Based on the Pansori folk song of the same title, Chunhyang tells the tale of two star-crossed lovers who consummate their love after overcoming various obstacles. Mongryong, the son of a ... More
Ways to enjoy Seollal with family 2012/01/20, Source,
The National Folk Museum is offering a variety of events, including traditional Korean music performances, to boost the holiday mood from today through Tuesday. / Courtesy of National Folk Museum
"Seollal", or Lunar New Year's Day, is one of the biggest holidays in Korea where families gather together and some perform "charye", an ancestral worship ritual. The representative food for Seollal is rice cake soup called "tteokguk". According to tradition, you can only become older when you eat this,...More
Wieland SPECK, head of the Berlin film festival's Panorama 2011/12/07, Source,
After 30 years at the Berlin International Film Festival, Wieland Speck will be celebrating his 20th year as head of the festival's Panorama section next year. While he was in Seoul on his annual film hunting trip around the region, Jean NOH met with him to talk about his thoughts on Korean cinema, the Berlinale audiences and how he programs for them.
KCT: How important for you is this annual trip around Asia, after the American Film Market (AFM)?
Speck: For me, the trips to Asia and South America are very important trips because there are so many amazing filmmakers and they are inspiring the Western filmmaking a lot. The European view on the world, especially the Western European view on the world, is a little bit like simmering in the same broth for many years now. And then, yes, we already have the most interesting film countries in the world [in Asia].So having our eyes out for where inspiration lurks, this is what we definitely need for our culture in general, but also for the filmmaking,...More
[Portrait] Filmmaker Im Kwon-taek: master of mirrors 2011/10/20, Source,
Filmmaker Im Kwon-taek drinks a cup of morning coffee during an interview with The Korea Times at a cafe near his home in Suji, Gyeonggi Province on Sept. 28. / Photography by Jesse Chun for The Korea Times
At 75, the filmmaker continues to explore new ground. "I don't lie in my movies... I simply try to capture what we feel in our everyday lives".
This is the second in a series of interviews with international pioneers among Korean artists, to mark the 61st anniversary of The Korea Times that falls on Nov. 1, and is sponsored by The Korea Press Foundation. ― ED.
By Lee Hyo-won
SUJI, Gyeonggi Province/BUSAN - It took an extra second to confirm the interview venue with Im Kwon-taek. The filmmaker used "dabang", an outdated word for coffee shop rarely heard outside of retro movies.
While the 75-year-old may not care to update his parlance, he never fails to create new audiovisual languages onscreen. His extensive filmography spells out disparate themes and styles, but his movies share a common tongue in that, like mirrors, they honestly translate all the beauty, grit, joy and sorrow of life. And for this they speak across borders and generations,...More
Based on the Pansori folk song of the same title, Chunhyang tells the tale of two star-crossed lovers who consummate their love after overcoming various obstacles. Mongryong, the son of a nobleman, falls in love with a beautiful maiden on a swing. He learns that she is Chunhyang, the daughter of a retired kisaeng (equiv.to geisha) named Wolmae, but he pursues her despite her lower social status.Mongryong succeeds in winning the heart of Chunhyang and Wolmae and pledges Chunhyang as his life-long companion. Unfortunately Mongryong is forced to leave the side of his beloved when his father is summoned by the king's court. Sadly he leaves for the city with the promise to return as a court official. One day a new governor, BYUN
Hakdo arrives in Namwon, the hometown of Chunhyang. Notorious for his insatiable desire for women, he orders Chunhyang to serve him after hearing of her beauty. When she refuses, BYUN tortures Chunhyang and throws her in jail. Meanwhile Mongryong passes the state exam with the highest distinction, whereby the king makes him his personal emissary, a post which grants him the authority to punish corrupt officials. Disguised as a vagrant and accompanied by his envoy, Mongryong heads toward Namwon with a vengeance...
wonderful movie. the story telling was
an unusual twist... but it sometimes got
in the way. especially at the end. i
just wanted to watch the movie part. not
watching the story teller. ending could
be better with maybe the 2 in their
house in seoul or som
US$5 off (order min. US$5) Coupon code HANSTYLE Get a $10 off $20 order coupon, for first purchase and for HanCinema members only, so sign up, and get the coupon here
You're reading the news with potential spoilers, make them spoiler free, dismiss
