Peppermint Candy (1999) - 박하사탕 (Bak-ha-sa-tang)

2008/03/21 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

In the last few years, Korean films, TV dramas and pop music have become immensely popular abroad, a phenomenon known as the Korean Wave. This is the 25th in a series of essays by a select group of scholars and journalists looking at the spread of Korean pop culture in Southeast Asian countries and beyond. - Ed.

"Hallyu", or the Korean Wave, marks the long overdue re-emergence of Korean culture into the global arena. Korean culture's newfound international vogue situates South Korean cinema, TV melodramas, K-pop, and computer games as active participants in the transformation of world culture.

These "domestic" electronic audio-visual cultural creations are no longer limited to just the Korean peninsula and the global Korean diaspora despite that they are produced in the Korean language - a language that is not one of the globalized imperial languages such as English, French, Spanish, Japanese, and Chinese.

Despite this linguistic barrier, hallyu is now a recognized agent of gl...

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2008/03/04 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

The most comprehensive retrospective yet of critically acclaimed Korean director LEE Chang-dong will be featured at the 22nd Fribourg International Film Festival running March 1- 8 in Switzerland. Along with the director's latest film, "Secret Sunshine", which won JEON Do-yeon a Best Actress award at last year's Cannes Film Festival, LEE's three previous features will also screen. Additionally, two films directed by PARK Kwang-su, for which LEE penned the screenplays, will round out the program.

LEE's directing debut "Green Fish" (1997) was selected to screen in competition at the 38th Thessaloniki Film Festival, where he was celebrated as Korea's 'new hope'. Building on the critical success of "Green Fish", LEE wrote and directed a milestone in Korean cinema, "Peppermint Candy" (1999), a harrowing journey in reverse through 20 years of contemporary Korean history. His 2002 film "Oasis" won him the Best Director prize at Venice and brought actress MOON So-ri into the limeligh...

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2007/12/06 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter

Cognitive dissonance is a psychological phenomenon that refers to the discomfort felt when what you already know clashes with a new interpretation. "Venus and Mars" feeds off this idea from beginning to end, as director Han Ji-seung ("A Day", 2001) ironically defines love through the art of warfare, using a mix of genres dubbed "hardboiled" romantic comedy.

Called a romance guru for his hit TV series "Alone in Love" (Yeonaesidae, 2006, SBS), the director makes a comeback on the silver screen where he traces a highly volatile emotional -- and physical -- tug of war between a divorced couple.

Hot-blooded glass artist Jin-a (Kim Tae-hee) and faint-hearted, cleanliness-obsessed entomologist Sang-min (Seol Kyeong-gu) have absolutely nothing in common. But opposites attract, and the two tie the knot after a string of ultra dramatic break-ups and make-ups. The two end up splitting, however, when a bug-in-the-glass-jar incident demonstrates their irreco...

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2007/11/30 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

The seventh edition of the Gwangju International Film Festival opened on November 29 with a screening of Chinese film Western Trunk Line by LI Jixian.

A total of 40 films from 8 countries will be shown at the event, which has downsized in recent years after a reduction in public funding. The closing film, to be screened on December 3, will be the winner of the audience award.

The festival's program consists of four main sections. "World Cinema Best" consists of five films from Europe and Asia including one Korean title, the recent horror film Epitaph. "Cinema on 518" is a collection of films about the 1980 Gwangju Uprising, including LEE Jeong-guk's "The Song of Revival", JANG Sun-woo's "A Petal", LEE Chang-dong's "Peppermint Candy", LIM Sang-soo's "The Old Garden", and KIM Ji-hoon's recent hit "May 18". Meanwhile there will also be a retrospective of Italian filmmaker Luchino Visconti, and an "Animation Special" devoted to Daniel Greaves and Simone Massi.

More informati...

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2007/11/14 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

A complete retrospective of critically acclaimed Korean director LEE Chang-dong will be featured at the 48th Thessaloniki International Film Festival which runs Nov. 16 – 25 in Greece. Along with the director's latest film, "Secret Sunshine", which won JEON Do-yeon a Best Actress award at this year's Cannes Film Festival, LEE's three previous films will also be screened.

The focus on LEE comes 10 year's after his debut feature Green Fish was selected to screen in competition at the 38th Thessaloniki, introducing him to local audiences as Korea's 'new hope'. Building on the critical success of "Green Fish", LEE wrote and directed a milestone in Korean cinema, "Peppermint Candy" (1999), a harrowing journey in reverse through 20 years of contemporary Korean history. His 2002 film "Oasis" won him the Best Director prize at Venice and brought actress MOON So-ri into the limelight with her Venice award for Best New Performance.

All four films in the LEE's growing oeuvre will be sc...

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