Romance (Movie) (2006) - 로망스 (Ro-mang-seu)

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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2007/10/02 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

"It's just a small gathering, for Asian actors to become friends. This was an idea we had while drinking at a snack bar during the Pusan Film Festival ten years ago, and it's just coming true now. I know we shouldn't expect too much at first, but I think it's significant that we actors are coming together voluntarily", Ahn Seong-gi said at a cafe in Chungdam-dong, Seoul on Monday.

Younger actors Park Joong-hoon and Kang Soo-yeon nodded their heads at his words. Started by Ahn, Park and Kang, the backbone of Chungmuro or Korea's Hollywood, the Asia Pacific Actors Network (APAN) held its inaugural meeting at the cafe. It's not connected with any nation's actors association, and it's not a closed society with impossible standards. It's a rather humble little group, in fact.

This year, 15 Asian actors including Kuei-Mei Yang from Taiwan ("Vive L'Amour"), Masaya Kato from Japan ("Fighter In The Wind") and Fann Wong from Singapore ("Dance Of The Dragon") will participate in a meeting o...

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2007/08/30 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

For three minutes, actress Yeom Jeong-ah heats up the screen of her new movie "The Worst Man of my Life", wearing leather and fishnet stockings while executing a purposefully amateurish pole dance. .

Yeom said awkward sexy dancing wasn't an activity she was looking forward to. It took some prodding from costar Tak Jae-hoon to make her feel comfortable.

"It took five or six hours to shoot and the costume was strange. It wasn't a situation where I was supposed to execute a good, sexy dance, but (rather) it was intentionally bad. And so I was embarrassed throughout and the filming was a bit difficult", Yeom said at last Thursday's preview of the movie. "But with Tak Jae-hoon's support, I was able to act without much persuasion".

Though one can hardly tell by Tak's negative reaction in the film, it wasn't the first time he'd seen this dance. It was actually a previous firsthand experience that inspired the comical dance. "When I was a newlywed, we danced a similar dance", Tak admi...

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2007/06/19 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter

Korean cinema will take a big bite of the Big Apple as the 2007 New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF) begins Friday. The festival will feature more than 30 works from the East, of which almost a third are Korean. The event will take place at the IFC Center until July 5 and at Japan Society July 5 - 8.

"A 17-day-long festival will feature films from Park Chan-wook, Johnnie To, Kiyoshi Kurosawa and Takashi Miike. This year's festival will introduce you to buffalo-busting action flicks from Thailand, cartilage-cracking gangster films from Korea, and the first gore flick ever made in Pakistan!" the festival said in a statement.

Dubbed "one of the city's most valuable events" by the New York Times, the film festival is America's leading showcase for Asian movies. Launched in 2002 by Subway Cinema, the festival has featured over 100 films from China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Taiwan and Thailand.

This year, Ryoo Seung-wan's old school...

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2004/07/29 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

by Seung-Jae Lee


"I had strength left", said Kwon Sang-woo (28). For the first time, Kwon hid his sensual muscles, or his macho instincts, under the black robe that priests wear in the upcoming romance movie "Shinboo Sooup", (Priest Lessons - Love so Divine) which will open on August 6. In a way, it seems strange that "momzzang" (those with good-looking bodies) Kwon plays the role of a timid and tearful student preparing for the priesthood.

"There were many NGs (No Good) in the last scene, which was the ceremony of ordination. I was stuck in a situation where I had to choose either God or Bong-hee (Hah Ji-won), but I did not cry well. If I, Kwon Sang-woo, had to choose between God or a woman, I would obviously choose the woman so I guess I couldn't get immersed into the role (laughter)".


When we met him on July 23 in a café somewhere in Jongro 1-ga, Seoul, he said, "Except when going to the bathroom, the priest robes were so splendid that I liked them", adding, "Acto...

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