Myeongseong of the Joseon Dynasty is one of the most talked-about figures in Korean history due to her extraordinary life, which was highlighted by political ambition and tragic death.

So it's no wonder that she's been at the center of various productions such as the acclaimed musical "The Last Empress" and the 2001 hit TV series "Empress Myeongseong".

A new film to be released late next month is tackling her story again, with a twist.

The movie, called "The Sword with No Name", examines the life of the empress through the lens of a love affair between her and a bodyguard.

"The productions depicting the life of Empress Myeongseong so far have shown the charismatic side of her, but I think there must have been a soft side to her, because she was a woman after all", Kim Mi-hee, the producer of the film, said during a press conference Tuesday.

"In the film, we focused on the more personal aspects of the life of the empres...| More

[HERALD INTERVIEW] Lee Byeong-heon eyes Hollywood

Source | 2006/11/20 | 0 comments | Permalink |

Given that Lee Byeong-heon is one of the top-rated Korean Wave stars, it comes as no surprise that he is interested in grabbing a role for a Hollywood movie. The question is when and how he pulls it off.

"Some news media reported that I already entered Hollywood, but it's not true at all", Lee said in an interview. "Our agents are arranging meetings with Hollywood people, but I haven't found a role I could take".

Lee said he has indeed met with some of the top officials at famous studios such as Fox and Universal and got some proposals, but found the proposed roles not suitable for his image.

"I don't want to debut as another Asian actor who does some martial art. I want to play an independent role on an equal footing with other American actors in a Hollywood film", he said.

Lee received two casting proposals to play Asia's "James Bond", a main supporting role to top Hollywood actors, but he has not opted for such roles yet. The main reason was that he did not want to play ...| More

Luring Moviegoers in Just Few Minutes

Source | 2006/02/21 | 0 comments | Permalink |

By Kim Tae-jong
Staff Reporter

In the trailer of the upcoming film "The Customer Is Always Right", four people mysteriously appear out of the darkness. Who they are, is only explained by such brief, vague descriptions as "a barber with a secret", "an inscrutable temptress" and "a strange intimidator".

The trailer offers few clues about the film yet successfully arouses an undeniable curiosity. After seeing it, what else can you do but go out and buy a ticket? And that's exactly what Choi Seung-won wants people to do.

The trailer director said the key to making a successful teaser is capturing the most appealing element in a movie and maximizing it.

"You need to come up with the right concept that can represent the whole film in a few minutes, and it should also be appealing enough to make people ache to see the film", Choi said.

It has become a common scene that moviegoers watch teasers and main trailers before they go to see a film, but things were different when Choi ...| More

Lim Tae-hyeong Wins Best Director Award at "Fajr Film Festival" in Iran

Source | 2006/01/31 | 0 comments | Permalink |

According to Kim Ji-suk, a programmer of the Pusan International Film Festival, on Jan. 30, film director Lim Tae-hyeong, who directed the film "Hello Brother" (2005), won the best director award in the "Spiritual Cinema" division of the 24th Fajr International Film Festival which ended in Teheran, Iran on Jan. 30.

"Hello Brother" portrays a touching story about a nine-year-old boy "Janghani" (played by Park Ji-bin) who tries to save his older brother who is suffering from cancer. Park won the "Silver Iris for Best Actor Award" at the first New Montreal Filmfest held in Canada in September of last year for his acting in this film.

Meanwhile, other South Korean films failed to win awards at the Iranian film festival. They are "A Family" (2004, directed by Lee Jeong-cheol), which was invited to the "International Competition Division"; "Taegukgi: Brotherhood of War" (2003, directed by Kang Jae-gyu), "Cracked Eggs and Noodles" (2005, directed by Oh Sang-hoon), "Daddy-Long-Legs" (200...| More

Joo Hyeon, an actor as friendly as a family member

Source | 2006/01/18 | 0 comments | Permalink |

A movie centered on the concept of family was released in September 2004. Its poster was quite impressive. The design looked neither glaring nor unique, but it drew attention with its subdued appearance among all the other ostentatious movie posters. It simply showed a picture of a man in his 50s and a woman in her 20s, both smiling. The poster, which looked just like a family picture, was created to advertise the movie entitled "A Family".

The movie itself is a story of extraordinary love between a father and his daughter. It quickly became a hit, driving many moviegoers to tears that fall. "A Family" once again became a hot topic among people in October 2005 due to unexpected news from Malaysia. The father who is smiling benignly in the poster won the best actor award at the 50th Asia Pacific Film Festival. The actor played the touching role of a modern-day father who deeply loves his daughter--who has just been released from prison--but does not know how to express his love towar...| More