My Wife Is a Gangster (Movie - 2001)

Another Korean hit movie remade in Hollywood

Source | 2008/10/24 | 0 comments | Permalink |

A 2003 Korean horror film has joined the ranks of other Korean movies that have been, or are going to be, issued as American remakes. The Uninvited, to be released in the United States on Jan. 30, 2009, is a remake of Janghwa, Hongryeon (the title translates as "Rose and Lotus" but the film was known as "A Tale of Two Sisters" in its international release).

Earlier Korean films to be remade in the United States include The Lake House (a 2006 remake of "Il Mare"), "My Sassy Girl" in 2008, remade from the 2000 Korean smash hit of the same name. Other Korean films to which rights have been bought for Hollywood-ization include "My Wife is a Gangster", "Old Boy" and "JSA - Joint Security Area". In the case of "A Tale of Two Sisters", DreamWorks are reported to have paid US$1 million for the remake rights.

All this is a significant recognition of Korean film as a rising force in global cultural content creation. It comes only a decade after many in Korea feared that the end of the scre...| More

Comedy, tragedy go head to head

Source | 2008/08/25 | 0 comments | Permalink |

With the Beijing Olympics over, broadcasting networks face the challenge of filling the void. Both KBS and MBC have already stepped up to the plate with two brand-new dramas: "Love and Marriage" and "East of Eden".

Despite the recent dismissal of the network's former head, Jung Yun-joo, KBS is determined to prove that it will continue to air quality shows. The channel's latest Monday and Tuesday night installment, "Love and Marriage", seeks to boost viewer ratings.

KBS faces some stiff competition. MBC, which failed to score high viewer ratings with their last Monday and Tuesday night series "When It's At Night, is aiming high with its epic drama, "East of Eden".

Featuring a star-studded cast, including heartthrob Song Seung-heon, this 50-episode series reportedly racked up 25 billion won ($23 million) in production costs. Like the novel by Nobel Prize winner John Steinbeck, this drama charts the tumultuous struggles between two households. The similarities, however, end there...| More

'Delicious' boys lead hallyu in Indonesia

Source | 2008/08/13 | 0 comments | Permalink |

It all started with a TV drama series - "Winter Sonata". In 2002, one of Indonesia's TV stations aired the series, introducing one of Korea's cultural products to a wide public in this part of the world. Later on, another TV station, Indosiar - which specializes in Asian dramas from Japan, Taiwan and Korea - aired about a dozen Korean dramas. The latest favorite was "Princess Hours" in 2006.

"The rating is not constant. It depends on the drama. When we air a TV drama that is very popular in Korea, the rating of Korean dramas subsequently rise above other Asian dramas", Gufron, a public relations officer at Indosiar, said.

Gufron said the highest rating in Indosiar is held by local reality shows, followed by local TV dramas. Asian dramas came fifth after feature-length movies produced for TV and music programs. Among Asian dramas, Korean dramas' ratings fluctuate, depending on the popularity of each series being aired at a certain time.

"We now air reruns of the Korean drama 'F...| More

Cinema Paradise for All

Source | 2008/05/15 | 0 comments | Permalink |

Film Museum, Library & More

By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter

Korean cinema is increasingly becoming a landmark in the movie world. Avid fans can now learn all about the past and present of the local film industry at the new Korean Film Museum.

Korean Film Museum

The Korean Film Archive (KOFA), a state-funded organization devoted to collecting, preserving and reviving domestic films and movie data, inaugurated last Friday the Korean Film Museum.

Located in Sangam-dong, northern Seoul, it's the city's first museum devoted to movies. Walking around the circular room, you'll zip through 100 years of film history.

It's small but compact and full of small treasures. Cineastes donated precious personal items for the museum. You'll find legendary screen beauty Choi Eun-hee's (1926~) jewelry and make-up brushes as well as celebrated director Im Kwon-taek's signature on-site outfits and the Honorary Golden Berlin Bear trophy he won at the 55th Berlin International Film Festival....| More

Singer Kim Ji-hyeon, visits screen in seven years after "Summer Time"

Source | 2008/03/27 | 0 comments | Permalink |

Kim Ji-hyeon, who used to be in the group Roo'ra, will visit the screen.

Juggling her solo singing career, acting, and personal business, she has finished filming independent film "Purple Rain".

Director Jang Dong-hyeon, who was the assistant director for "My Wife is a Gangster 2" and "Gohae", is directing "Purple Rain", the story of Yong-dae, a director of erotic videos, and Young-hee, a worker at a bar. The main characters are Choi Hak-rak, who has shown his acting in "Raybang" and "Lump Sugar", and Choi Eun-joo, who starred in "My Wife is a Gangster" and "The First Amendment". Kim Ji-hyeon plays the wife of Yong-dae.

More than anything else, the actors and staff were captivated by the perfect scenario and participated for no pay.

Those from the producing company said, "The actors including Kim Ji-hyeon saw the script and decided to participate with no salary out of their pure hearts rather than commercial profit".

Mid-last month, they finished filming the last scene w...| More