Sunny (Movie - 2008)

Grand Bell Film Fest Puzzles Movie Fans

Source | 2009/11/08 | 0 comments | Permalink |

By Han Sang-hee
Staff Reporter

Movie fans may have highly anticipated the 46th Grand Bell (Daejong) Film Festival, which took place Friday in southern Seoul, but the outcome of the event was unexpected.

The festival's award ceremony had many shaking their heads, as some of the most successful films took home fewer trophies than expected, while the lack of participating stars left the event feel a bit empty.

This year's Best Picture award went to "The Divine Weapon", pushing aside hit blockbusters "Haeundae" and "Mother - 2009".

"Mother - 2009", which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, managed only to win the Best Supporting Actor award, while "Haeundae", which was nominated in nine categories and was one of the biggest films of the year, won only Best Producer.

"Take Off" was nominated in seven categories but only won Best Director, while "Closer to Heaven" took home Best Actor. "Haeundae" and "Take Off" attracted a total of 12.93 million movies goers, alternating ...| More

Nominees for Grand Bell Awards Stir Controversy

Source | 2009/10/26 | 0 comments | Permalink |

The Grand Bell (Daejong) Awards, a prestigious film award in Korea, have stirred controversy yet again. The list of Best Leading Actress nominees that was announced October 21 includes Kim Min-seon ("Portrait Of A Beauty"), Soo-ae ("Sunny"), Kim Hye-ja ("Mother - 2009"), Choi Kang-hee ("Ae-ja") and Jang Nara ("Sky And Sea").

Nominees for the Best Picture award are "Mother", "Sky And Sea", "The Divine Weapon", "Haeundae" and "Take Off".

The controvery arose because actress Ha Ji-won of "Closer to Heaven" and "Haeundae", which drew more than 10 million vieiwers, and actress Kim Ha-neul of the hit movie "My Girlfriend is an Agent" were not included on the list. Morever, the movie "Thirst", which received the Jury Award at this year's Cannes Film Festival, and Kim Ji-woon's "The Good, The Bad, The Weird" also failed to be nominated for the Best Picture or the Best Director awards.

"Sky And Sea", which is to open on October 28 just a week before the awards ceremony, has been nomina...| More

46th Annual Daejong Film Awards Nominees

Source | 2009/10/23 | 0 comments | Permalink |

46th Annual Daejong Film Awards Nominees

- Best Movie: "Take Off", "Mother - 2009", "The Divine Weapon", "Sky and Sea", "Haeundae"

- Best Director : Kim Yong-hwa ("Take Off"), Yoon Je-kyoon ("Haeundae"), Jeon Yoon-soo ("Portrait of a Beauty"), Jeong Gi-hoon ("Ae-ja"), Bong Joon-ho ("Mother - 2009")

- Best Actor : Kim Myeong-min ("Closer to Heaven"), Kim Yoon-seok (Running Turtle), Seol Kyeong-gu ("Haeundae"), Jeong Jae-yeong ("The Divine Weapon"), Ha Jeong-woo ("Take Off")

- Best Actress : Kim Min-seon ("Portrait of a Beauty"), Kim Hye-ja ("Mother - 2009"), Soo-ae ("Sunny"), Jang Nara ("Sky and Sea"), Choi Kang-hee ("Ae-ja")

- Best Supporting Actor : Kim In-kwon ("Haeundae"), Jin Goo ("Mother - 2009"), Jeong Kyeong-ho ("Sunny"), Jang Geun-seok ("The Case of Itaewon Homicide"), Kim Nam-gil ("Modern Boy")

- Best Supporting Actress : Kim Bo-yeon ("Living Death"), Kim Hae-sook ("Thirst"), Kim Yeong-ae ("Ae-ja"), Choo Ja-hyeon ("Portrait of a Beauty"), Nam Neung-mi ("Clos...| More

'Sword' presents the softer side of actress Soo-ae

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

For years, top female actresses in Korea took turns playing the historical figures Jang Hi-bin and Hwang Jin-hi in the movies.

Now, you can add Empress Myeongseong to the list.

Stars including Kang Soo-yeon, Choi Myeong-gil, Chae Si-ra, Lee Mi-yeon and Moon Geun-yeong have recently played the role of the hwanghu, which means empress in Korean.

The latest: actress Soo-ae, known throughout the country for her classical beauty. Soo-ae plays Empress Myeongseong in the recently released film "The Sword with No Name", which is based on a book by Ya Seol-lok and was directed by Kim Yong-gyoon.

The movie depicts a desperate romance between the empress and warrior Mu-myeong (Jo Seung-woo). The empress, a forward-thinking advocate of modernity, wields her political influence to further her ideals. But she is often at odds with her orthodox father-in-law, regent Daewon-gun (Cheon Ho-jin), and meets a tragic death in her lover's arms. The movie is loosely based on history, but there ar...| More

Another side to Empress Myeongseong

Source | 2009/08/26 | 0 comments | Permalink |

Film focuses on her possible love affair

Empress Myeongseong of the Joseon Dynasty is one of the most talked-about figures in Korean history due to her extraordinary life, which was highlighted by political ambition and tragic death.

So it's no wonder that she's been at the center of various productions such as the acclaimed musical "The Last Empress" and the 2001 hit TV series "Empress Myeongseong".

A new film to be released late next month is tackling her story again, with a twist.

The movie, called "The Sword with No Name", examines the life of the empress through the lens of a love affair between her and a bodyguard.

"The productions depicting the life of Empress Myeongseong so far have shown the charismatic side of her, but I think there must have been a soft side to her, because she was a woman after all", Kim Mi-hee, the producer of the film, said during a press conference Tuesday.

"In the film, we focused on the more personal aspects of the life of the empres...| More