Director Kim Jee Woon 김지운 Kim Ji Woon

[rubie]

September 16, 2014
I SAW THE DEVIL to Get Remake TreatmentAdam Wingard and Simon Barrett on Board to Direct and Write
  by Pierce Conran KOBIZ  
KIM Jee-woon’s violent revenge thriller I Saw the Devil has developed quite a reputation internationally since it bowed in 2010 and now a Hollywood remake is underway with director Adam Wingard and writer Simon Barrett on board. Staring LEE Byung-hun and CHOI Min-shik, the original dealt with the cat and mouse game played by a rogue National Intelligence Service agent who chases after the serial killer who brutally murdered his fiancé. With the killer’s identity revealed early on, the film follows the agent’s cruel quest for vengeance as he opts to harass and torture the killer rather than arrest or murder, revealing himself to capable of equally monstrous acts. Wingard and Barrett are growing names in the genre filmmaking community, having made You’re Next (2011) and this year’s The Guest, as well as participating the V/H/S and ABCs of Death omnibus series. The film will be produced by Jessica and Keith Calder of Snoot Entertainment (behind You’re Next and The Guest) and Adi Shankar and Spencer Silna. Reports indicate that the project has been on the cards for some time script work and casting already underway. The news makes I Saw the Devil the latest in a long list of high profile Korean releases remade in Tinseltown, which includes Spike Lee’s take on Oldboy (2003) that was released last year.

[rubie]

 September 16, 2014 

Groundbreaking South Korean Revenge Film 'I Saw The Devil’ To Get U.S. Makeover
By Tony Sokol KpopStarz     

"I Saw The Devil," one of the most violent and depraved films to come out of South Korea in recent years, will be remade for American audiences.
Adam Wingard and Simon Barrett, the creative team behind the newly released genre film "The Guest," are nearing a deal to write and direct an English-Language version of the psychological thriller, according to The Wrap. The remake was first announced in December.
Released in 2010, the original "I Saw the Devil" showed how much more South Korean filmmakers could get away with than western directors. Directed by Kim Jee-Woon, it was an ultra-violent film that didn't waste one frame of its two-and-a-half hour running time.
"I Saw The Devil" starred Choi Min-sik from the film "Oldboy," which was remade last year by Spike Lee, as Kyung-chul, a psychopath and serial killer. One of his victims is the pregnant fiancé of special agent Joo-yeon, played by Lee Byung-hun, from the film "G.I. Joe."
The special agent, who has been level-headed and professional his entire career, becomes a monster as he repeatedly captures, tortures, releases and captures the serial killer over and over again. The cat and mouse game gets increasingly bizarre with each repetition.
 "I Saw the Devil" was  driven by character rather than plot. It pushed the limits of revenge films, police procedurals and serial killer movies to make for groundbreaking suspense. Jee-woon paid homage to classic indie horror films like "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre" as he forged his own territory.
Besides moving the story to the United States, there is no word on how else Barrett and Wingard, who worked together on the films "A Horrible Way to Die," "V/H/S" and "You're Next," will change the film.The film will be produced by Snoot Entertainment, who made "The Guest" and "You're Next." 

[rubie]

Source: WhatCulture
25 Horror Films You Must Watch Before Halloween
15. I Saw The Devil

Kim Ji-woon’s savage thriller-horror flick is further proof that nobody does horror quite like the South Koreans. A brutal revenge film in the darkly comical vein of Oldboy, I Saw the Devil follows a secret service agent (Lee Byung-hun) as he tracks down the psychopathic serial killer (Choi Min-sik) who murdered his pregnant fiancee.

The results, unsurprisingly, are almost unbearably grim, but Ji-woon imbues his film with just enough gallows humour to balance the tone.
Best Moment: It wouldn’t be fair to spoil it as so few people have seen the film, but it involves a guillotine, and it’s both hilarious and gory.

[rubie]

Credit: copabears

[rubie]

October 30, 2014
25 Years of the Best Asian Films
by matthewgist-54-206142 IMDb
1. Kiki's Delivery Service (1989)2. Raise the Red Lantern (1991)3. To Live (1994)4. Princess Mononoke (1997)5. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)6. J.S.A.: Joint Security Area (2000) 7. Failan (2001)8. Spirited Away (2001)9. Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring (2003)10. Oldboy (2003)11. 3-Iron (2004)12. A Bittersweet Life (2005) 7.7/1013. Fearless (2006)14. The Warlords (2007)15. The Chaser (2008)16. The Good, the Bad, the Weird (2008) 7.3/1017. Breathless (2008)18. Thirst (2009)19. Castaway on the Moon (2009)20. The Secret World of Arrietty (2010)21. Aftershock (2010)22. I Saw the Devil (2010) 7.8/10 23. The Front Line (2011)24. Masquerade (2012) 25. New World (2013)

[rubie]

November 11, 2014
Hot Korean Films at Five Flavours Film FestivalWarsaw Looks to Korean Films and Music
by June Kim KOBIZ
The 8th edition of Warsaw’s Five Flavours Film Festival will take place from November 12th to the 20th this year. Focusing on East and South-East Asian cinema, the Polish festival hopes to expose films unknown in the region. Korean films have been an important part of the festival, especially during its 5th edition, which featured a ‘Taste of Korea’ programme with eight titles, including subsections on HONG Sangsoo and Korean horror. This year, four Korean films are part of the lineup. JANG Jin’s Man on High Heels will open up the festival while Bitter, Sweet, Seoul, from the PARKing CHANce (brothers PARK Chan-wook and PARK Chan-kyong), LEESONG Hee-il’s Night Flight and KIM Jee-woon’s The Good, the Bad, the Weird (2008) will also screen. There are four sections in this year’s program: the New Asian Cinema Competition, Queer Asia, Wild Wild East and Horror Cinema. Newly ton the program this year is Radio Asia. This is an event-based section where new music from the East and South-East Asia will be introduced through concerts. Be-Being, who composed the soundtracks for Bitter, Sweet, Seoul and many other Korean films, will be performing in the one of the concerts. The festival also features a special People’s Jury which is composed of 11 non-professionals chosen through an application process. Night Flight is the only Korean film in competition.
September 15, 2014
Source: Festival News

Here comes a set of films to prepare your appetites before the main course – the 8th Five Flavours Film Festival (November 12-20) and set the mood for the concerts from our new musical project – Radio Asia. Tickets are now available on the festival website and in Luna cinema ticket office.

We begin with two winners of last year's edition of the Festival. The Singaporean "Ilo Ilo," directed by Anthony Chen, received a Special Mention - it is a story of a simple Philippine servant, based on the director's memories. It shows the changes in relationships between employers and employees, children and adults, strangers and friends, in the face of emotional and financial problems. But most of all it is a film about friendship and the drama of separation.
The second film is the winner of 7th Five Flavours - Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit's "36." The Thai director's debut is made up of 36 shots – the exact amount of frames in the analogue camera film. A simple story about love, separation, and nostalgia set in the digital age. A boy and a girl, their story saved in images which disappear from a hard drive...
The screening of "Bitter, Sweet, Seoul," will be a unique event. The film, directed by Park Chan-wook and his brother Park Chan-Kyong, was made with the help of internauts from all over the world. It is a love letter to Seoul, which shows many faces of the Korean capital. After the free screening, the audience will have a chance to meet the authors of the soundtrack, members of Be-being group. On the following day we invite you to TR Warszawa for their concert – the first in the Radio Asia cycle. The show, inspired by Buddhist philosophy, combines live and electronic music. The sounds are accompanied by pervasive, engrossing visualizations.
The last two screenings are the introduction to one of this year's sections – Wild Wild East. The two films daringly mix the flavors of the West and the East, adapting the most American of the genres for the Far East soil.
Kim Jee-woon's "The Good, The Bad, The Weird," filled with kinetic energy, is an homage to Sergio Leone's classic picture. The director gathered a team of the best Korean actors to create a spectacle which brings the unhampered joy of storytelling back to the cinema. We invite you to immerse yourselves in the adventure and join the three (anti)heroes as they travel through the Manchurian deserts and search for a treasure. Who will get there first and what will he find at the end?
The title of the last Appetizer, "Sukiyaki Western Django," reveals its Japanese-American-Italian influences. Somewhere in the Japanese province there is a town with two competing gangs. Everything will change with the arrival a nameless gunman... The plot, which has more than once created a bridge between Asian, Hollywood and European cinema, is this time adapted by the most eclectic Japanese director, with an episode played by Quentin Tarantino.
Tickets for the films (10 PLN) are available at Luna cinema ticket office and on the festival website. Free tickets for "Bitter, Sweet, Seoul" can be collected from Luna cinema ticket office from October 8.

[Guest 7447]

Hi, everybody! Do you know what this is about?
http://star.mt.co.kr/view/stview.php?no=2014122617111632971&outlink=2&SVEC



Please tell me that the project is ready to start again . Thanks!!!

[rubie]

Calling All Soompiers!http://www.soompi.com/2015/01/20/calling-all-soompiers/

Hey Soompiers!
Help us make 2K15 the Year of Soompi!
Let us know what your thoughts are about SOOMPI through a short survey. What do you like? How can we improve?
Plus – if you take our survey we’ll be choosing 2 responses to win an album of choice (up to $25 dollars) from the Soompi Store!
Take the survey by February 2nd for your chance to make Soompi history and also win your favorite album. It’s a win-win situation!
Take the survey now and remember,
http://soompi.polldaddy.com/s/help-improve-soompi

[rubie]

February 11, 2015
Korea’s Screen X technology aims to expand the way we watch films
BY JIN EUN-SOO [jes@joongang.co.kr] INSIDE Korea JoongAng Daily

An audience in Seoul has become the second ever to see a film in the Screen X format, a Korean technology first developed in 2012 in which one movie is shown across three screens. 
At a premier hosted by the Korean Academy of Film Arts (KAFA) at Hongdae CGV in western Seoul last Thursday, two films shot in the format were unveiled, along with acclaimed director Kim Jee-woon’s “The X.” 

The latter movie, which was filmed using the techniques that are necessary to make the most out of the format’s 270-degree view, was showcased at the Busan International Film Festival in 2013. 
While the left and right screens mainly provide a panoramic view by acting as an extension of the front, Screen X has more to offer than this. 
The additional sides, which are 1.8 times longer than the center, can supplement the movie’s storyline being viewed by delivering several messages and giving out clues at the same time.
For example, in one scene in “The X,” the side screens project flashbacks that show the memories of the protagonist, Agent X, who is played by Kang Dong-won. 
While the main screen shows the character’s face when he discovers the shocking truth about his girlfriend, the flashbacks on the sides juxtapose the present with the couple’s happier times to emphasize the betrayal he feels. 
The multi-sided cinema is also a useful tool for the director to use to increase tension or emphasize the importance of a certain scene by projecting the same picture on all screens at the same time. 
In addition to “The X,” the two short films that were unveiled to the audience were Choi Yang-hyun’s “Gray Whale,” produced by local film company Paran52, and Hong Sung-hoon’s “Mother,” created by the KAFA.
Camera director Kim Young-no of “Mother” revealed that he chose to create a slow-paced drama in order to test out the limitations of the 270-degree technology. 
He admitted, however, that the action or horror genre could maximize the effects of Screen X. 
The director said he replaced splashy action scenes and noisy gunfights with ordinary backdrops such as hospitals, schools and restaurants, mostly using the side walls to extend the natural background scenes and give off an “expansive view.” 
This way of using Screen X is called “passive,” according to Kim, a form that doesn’t force the viewers to turn their heads to see what’s happening on the two sidewalls but repeats the same information, such as an extension of a line of trees seen on a street.
However, if a characters appears on the sidewalk - which leads the audience to turn their heads to see what’s happening outside of the front screen - this is identified as “active” use.
Kim added that the interior area of a car or a narrow alleyway is most suitable for using the Screen X technology because the structure of the theater’s inside resembles these types of locations. 
When protagonists appear on the front screen while situated in the backseat of a car the audience feels as if they are actually inside the vehicle.
But there are some shortcomings. The vacant space on the side walls hinders the viewer’s concentration when the director is trying to emphasize a character’s emotion by zooming in on their faces. Also, when filming in a crammed area, shooting with three cameras at the same time gets challenging. 
The Screen X technology, exclusively developed by CJ CGV, has been only shown to the public through a few commercials in two of its branches Yeouido and Hongdae.
It is said that Hongdae CGV is the most suitable location among others to watch a Screen X movie because it has the narrowest gap between the two side walls with the frontal wall, minimizing any discrepancies between the screens when projecting a panoramic picture. 
“We expect the Screen X technology will open a new window for the creators to make their imagination being realized in its closest forms. It will extend the storytelling as well as give birth to a whole new genre as well,” said a CGV official. 

[rubie]

Source: Unitedcba Movies

[rubie]

December 8, 2014

From East to West – Asian Horror CinemaA look at the divide between Asian and Western cinema, and why Asian horror cinema is beautifully twisted in the greatest possible way.
by Daniel Redford  | ROOBLA Opinionator
I have loved horror movies for as long as I can remember, which is a bit odd considering that my very first experience with such films was late-night channel surfing and stumbling upon Dog Soldiers (2002). The scene in question involved a few guys sitting around a campfire towards the latter half of the movie when, from the sky, a mutilated cow fell onto the campfire. At that exact moment, I got up, said “sod that” and walked out of the room. To this day, I haven’t watched that film again.
Years passed and I began consuming all of the slasher and zombie flicks I could get my hands on. Then along came The Grudge (2004) and everyone I knew lost their collective shits. This, along with The Ring (2002), signalled the start of Hollywood stealing Asian films and remaking them – or, you could argue, ruining them – for a Western demographic. Why do I say Hollywood “ruined them”? For many, those films are scary. For some, they probably still have nightmares because of them. However, they’re not on the same level as the originals from Asia.
Asian horror cinema has a style, an aesthetic and a theme all of its own. Where Western horror cinema tends to focus on in-your-face slashers and jump-scare ghost stories, the films that come out of the Far East tend be much slower, more methodical. They float along on a sea of style, plot and exquisite attention to detail, compared to the brash, scares-before-story attitude that is so indicative of the state of Hollywood in recent years. Its merit is determined, at least for modern films, on body count and how many gallons of blood were used.
Many Asian horror films tend to deal with supernatural entities – ghosts, apparitions and the like. Ringu (1998), directed by Hideo Nakata, and Ju-On (2000), directed by Takashi Shimizu have supernatural plots. Ju-On is an anthology film of sorts detailing the experiences of tenants in a curses house, whereas Ringu deals with a cursed videotape that brings death to those that watch it after seven days. The Eye (2002) tells the tale of a young girl that sees ghosts after a corneal transplant, and was remade in 2008 starring Jessica Alba – so you know it’s world class. Not.
However, where Western cinema tends to stick to the tried and true formula for horror movies, those in Asia are willing to step outside of the box. For example, EXTE (2007) is, at its roots, a film about cursed hair extensions made from a stolen corpse that continues to grow hair even in death. Uzumaki (2000) concerns a tow that becomes infected and terrorised by evil spirals. All this pales in comparison, in my opinion, to the anthology film Rampo Noir (2005). The four separate short films are taken from works by Edogawa Rampo who is considered Japan’s leading writer of erotic-grotesque fiction. The film is insane and twisted, but is also so beautifully crafted that makes it distinctly Asian.
I made a point earlier in this article that modern Western films tend to stick with violence and gore to get their shocks. I will concede that Asian cinema is also guilty of ultraviolence in movies but it is not done for the shock factor alone. Yes, it plays a part in it but the psychology and plot that surrounds it and causes it is sublime. For the best examples of this, one has to look no further than Jee-woon Kim and Chan-wook Park from South Korea. These two names, in my opinion, are some of the best in the world. Chan-wook Park gave us the Vengeance Trilogy – Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance (2002), the amazing Oldboy (2003) and the beautiful Sympathy for Lady Vengeance (2005). Those that have been paying attention in the last year or two would have seen Spike Lee give the world his take on Oldboy in 2013, which was utterly pointless if you ask me. Jee-woon Kim gave the world A Tale of Two Sisters (2003) and A Bittersweet Life (2005).
However, his greatest work – and my favourite movie of recent memory – is I Saw The Devil (2010). This is the one film that I believe gives us the greatest example of Asian cinema firing on all cylinders. It tells the story of NIS Agent Soo-hyun (Byung-hun Lee) on a destructive path of revenge after the brutal murder of his fiancée by the psychopathic Kyung-chul (Min-sik Choi). It’s superviolent but beautiful. Harsh but poignant. High-octane but thoughtful. It makes you feel bad. It punches you in the face and revels in your confusion and mixed emotions. The performances of the two main actors, Min-sik Choi and Byung-hun Lee are worthy of the highest of awards. They embody the characters so wonderfully, with such commitment and zeal, that the film transcends its basic revenge plotline and becomes a film that should be regarded with the utmost respect.
I will be diving deeper into films mentioned in this article at a later date, but I leave you with this: if you are a fan of horror cinema and have only been exposed to Western cinema, I implore you, beg you, to broaden your horizons. Any of the films I have mentioned here are a good introduction to the genre, so pick one, buy the DVD off of Amazon, import if you have to and just revel in their brilliance.

[rubie]

February 26, 2015

‘I SAW THE DEVIL’ IS PERVERSE FUN
Jacob Holley-Kline The Northen Light
Rating: 4 out of 5

Revenge flicks have been done and redone to death. Man loves woman, woman is killed, man avenges woman’s death. Who avenges whom is interchangeable, but the formula stays the same for a reason: It works. What sets “I Saw the Devil” apart from a standard revenge flick is the intense emotion running through it.
Dedicated secret agent Soo-hyun’s (Lee Byung-hun, “RED 2”) plans to marry his pregnant wife, Joo-yeon (San-ha Oh). While he’s on a job one night, Joo-yeon is killed by psychopathic bus driver Kyung-chul (Choi Min-sik, “Lucy”). With nothing left to lose, Soo-hyun begins a deadly game of cat and mouse to exact his revenge.
“I Saw the Devil” could, in some respects, be called a road movie. Soo-hyun chases Kyung-chul across a big stretch of Korea, meeting people who give new meaning to the word “depraved.” With this travel comes wild fluctuations in tone and style, but thanks to the deft direction of Kim Ji-woon, it never feels jarring.
One sequence in particular is exemplary. At one point, a cab driver picks up Kyung-chul while he’s down on his luck. Things devolve in the car and knives are pulled. In a spinning single take, director Ji-woon watches the carnage unfold from 360 degrees. By the time it’s over, the viewer is left breathless. Interjections like this sequence keep the action fresh.
Speaking of action, every mile covered brings about a new and intensely gory set piece. Where the first act is a surprising emotional gut punch, the second is a visceral thrill ride. If it weren’t for the incredible performances of Lee Byung-hun and Choi Min-sik, these sequences wouldn’t have half the kick they do.
But thanks to a solid screenplay and actors brave enough to plumb its bloody depths, every gunshot becomes teeth-rattling. With a hard violent shell and a gooey heart, “I Saw the Devil” becomes something transcendent in the revenge genre. Make no mistake: The movie is taken with violence. It’s simply filthy at every turn. After all, watching two monsters go head-to-head is bound to dirty up the place.
This hard-hearted revenge flick doesn’t clean up its mess anyway. It forces viewers to look at who started the violence, who continued it, and whether or not they’re that different. If Soo-hyun’s penchant for cruelty is any indication, they may not be. But does his cruelty reach Kyung-chul’s heights? Deciding just who the devil is in “I Saw the Devil” is a big part of the fun, and viewers with the stomach for it will find themselves more than satisfied.

[rubie]

Source: 씨네21
[CINE21 20th Anniversary] Feature on actor Song Kang Ho's 20th Debut Anniversary plus interview with Directors Park Chan Wook, Kim Ji Woon and Bong Joon Ho.

[rubie]

April 24, 2015
KIM Jee-woon and SONG Kang-ho to ReuniteMIL-JUNG: A Film Set in the Japanese Colonial Period by June Kim / KOFIC 
After three fruitful partnerships, director KIM Jee-woon and actor SONG Kang-ho will reunite for their fourth film. The two veterans partnered previous through The Quiet Family (1998), The Foul King (2000), and The Good, The Bad, and The Weird (2008). This time, they will be working together on a film set during the Japanese colonial period in Korea, titled Mil-jung (w/t).
 The film, which is currently in pre-production, is about ‘Eui-yeol-dan’, an anarchist independent movement group that was formed in 1919 and was active in the 20s. The story follows a fictional character who is a member of the group and will outline the general activities of ‘Eui-yeol-dan’. SONG’s role has yet to be unveiled. The producers behind the SONG-led The Attorney’s (2013), Withus Film, is on board for the project, and the film will begin shooting in late August.

[rubie]

April 24, 2015
Song Kang-ho confirms his casting for movie 'Secret Agent' by director Kim Jee-woon
Source: OSEN via Hancinema.net

Song Kang-ho has confirmed his casting for movie "Secret Agent" (working title) by director Kim Jee-woon.
Song Kang-ho's agency Hodoo Entertainment told OSEN through a phone conversation on April 24th, "He will appear in "Secret Agent"".
The agency said, "Received the script for "Secret Agent" director Kim Jee-woon is preparing and has decided to join the team" and "It will begin filming in August".
"Secret Agent" is a project by the production company of "The Attorney". With the collaboration by the top A-list actor, Song Kang-ho and the production company, who achieved the title of 10 million viewers' movie together, and 'The Good, the Bad, the Weird"s director, Kim Jee-woon, it is drawing much attention.
Also, Song Kang-ho's new movie, "The Throne" is waiting to be released soon.

[rubie]

May 12, 2015

Gong Yoo, Song Kang-ho headline occupation-era thriller

Source: Dramabeans.com

Director Kim Ji-woon (I Saw the Devil, The Good, the Bad, the Weird) is back with a new action movie, a period piece set during the Japanese occupation called Secret Agent. It’s no surprise that he went straight to Song Kang-ho (The Attorney) to reunite for what will be their fourth collaboration since 1998’s Quiet Family. Song has signed on to star, and now Gong Yoo (The Suspect) is in contract negotiations to join them.

The film is being co-produced by withUs Film (The Attorney) and Warner Brothers, and tells the story of a group of heroic independence fighters who form a secret agency during the Japanese occupation. Director Kim Ji-woon is penning the script, and I should’ve expected a twist, coming from him: It’s about an independence fighter and a Japanese spy becoming friends. So… like occupation-era JSA?

It looks like it’ll be a long (looooong) while before Gong Yoo makes his way back to dramaland; he’s got his zombie movie Busan Line and the sweeping melodrama A Man and a Woman with Jeon Do-yeon up first, then if he signs on to this one that’ll be the year. I want to say, “Come baaaack,” but really, who’s going to say no to Kim Ji-woon and Song Kang-ho? Nobody with a brain.

Secret Agent is planning to start shoots later this year.

Via Ten Asia, Star News

[rubie]

May 7, 2015

The Power of Cannes to Box Office Performance

by Lee You-jin / KOFIC

  

Films that walk on the Cannes red carpet receive the spotlight from the film world. We've compared the films that were invited to Cannes after 2000, and studied how they have impacted the performance of ticket sales. (Total admissions, Korean Film Council’s KOBIS)

[rubie]

June 19, 2015

Big Names of Korean Cinema to Return behind the Lens

by Sonia KIL / KoBIZ

Since the beginning of the year, foreign releases—Hollywood blockbusters in particular—have dominated South Korean box office quite aggressively. Since the February release of Kingsman: The Secret Service, foreign films’ domination have continued through the unfailing success of western films such as Fast & Furious 7, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Mad Max: Fury Road and Jurassic World in May alone, foreign films took an overwhelming market share of 68.5%.
 
The absence of local star directors has been a convincing excuse for the continuing underperformance of Korean films. As if they have all been meaning to pull up the local films from the grip of slump, the big names of Korean cinema are gearing up to come back with highly-anticipated new titles in the second half of this year. 

 
KIM Ji-woon Unveils Historical Action Drama Secret Agent
 

 
Starting with a densely-written strong comedy horror The Quiet Family that stars pre-stardom actors SONG Gang-ho and CHOI Min-shik, KIM Ji-woon’s 17-year long filmography spans a wide range of genres. Not only as a director, KIM has also been widely acknowledged as a visual artist with the stylish directing he demonstrated in horror title A Tale of Two Sisters and ruthlessly violent noir A Bittersweet Life. His 2008 title The Good, the Bad, the Weird marked the beginning of Korean style western movies. as both of which were received as critical and commercial successes. Just like BONG Joon-ho and PARK Chan-wook, with whom he emerged in the same era, KIM expanded his realm in to Hollywood with his Arnold Schwarzenegger-starring action comedy The Last Stand in 2013.
 
KIM will return to his native base with Secret Agent (Working Title), a spy buddy movie set in Korea under the Japanese imperialism. The film is known to tell the story of a group of independence fighters who form a secret agency during the Japanese imperialism. SONG Gang-ho, who starred in KIM’s previous titles including The Quiet Family, The Foul King, and The Good, the Bad, the Weird will again join KIM for this new film. Withus Film’s CHOI Jae-won, KIM’s friendly collaborator (A Tale of Two Sisters, The Good, the Bad, the Weird) as well as a hit film producer (The Attorney), is handling the producing duties for Secret Agent. The budget is expected to lie between $9 million and $13 million.

[rubie]

July 6, 2015

From article at RollingStone, complete list here

25 Best Modern Exploitation Movies
From sex-and-violence revenge flicks to blaxploitation spaghetti Westerns, meet the new grindhouse classics

24    'I Saw the Devil' (2010)

Subgenres: K-sploitation, Revengespolitation, Serialkillersploitation

Cannibalism, torture, graphic execution by guillotine — Kim Ji-woon's revenge parable may be one of the more morally complicated South Korean ultra-violent thrillers to hit our shores in recent years, but it's also one of the sickest as well. The story is basic: A lawman (Terminator Genisys' Lee Byung-hun) goes after the psychopath (Oldboy's Choi Min-sik) who murdered his pregnant wife. They each take turns playing the cat and mouse of the equation, while the movie compellingly asks: How do good people destroy evil without becoming rotten themselves? But don't look for answers to that question here — this is the sort of Asian exploitation cinema that takes pleasure in sticking its fingers in wounds. As for the killer, Choi plays him with such blasé soulnessness it's chilling: He's the personification of the abyss staring back. TG

[rubie]

July 20, 2015

Myung Films Reminisces about 20 Years' Glory
Retrospective Invites Key Korean Film Figures

by Kobiz reporter

Established by husband and wife partners Jamie SHIM and LEE Eun twenty years ago, production house Myung Films has represented the Korean cinema by discovering and producing key directors and their features.
 
In celebration of the commemorable twentieth birthday, ‘Myung Films Retrospective: Memories of Twenty Years’ will be held at Myung Films Art Center from July 24 to September 16, screening 36 titles that the company has produced since 1995.
 
On each weekend, the retrospective will be attended by key directors, actors and critics who have worked with Myung Films—actors SONG Kang-ho (Joint Security Area/JSA), MOON So-ri (Forever the Moment), PARK Won-sang (Waikiki Brothers), BAE Suzy and LEE Je-hoon (Architecture 101), and seventeen directors including OH Sung-yoon (Leafie, a Hen Into the Wild), BOO Ji-young (Cart), KIM Jee-woon (The Quiet Family) and CHUNG Ji-young (Unbowed) will host talk sessions in turns after screenings of their titles in the program.
 
Local critics KIM Young-jin, JUNG Sung-il, journalist Una BECK, and Cine21 editor in chief JU Sung-chul also join forces with Myung by hosting talk session ‘Critics Choice,’ where they will discuss their choice of Myung Film works such as The Contact, The Isle, Bloody Tie, and Joint Security Area/JSA.
 
Screening schedule and ticket reservation are available at http://www.mf-art.kr.