Shiri (Movie - 1999)

Korean/Japanese Screen Adaption 'White Night' in Production

Source | 2009/10/01 | 0 comments | Permalink |

There has been an increasing amount of Japanese Korean cinematic business happening of late and new adaption of novel "White Night" adds another notch to the belt. Written by novelist Higashino Keigo the original dark tale of two children who commit murder through self defense was also made into a successful Japanese TV drama. The Korean movie stars actors SON Ye-jin ("My Wife Got Married" 2008) and marks the return of heart throb Ko Soo after serving in the army. In addition, playing the pursuing detective is Korean stalwart actor HAN Seok-kyu, who, starring in "Shiri" (1999) and "The Scarlet Letter" (2004) should be no stranger to Japanese and Korean audiences alike.

The screen play has been completed by busy TV writer PARK Yeon-Seon who has written other adaptations and also comedy for the big screen. Joining PARK's first foray into dark cinematic territory is feature-film first timer PARK Shin-woo who is in the director's seat. "White Night" is being distributed by CJ Entertainm...| More

Choi Min-sik Escapes Oncreen to 'Himalaya'

Source | 2009/05/31 | 0 comments | Permalink |

By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter

Actor Choi Min-sik has returned to local screens to take the audience on a faraway journey to "Himalaya, Where the Wind Dwells", which opens in theaters June 11.

The actor is virtually synonymous with contemporary Korean cinema, with the so-called "first" domestic blockbuster "Shiri" (Swiri) (1998) to Im Kwon-taek's award-winning "Chihwaseon" ("Strokes of Fire", 2002) and Park Chan-wook's international breakthrough "Old Boy" (2003). He was also accused of upping guarantees for high-profile actors, though Kang Woo-suk later rescinded the statement and apologized.

The 47-year-old may have been absent from the silver screen for four years, but his presence remained strong ― in 2007, he showed off his theatrical streak in the play "Pillow Man" while last year the 14th Lyon Asian Film Festival held a retrospective on Choi.

"Expression (acting) itself is important, but the process of absorbing things before taking part in a project is vital. ...| More

'Iris' to Bring Spy Story to Small Screen

Source | 2009/05/24 | 0 comments | Permalink |

By Han Sang-hee
Staff Reporter

"Iris" is gearing up for a new genre of drama ― espionage action. The new series, expected to air in September, has fans anticipating where it will refuel the passion for hallyu.

"Iris" is not only based on the hit movie "Shiri" (1998), but also stars some of Korea's best-known actors.

Lee Byeong-heon, Kim Tae-hee, Jeong Joon-ho, Kim Seung-woo, Kim So-yeon and Big Bang member T.O.P. (Choi Seung-hyeon) will appear in the "blockbuster action melodrama", and even the actors said they were worried how the drama makers will pull out all the charms from the colorful actors.

"We approached `Iris' like it was a spy film, so viewers will get to watch movie-like scenes along with the emotional details that have made Korean drama so popular over the years at the same time", Kim Gyoo-tae, the director, said.

"One of the most interesting issues here is the division of South and North Korea. It's something that the world is interested in, but we t...| More

Korean Stars Come under One Roof in the U.S.

Source | 2009/04/29 | 0 comments | Permalink |

The merger of two major talent agencies in America, William Morris and Endeavor, has brought Korean stars together under one roof. Contracted with William Morris are Singer "Rain", actress Kim Yoon-jin of the American series "Lost", Daniel Henney of Korean drama "My Name is Kim Sam-soon", and director Park Chan-wook of "Old Boy" and "Lady Vengeance". Now actor Lee Byeong-heon of "G.I. Joe" will join these noted Korean celebrities as a member of the newly merged William Morris Endeavor Entertainment.

William Morris is the second largest agency in Hollywood, exerting extensive influence over the entire entertainment business. Endeavor is the fifth largest agency, headed by Ari Emanuel, brother of Ram Emanuel, President Obama's Chief of Staff. Currently the largest talent agency in the United States is CAA, where famed Koreans film directors Kang Je-gyu of "Shiri", Kim Ji-woon of "The Good, the Bad, the Weird", Bong Joon-ho of "The Host", and Lee Jae-han (a.k.a. John H. Lee) of "A Mome...| More

Creativity needed to overcome slump: Kang

Source | 2009/02/16 | 0 comments | Permalink |

'There is one principle that never changes: stick to the basics'.

Kang Je-gyu is one of Korea's best known film directors yet he's only shot three movies: "The Ginko Bed" (1996), "Shiri" (1999) and "Taegukgi" (2004).

Kang has just finished writing the script for his next project and he's now preparing his next movie in Hollywood.

The JoongAng Sunday asked him about the current state of the industry.

JAS: Did you think "Shiri" would become such a big hit?

Not at all. The record held by the movie "Seopyeonje" in 1993 was 1.03 million tickets sold in Seoul [all audience figures are for Seoul], which was regarded as a stand-alone achievement.

To think the movie would go beyond the record ticket sales of 1.97 million for the U.S. movie "Titanic" was just unthinkable.

We made a bet on the number of people who would go to see the movie and I wrote down 800,000, which I thought was really stretching it.

When the actor Shin Hyeon-joon said "Shiri" would draw as many as 1...| More