Song Kang-Ho 송강호 [“Broker”, “Emergency Declaration”]

[rubie]

April 9, 2019

 

Bong Joon-ho's New Film Due out Next Month

 

Source: The Chosun Ilbo

 

 

The first trailer and poster for a much-anticipated new film by director Bong Joon-ho were released on Monday, as it will finally hit theaters here late next month.

 

"Parasite" is Bong's first Korean-language film since "Mother" in 2009. He has worked on international co-productions in between.

 

The film is a tale about two families who are markedly different yet also alike.

 

It boasts a star-studded cast including Song Kang-ho, Lee Sun-kyun, Jo Yeo-jeong and Park So-dam.

[rubie]

Source: Pierce Conran

 

As predicted (hoped for) by many, Bong Joon-ho's PARASITE with Song Kang-ho has indeed been selected for competition at #Cannes2019! 

 

[rubie]

Source: Soompi

 

On April 18, the 72nd Cannes Film Festival unveiled its lineup of films for their annual event.

 

19 films have been submitted for the competitive category, with several other films being invited to the festival in categories such as Un Certain Regard, Out of Competition, Midnight Screenings, and Special Screenings.

 

Director Bong Joon Ho’s new film “Parasite” has been submitted in the In Competition category. This is the second time that Bong Joon Ho has been in the competitive category at Cannes, with the first time being for the 2017 Netflix film “Okja.”

 

“Parasite” tells the story of Gi Taek (Song Kang Ho) and his family, who are all unemployed. When his eldest son, Gi Woo (Choi Woo Shik), begins to take private lessons at the house of a man named Park (Lee Sun Gyun), the two families start to interact in unexpected ways.

 

[rubie]

April 19, 2019

 

Bong Joon-ho's 'Parasite' chosen for competition in Cannes

 

SEOUL, April 18 (Yonhap) -- The Cannes Film Festival on Thursday announced the feature selection for the 2019 competition, which includes South Korean director Bong Joon-ho's "Parasite."

 

It is Bong's second time competing for the Palme d'Or, or Golden Palm, following the selection of his adventure film "Okja" in 2017.

 

The Korean-language film will be one of 19 films to compete for the Palme d'Or, including "Pain and Glory" by Spanish director Pedro Almodovar and "Ahmed" by the Belgian filmmaking brothers Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne.

 

It is also the fourth consecutive year that a South Korean film has been chosen to compete in the international film festival, following Park Chan-wook's "The Handmaiden" in 2016 and "Burning" by Lee Chang-dong in 2018.

 

"Parasite" is Bong's seventh feature film and first Korean-language movie in 10 years.

 

The flick pictures a working-class family that gets entangled in an unexpected incident after the son has a chance to access a wealthy, elite world.

 

Song Kang-ho, who plays a main role in the movie, collaborates with Bong for the fourth time, following "Memories of Murder," "The Host" and "Snowpiercer."

 

"I want to share this pleasure with all the actors and the filming staff and myself who immersed themselves in shooting 'Parasite' during last year's unusually searing summer," director Bong said of the nomination.

 

"I am honored and thrilled to present this film capturing the vivid image of the era in the heat of the Cannes Film Festival," he said.

 

Another Korean film, "The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil" by director Lee Won-tae, was invited to the film festival for its non-competitive Midnight Screenings category.

 

The 72nd Cannes Film Festival will run from May 14-25.

 

The photo provided by CJ Entertainment shows a scene from the movie "Parasite" by director Bong Joon-ho. (Yonhap)

brk@yna.co.kr

 

Source: Festival de Cannes

 

[rubie]

April 19, 2019

 

Bong Jun-ho’s ‘Parasite’ included the Cannes’ feature selection

 

Source: The DONG-A ILBO

 

Spoiler

 

Korean movie director Bong Jun-ho’s new movie titled “Parasite” was included in the feature selection of the 72nd Cannes Film Festival. Feature films will compete for the Golden Palm award. 

 

The Steering Committee of the Cannes Film Festival held a press conference at 11 a.m. on Thursday (local time) and announced the feature selection. Parasite is starred by Song Kang-ho and Lee Seon-gyun as lead roles, a story about the family of a jobless man, “Ki-taek,” whose eldest son “Ki-woo” is interviewed for a tutor position at Park’s, a wealthy family. 

 

It is Bong's second time competing for the Golden Palm, following the selection of "Okja" in 2017. It is also the fourth consecutive year that a South Korean film has been chosen to compete in the international film festival. Park Chan-wook's "The Handmaiden" and Lee Chang-dong’s "Burning" were also invited to Cannes in 2016 and 2018, respectively.

 

Separately, director Lee Won-tae’s “The Gangster, the Cop, the Devil” will be presented as a Midnight Screening, which is out of competition. The movie, starred by Ma Dong-suk and Kim Mu-yeol, depicts the story of a gangster who coincidentally became the target of a serial killer and a detective obsessed with searching for the culprit. The 72nd Cannes Film Festival will be held from May 14 through May 25.

Seo-Hyun Lee baltika7@donga.com

[rubie]

April 19, 2019

 

Director Bong Joon-ho's film 'Parasite' chosen to compete in Cannes Film Festival

Park Sae-jin Reporter(swatchsjp@ajunews.com) | Aju Business Daily

[Courtesy of CJ Entertainment]

SEOUL -- "Parasite", a film directed by Bong Joon-ho, was chosen to compete for the Palme d'Or, also known as the Golden Palm award, at this year's Cannes Film Festival, the world's most popular and prestigious film festival.

 

This is the second time for Bong to have his film included in the list of selected films which will compete for awards in Cannes. The 49-year-old competed for the highest Golden Palm prize with his 2017 film "Okja, which received a four-minute standing ovation after its screening at the film festival.

 

Bong stepped into the spotlight with his monster film "The Host" in 2006 and released "Snowpiercer", a science fiction action film, in 2013. He debuted on Netflix, the world's most popular over-the-top (OTT) video service, with Okja in 2017.

 

"Parasite", featuring South Korea's veteran actor Song Kang-ho, depicts a story about an unemployed family being entangled with a rich and powerful family through multiple, unexpected incidents. The film is scheduled to be released in May.

 

The Cannes festival began in 1946 as an invitation-only event in which avant-garde, documentary and other new films are reviewed and awarded. It is a big film event desired by many film directors.

[rubie]

April 22, 2019

 

Cannes-nominated 'Parasite' is full of Korea-specific details, nuances: director
 

By Park Boram

 

 

SEOUL, April 22 (Yonhap) -- The Cannes-nominated Korean film "Parasite" is full of cinematic details and nuances specific to Koreans but its universal theme of class division will strike a chord with foreign audiences as well, director Bong Joon-ho said Monday.

 

The organizers of the Cannes Film Festival announced last week that "Parasite" will compete with 18 other movies from all around the world for the highest prize the 72nd edition of the festival, slated for May 14-25.

 

Social class division and family dynamics, subjects broadly dealt with in his previous films, including "The Host" and "Snowpiercer," again feature prominently in "Parasite," which will hit local screens sometime in May.

 

The scenario of "Parasite," written by the director himself, started from an initial idea in 2013. "What would happen if two families that come from extremely different environments and are highly unlikely to come across each other actually meet?" Bong said in a press conference announcing the release of the film.

 

Spoiler

Director Bong Joon-ho speaks during a press conference in Seoul on April 22, 2019, for his new film, "Parasite". (Yonhap)
 

"The film was referred to by its working title for about one year after 2013 -- 'Decalcomanie.' (It is) a story of two different families, one very rich and the other the opposite, coming across each other in a very unique environment," the director said.

 

Song Kang-ho, arguably South Korea's best ticket-selling actor of today and who collaborated with Bong in "Snowpiercer," "The Host" and "Memories of Murder," plays Ki-taek, the chronically unemployed father of the impoverished family, while Lee Sun-kyun plays the very rich, successful head of the other family.

 

The two families meet each other after Ki-taek's son uses a forged university diploma to become a highly paid private tutor for the rich family.

 

Bong described the film as "a tragicomedy dealing with the laughter, the horror and the sorrow of human beings living together."

 

"I hope that this movie could be one that provokes all kinds of different thoughts," the director said. The metaphors in "Parasite" reveal themselves in a wide range of ways, he noted.

 

"Parasite" is Bong's fifth film to be screened at the Cannes Film Festival, including his controversial Netflix movie "Okja."

 

"I am honored and nervous. ... (The Cannes Film Festival) is a place that is exciting, new and tense no matter when I go," he said.

 

"But foreigners, I think, would not be able to grasp (the significance of) the film 100 percent. It's such a Korean film, filled with details and nuances that could only be understood 100 percent when Korean audiences see it," Bong asserted.

 

For Song, the latest collaboration with Bong reminded him of their previous joint work in "Memories of Murder," filmed 16 years ago.

 

"Director Bong is someone who continuously challenges himself to come up with an imaginative, insightful film," the master actor said.

 

"I cautiously think that 'Parasite' is a film that could display surprising progress of the Korean cinematic world," he noted.

 

Choi Woo-shik, a young rising actor who played a supporting role in "Okja," appears as the son of Ki-taek, while Park So-dam plays his no-nonsense daughter.

 

Asked how likely "Parasite" is to win at the Cannes Film Festival, Bong was jokingly dismissive.

 

"The possibility is not high because (the competition) includes films by the immensely great directors I have admired since I started to learn cinema at university," he said. "But the possibility of the actors winning at the event is high," he said.

 

"I might sound self-contradicting, having said that foreigners may not fully understand the Korean nuances and details in the film. But the flip side of it is that the extremely different backgrounds of the two families mirror the globally universal gap between the rich and the poor," the director said. "I think this universal quality could strike a chord with foreign audiences within a single minute of the film's beginning." 

 

pbr@yna.co.kr

 

South Korean actor Song Kang-ho, who stars in the new movie "Parasite," attends a publicity event in Seoul on April 22, 2019. The movie, recently chosen for competition at this year's Cannes Film Festival, focuses on a working-class family that gets entangled in an unexpected incident after the son has a chance to access a wealthy, elite world. It will be released in South Korea in May. (Yonhap)

[rubie]

April 22, 2019

 

Bong Joon-ho’s new film ‘Parasite,’ Cannes nominee, to show extremes of Korean society

 

By Im Eun-byel The Korea Herald

       
Film director Bong Joon-ho’s new work “Parasite,” slated to compete at Cannes this year, features two ordinary families in different situations. 

 

Bong’s new film has been included in the 2019 Cannes Film Festival’s feature selection, marking the director’s second time competing for the Palme d’Or, following “Okja” in 2017. 

“Parasite” (CJ ENM)

 

Film director Bong Joon-ho speaks during a press conference for “Parasite,” held at The Westin Chosun Seoul on Monday. (Yonhap)

 

“(Including the noncompetitive selections), it is my fifth time to be invited to Cannes. It is a pleasure to screen my new work at the hottest, the most passionate place for film,” Bong said at a press conference at The Westin Chosun Seoul on Monday. 

 

Of his chances of receiving an award at the international film festival in mid-May, Bong said he did not have high expectations but that he was honored to be on the list of nominees, which also includes directors he has admired since his youth. 

 

“I am not sure if foreigners will be able to understand this film 100 percent. There are elements that only a Korean audience can fully understand. I am looking forward to this movie’s opening in Korea. 

 

“But, of course, the film can also appeal to everyone, regardless of nationality, since the issue of poverty and wealth is a universal one,” the director added. 

 

“Parasite” depicts two families, one affluent and the other living in deep poverty. Despite their differences, both are ordinary, loving families. The two families come into contact as a result of an unexpected incident. 

 

According to Bong, the two families are divided into separate spaces by an invisible yet firm line -- much as in real life, where the poor and the wealthy are divided. 

 

“I thought of the script in the winter of 2013. The working title had been ‘Decalcomania’ for a year,” he said. “I wondered, what would happen if two families in such different environments met each other?” 

 

“Parasite” (CJ ENM)

 

Song Kang-ho, a regular in Bong’s films, stars as the head of the impoverished family. It is Song’s fourth film with Bong, following “Memories of Murder,” “The Host” and “Snowpiercer.” 

 

“Every time, Bong challenges himself with amazing imagination and films with insight,” Song said. He also recalled that with “Parasite,” he’d experienced a similar feeling to the one he got when he received the script for the 2003 film “Memories of Murder.”

 

“‘After 16 years, I think this work will show Bong’s amazing development and the growth of the Korean movie scene,” the veteran actor said. 

 

The film also stars Choi Woo-shik as Song’s son. The 28-year-old, who debuted nine years ago, will be visiting Cannes for the third time, after “Train to Busan” and “Okja.” 

 

In “Parasite,” Choi plays a central character, the one who links the two families. He will be tutoring the daughter of the affluent family and lying about his background. 

 

Lee Sun-kyun, Cho Yeo-jeong, Park So-dam and Jang Hye-jin also star in the film. 

 

“Parasite” hits local theaters in May. 

 

By Im Eun-byel (silverstar@heraldcorp.com)

[rubie]

Source: Jason Bechervaise

 

[rubie]

April 23, 2019

 

Award-winning director Bong unveils eerie family tragicomedy

 

By Park Jin-hai The Korea Times

 

Bong Joon-ho, director of the internationally acclaimed films like "Snowpiercer," "The Host" and "Okja," has returned with his new movie "Parasite."

 

The much-anticipated film, starring Song Kang-ho, Lee Sun-kyun and Choi Woo-sik, tells the story of two families with extremely different social backgrounds ― a poor jobless household and a wealthy upper-class one. 

 

It is Bong's seventh feature film and first Korean-language movie in 10 years.

Expectations for the new film are running particularly high, after the Cannes Film Festival announced its selection of the film for its 2019 competition, Thursday. This is Bong's second time to compete for the Palme d'Or award. The director's 2017 film "Okja" was previously selected. 

 

Bong, known for his freewheeling cinematic imagination and creativity, tells the story of modern Korean society's class system in the new film. 

 

"Although there is no physical line that divides the living space of the haves and the have-nots, in reality, there is a tacit division between the two classes," the 49-year-old screenwriter and director said during a press conference at the Westin Chosun Seoul, Monday. "Living in the starkly different living boundary, there is nearly no chance for the rich to happen to meet the poor and vice versa. Through Ki-woo, the invisible line gets eliminated and it begins the story that follows."

 

The story starts when the son of the impoverished family, played by Choi, fabricates his educational background and visits the rich family's home for a job interview to work as a tutor for the family's children. 

 

"As the symbiosis or coexistence of human relations crumbles, one has no other choice but to live as a parasite in order to survive. In this sad reality, the poor family's struggle for survival could feel like tragicomedy," Bong said. 

 

The director first came up with the ideal in 2013 and developed the story. 

 

"The initial title for the film was Decalcomania. Like the art technique, I wanted to tell the story of two families, each comprised of four members, but showing a stark contrast," he said. 

 

Veteran actor Song Kang-ho, who is working with the director for the fourth time, will play Ki-taek, the good-natured but jobless father of the poor family. He described his character as like a mollusk. "This ordinary man accepts the situation and reacts in his own ways like a mollusk, sometimes taking extraordinary actions. But, he is not a strange person who is lacking common sense. Rather he is an ordinary father who lives a hard life for his family. With all of his bad luck, he happened to face this incident," Song said. 

 

The actor, who is fondly called the "persona" of director Bong, said audiences can witness the development of Bong's cinematic world. "Each time I work with the director, I feel I owe him for his endless imagination and poignant perspectives. Personally, the scenario this time reminded me of Bong's 2003 Memories of Murder," Song said. "When his past works like The Host and Snowpiercer entertained viewers of that particular genre, Bong's new film is more close to Memories of Murder. Through the film, viewers can witness the advancement of Bong's world and the development of Korean film as well." 

 

Regarding the film's premiere at Cannes, Bong expressed both expectations and concerns. "I think the international audiences at the film festival may not understand every detail of this film, because the story is specific to Korean society. But at the same time, I also feel it shares some common ground, telling the stories of two families at the extreme end of the haves and the have-nots." 

 

The director hopes his film will "provoke many questions and thoughts in audiences" after they walk out of the theaters.

 

"Parasite" will premiere during the Cannes Film Festival, which kicks off on May 14, and will be released here later that month. 

 

Guess 'Parasite' plot with 12 still images [PHOTOS]

 

 

[rubie]

Source: Jason Bechervaise

 

[rubie]

April 24, 2019

 

Families come together in ‘Parasite’

 

Source: INSIDE Korea JoongAng Daily

 

From left, director Bong Joon-ho, Choi Woo-shik, Cho Yeo-jeong, Jang Hye-jin, Park So-dam, Lee Sun-kyun and Song Kang-ho pose for a photo at a press conference held at The Westin Chosun hotel in central Seoul on Monday. [CJ ENTERTAINMENT]

 

Only time will tell if director Bong Joon-ho’s upcoming film “Parasite” will win the Palme d’Or at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival, but Bong wouldn’t bet on it. At an event held on Monday at The Westin Chosun hotel in central Seoul, the director said that his film “is highly unlikely to win.” 

 

Bong’s latest film has drawn the attention of the film industry ever since it received an invite from the prestigious film festival. It is the only Korean film competing for the award this year. Moreover, it is the director’s first Korean-language movie in 10 years. Both “Snowpiercer” (2013) and “Okja” (2017) mixed both English and Korean dialogue and featured international casts with the likes of Tilda Swinton, Jake Gyllenhaal, Steven Yeun and Chris Evans. 

 

Both films touched on complicated aspects of contemporary society such as social hierarchies and family dynamics, and his new movie is no exception. 

 

In the film, the audience is introduced to an extremely poor family that lives in a half-basement apartment with little sunlight, and a filthy rich family that lives in an unobstructed mansion at the top of a hill. Living on such opposite ends of society, there seems to be no way that the two families’ paths would ever cross. The movie tells the story of how the two families become intertwined. 

 

“Although the two families have lived very different lives, when we look at them more closely, their lives may not be all that different, and may even mirror each other,” Bong explained. 

 

The director also shared why his hopes were not very high for winning the award. “The actors were perfect for their roles, which is why I think they have a decent chance to win individual awards,” Bong said. “However, when I saw whom I was up against, I knew my chances were very slim because there were works by directors I’ve admired ever since I started studying cinema during my college years.” 

 

The second reason, Bong said, was because he thought the story of the film would not appeal to an international audience. “For overseas theatergoers, it may be hard for them to comprehend the film 100 percent because there are specific details that may only draw empathy from Korean audiences.” 

 

Bong told the press that the inspiration behind his latest work came in 2013, when an acquaintance suggested a movie idea about two completely opposite families coming together due to an incident. 

 

After he wrote the script, casting became like fitting together pieces of a puzzle as Bong met with actors one on one to ask them to play roles he had already laid out for them. 

 

Song Kang-ho was first asked to play Ki-taek, the father of an extremely poor family. This is Song’s fourth film with Bong - he has also appeared in “Memories of Murder” (2003), “The Host” (2006) and “Snowpiercer.” 

 

Bong personally referred to Song as “a person he could rely on the most.” With Song, Bong said that he can become more daring and challenge himself to try more new things.

 

“Regardless of his role, no matter how small or how big, Song manages to determine the entire flow of the film,” Bong said. “That’s how unrivaled his presence is [in the films].”

 

The other actors also chipped in to recollect how they received the offer from the filmmaker. Bong asked actor Choi Woo-shik to “keep his body slim” at the “Okja” after-party. On the other hand, the director asked Jang Hye-jin to fatten up to fit into the role. “After I had gained 5 kilograms [11 pounds], I asked [the director] if it would be enough [while we were having a meal together],” Jang said. “Without saying anything, Bong slid the side dishes over to my side and said, ‘Please eat more.’” Jang revealed that she gained a total of 15 kilograms for her role. 

 

The director wanted the characters’ personalities and lives to be as close to real life as possible, which is why there aren’t any “real” villains or ultimate evil in the story. “You could be anyone in the film,” Song added. “Which is why the story is a tragedy as well as a comedy, because we often see the two overlap in real life as well.” 

 

In his closing remarks, Bong admittedly contradicted what he said at the beginning of the press event. “Although [the film] contains details [that may only be spotted by Koreans], its focus on families, about the rich and the poor, are omnipresent all around the world.” 

 

The 72nd Cannes Film Festival will run from May 14 to 25. The film is slated to make its world premiere at the festival, although the exact date has not yet been set. The film’s local release will be at the end of May.

 

BY LEE JAE-LIM [lee.jaelim@joongang.co.kr]

[rubie]

April 26, 2019

 

PARASITE Leads Korean Quartet at Cannes 2019

Korean Works Selected in Competition, Midnight, Cinéfondation and Directors’ Fortnight

 

by Pierce Conran KOFIC

 

This year, the Cannes Film Festival is set to welcome four films from Korea, from the most anticipated new film from a Korean director this year, down to a promising student short. BONG Joon-ho is back in competition with his latest film PARASITE, the ‘Midnight Screenings’ welcome a new Korean genre film in The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil, student short Reonghee (Alien) is invited to Cinéfondation and JEONG Da-hee returns to Directors’ Fortnight with her short animation Movements.

 

Two years after getting his first invitation to the Cannes competition section with his Netlfix-backed Okja, director BONG is back on the Croisette with PARASITE, his first fully Korean-language project since Mother, which screened in the Un Certain Regard section at Cannes in 2009. BONG’s new work features SONG Kang-ho as the head of a struggling family that finds itself entangled with a rich family following an unexpected incident. The film also stars LEE Sun-kyun, JO Yeo-jeong, CHOI Woo-shik, PARK So-dam and JANG Hye-jin.

 

LEE Won-tae’s sophomore film The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil will join the Midnight Screenings lineup. The film stars Don LEE (aka MA Dong-seok), previously seen in the midnight slot in TRAIN TO BUSAN (2016), as a gangster who teams up with a cop (GIM Mu-yeol) to take down a killer (KIM Sung-kyu).

 

Korea National University of Arts (K’Arts) student YEON Je-gwang makes his Cannes debut with his immigration-themed Reonghee (Alien) which will compete in the Cinéfondation section. Animation director JEONG Da-hee is back in Directors’ Fortnight with her short Movements, five years after Man on the Chair screened in the same section.

 

This year’s Cannes Film Festival will run from May 14 to 25.

[rubie]

Source: CJ Entertainment

 

 

[rubie]

Source: Soompi (for full article)

 

Korean Movies You’ll Be Surprised Are Based On True Events

 

“A Taxi Driver”

 

Starring: Song Kang Ho

 

There are many movies and shows memorializing and dramatizing the events of the 1980 Gwangju Massacre, but “A Taxi Driver” shows the experience of two men not directly involved in the uprising, but witnessing the events and struggling to report them to the world.

 

From May 18 to 27 in Gwangju South Korea, Gwangju residents took up arms to protect themselves against military forces after the cruel treatment of Chonnam University Students during peaceful protest. Students who were demonstrating against the martial law government were fired upon, killed, raped, and beaten by government troops. As many as 606 people are believed to have lost their lives.

 

This movie follows the story of Kim Man Seob (played by Song Kang Ho), a taxi driver in Seoul who hears of a foreign journalist with an expensive request. Drive him to Gwangju and back before curfew, during civil unrest, when foreign journalists were prohibited from entering the small city. Despite road blocks enforced by the Korean military, they are able to enter Gwangju under the guise of being missionaries, only to discover the chaos of the Gwangju Massacre. Man Seob is worried about leaving his daughter at home alone for so long unable to contact her, and he fears for his own safety. However, as he tries to return to Seoul, he sees the pain and turmoil of those around him and returns to finish his job.

 

Jürgen “Peter” Hinzpeter, the German journalist who risked his life and his freedom to report on the events of the Gwangju Democratization Movement, was later awarded for his efforts after successfully leaving Korea and sharing his story with the world. It was later discovered that his taxi driver had given him a fake name, so the driver was never discovered and rewarded.

[rubie]

Source: Soompi (for full article)

 

Korean Movies You’ll Be Surprised Are Based On True Events

 

“Memories of Murder”

 

 

Starring: Song Kang Ho, Kim Sang Kyung, Kim Roe Ha

 

This action-packed and thrilling movie from Director Bong Joon Ho is a loose retelling of one of the most prolific murder cases in Korean history.

 

The Hwaseong Serial Murders shook South Korea as an unknown man raped and murdered 10 women between September 15, 1986 and April 3, 1991. This case became the first known record of a serial killer in South Korea with a clear modus operandi and has been compared to the notorious Zodiac Killer of America. In each case, the victims were found bound, sexually assaulted, and strangled to death with items of their own clothing. The authorities were unable to identify a suspect despite having DNA evidence, as forensic investigation was still in early development. Police believe the perpetrator was in his 20s at the time of his crimes, between 165–170 centimeters tall, and blood type B, but little else is known. Another murder using a similar modus operandi was investigated in 2004, but is still unsolved and cannot be directly linked to the Hwaseong Serial Murder Case.

 

The statute of limitations on the case ran out in 2006, but the The South Korean National Assembly passed an “amended criminal procedure law” in July of 2015, removing the 25-year statute of limitations on first-degree murder in a near-unanimous vote. This means the case can be legally reopened and investigated. More attention has been brought to the case and its victims by several TV and movie adaptations, including “Memories of Murder.”

[rubie]

May 3, 2019

 

Bong's new movie 'Parasite' out May 30

By Lee Gyu-lee The Korea Times

 

Director Bong Joon-ho's new movie "Parasite" will be released May 30, after premiering at the Cannes Film Festival mid-May. 

 

"Parasite" is Bong's first film in two years after the big-budget Netflix film "Okja." This tragicomedy revolves around two families from different environments. A brief preview was revealed April 7, but the detailed plot has not been released. 

 

Song Kang-ho, Lee Sun-kyun and Cho Yeo-jeong star in the movie. 

 

Bong plans to attend the red carpet event at Cannes and will hold a news conference after the film's screening. 

 

The film is Bong's fifth to be invited to compete at this international festival. 

 

Bong debuted in 1994 with the independent film "Incoherence." He directed several award-winning movies including "Snowpiercer" and "The Host," both action and sci-fi films that became globally recognized.

gyulee@koreatimes.co.kr 

 

Source: CJ Entertainment

 

[rubie]

May 13, 2019

 

Bong Joon-ho's 'Parasite' among films in the running for Cannes' top prize

By Kim Boram

 

This image provided by the Cannes Film Festival shows the official poster of the 72nd event. (Yonhap)

 

SEOUL, May 13 (Yonhap) -- With one day to go before the opening of this year's Cannes Film Festival, whether South Korean director Bong Joon-ho's latest will be able to take home the top prize is drawing public attention here.

 

"Parasite," the seventh feature flick from Bong, is one of the 21 films chosen to compete for the Palme d'Or, Cannes' highest prize, at the 72nd edition of the festival.

 

Among other strong nominees are "Pain and Glory" by Spanish director Pedro Almodovar and "Ahmed" by the Belgian filmmaking brothers Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne.

 

It is the second time Bong has been in contention for the top prize in Cannes, following his adventure film "Okja" in 2017. "Parasite" is Bong's fifth film to be screened at the film festival -- others include "Host" and "Mother."

 

The new film, scheduled to premiere on May 21 in Cannes, is a tragicomedy about a poor family becoming obsessed with a rich one after their son gets a job as a tutor for the wealthy family.

 

This image provided by CJ Entertainment shows a scene from the film "Parasite." (Yonhap)

 

"I am honored and nervous. ... (The Cannes Film Festival) is a place that is exciting, new and tense no matter when I go," said the 49-year old director in a Seoul press conference last month.

 

But he is not hung up on winning a prize in Cannes as his film may be too nuanced and subtle for the international festival.

 

"Foreigners, I think, would not be able to grasp (the significance of) the film 100 percent," he said. "It's such a Korean film, filled with details and nuances that could only be understood 100 percent when Korean audiences see it."

 

He has to carry the day against big-name directors in the competition lineup, five of whom have previously won the highest honor at Cannes. For instance, Ken Loach of "Sorry We Missed You" is the 2017 winner of the Palme d'Or, and Terrence Malick of "A Hidden Life" was awarded the gong in 2011.

 

Film critics also say that it will be hard for Bong to clinch the most prestigious award this year because Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda won it last year for "Shoplifters".

 

"Cannes will hesitate to grant the grand prize to another Asian director two years in a row, beating out all these heavyweights," said Kang Yoo-jung, a film critic and professor at Kangnam University in Yongin, just south of Seoul. "But we can expect other awards like best actor prize."

 

"Parasite" is not the only South Korean title invited to this year's Cannes.

 

The action-adventure film "The Gangster, the Cop, the Devil," directed by Lee Won-tae, has been included in Cannes' non-competition lineup. In the Directors' Fortnight category of the festival, Jeong Da-hee's animated film "Movements" will screen in the short and medium-length films section.

 

"Cannes now looks into the Korean movie industry in a deeper way. It pays attention not only to masters, but also to up-and-coming directors in Korea," said Kang.

 

The 72nd edition of the Cannes Film Festival is slated for May 14-25, with "The Dead Don't Die" by Jim Jarmusch opening the event.

 

brk@yna.co.kr

[rubie]

May 17, 2019 

 

Song Kang-ho honored with Excellence Award from Swiss film fest

 

SEOUL, May 17 (Yonhap) -- South Korean actor Song Kang-ho has been chosen to receive the Excellence Award at this year's Locarno International Film Festival in Switzerland, the organizers said Friday.

 

Launched in 2004, the Swiss film fest's special award goes to actors or actresses whose work and talent have contributed to enriching the cinema industry.

 

Internationally acclaimed sliver-screen stars like Susan Sarandon, John Malkovich, Edward Norton, Bill Pullman and Ethan Hawke are among the past laureates.

 

Song is the first Asian actor to receive the award.

 

"The Locarno Film Festival's Excellence Award goes to actors who have followed significant, courageous paths," Lili Hinstin, artistic director of the 72nd Locarno Film Festival, was quoted as saying in the festival's latest press release. "Thus far the recipients have all been American or European, but for me it was important to open up this prize to the Asian cinema."

 

She said Song has peerlessly interpreted the variety and intensity of emotions through Korean films in collaboration with Korean big-name directors such as Bong Joon-ho, Park Chan-wook and Kim Jee-woon.

 

Making his cinema debut with "The Day a Pig Fell into the Well" in 1996, the 52-year old rose to international stardom with a series of critically acclaimed works and box-office hits including "Joint Security Area" (2000), "Memories of Murder" (2003), "The Host" (2006) and "Snowpiercer" (2013).

 

He will hit the red carpet of the ongoing Cannes International Film Festival next week with the Palme d'Or-nominated "Parasite" directed by Bong Joon-ho.

 

To accept the Excellence Award, Song will attend the Locarno International Festival in August.

 

Actor Song Kang-ho (Yonhap)

brk@yna.co.kr

[rubie]

 

May 17, 2019

 

Cannes Market: Korean buzz titles

BY JEAN NOH Screen (related excerpt only)

 

South Korean comedies and political dramas will be tempting buyers in the market, while Bong Joon Ho’s Parasite flies in Competition.

 

At this year’s Cannes Film Festival, director Bong Joon Ho’s highly anticipated tragicomedy Parasite is playing in Competition while Lee Won-tae’s The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil — a high-concept action-thriller that has already sold US remake rights — is playing in Midnight Screenings. Both titles scored multiple pre-sales long before arriving on the Croisette, but Korean sellers will be out in force as always, launching sales on everything from disaster dramaExit to family comedy Secret Zoo to gangster-turned-politician tale Long Live The King.

 

Money makers
So far in 2019, local films have taken 52.6% of the box office in South Korea, with US films accounting for 44.8%, according to the Korean Film Council (KOFIC). The comedy Extreme Job, about a team of narcotics detectives who go undercover in a fried chicken joint, became South Korea’s second-biggest box-office hit ever, grossing $118m and attracting more than 16.3 million admissions since the start of the year.

Extreme Job is followed in the 2019 rankings by Avengers: Endgame, which has clocked up 12 million admissions, and Captain Marvel, which is significantly behind as the year’s third-biggest hit with 5.8 million admissions so far. Two local films round out the top five: Money, a stock market drama starring Ryu Jun-yeol that has reached 3.4 million admissions, and Mal-Mo-E: The Secret Mission, a drama about the efforts to preserve the banned Korean language during the Japanese occupation, which has taken 2.9 million admissions.

In terms of non-US foreign fare, Japanese films like animation Detective Conan: Full Score Of Fear have taken 0.9% of the box office this year, followed by Taiwanese films such as Fall In Love At First Kiss with 0.6% and UK films including The Wife, which helped take 0.3%.

 

In the festival
 

Parasite

 

SOURCE: 2019 CJ ENM CORPORATION, BARUNSON E&A

Dir Bong Joon Ho

Making its world premiere in Competition, this family tragicomedy is Bong’s much-awaited return to Korean-language filmmaking after Okja — the Netflix title that controversially played here in Competition two years ago — and Snowpiercer. Song Kang Ho plays the patriarch of a family of four that are all unemployed who takes an interest in the affluent Park family, leading to unexpected complications. Produced by Barunson E&A, the film is set for local release on May 30. The film’s pre-sales include to French-speaking territories (The Jokers Films).
Contact: CJ Entertainment