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Director Kim Jee Woon 김지운 Kim Ji Woon


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This is one awesome thread rubie. Ive been a fan since his movie debut, THE QUIET FAMILY, movie that inspired a Japanese remake from one of Japan's maverick directors, Takashi Miike ( Happiness of the Katakuris).

Hi PunkGeisha, welcome to the thread! It's so good to meet fellow fans of Dir. Kim. :D Really good to read your thoughts especially. Hope you will share more and insight on Dir. Kim's work with us here. So far, I've only seen A Tale of Two Sisters (creeped me out of my skin!) and A Bittersweet Life.. so I'm not really that fully-versed in all the movies that he has done which I must say.. are really a myriad of cool film-work.

Most of my posts are also more related to BSL (A BIttersweet Life) and The Good, The Bad, The Weird (GBW) being his most recent projects but we would certainly welcome & encourage everyone to share everything about Dir. Kim and his films, especially.

Here's a short clip on the Director's CUT Awards via Section TV:

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naM8vz2r_u4] [MegaUpload] [SendSpace] [MediaFire]

Love how everyone's so laidback. Kim JiWoon seemed especially witty, people were cracking up during his speech (I wonder if the sweat drop CGI on Na HongJin meant he was good-naturedly ribbing The Chaser's director? lol).

This is awesome sharing, melusine-ssi.. It's so good to finally see Dir. Kim attending the Director's CUT Award after the absence at Blue Dragon especially. Probably something more sentimental to him as this particular award was selected and given by the movie directors in Korea. It may be a lot less in glamour & glitz but as you've said before.. something with more significance, coming from those who really knew what "directing" a movis is all about. rbhcool.gif

61st Festival de Cannes 2008 photos from GBW-cafe.daum

Dir. Kim Ji Woon with Song Kang Ho & Jung Woo Sung.. Lee Byung Hun arrived a day later than them..

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Life is Sweet (A Bittersweet Life, 2005)

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Photo by Brian Brooks (October 15, 2006)

"A Bittersweet Life" director Kim Ji-woon and actor Lee Byung-hun at a party over the weekend at the Pusan International Film Festival. Fans often mobbed the pair for pictures.

Source: indiewire.com, CINE21

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Bittersweet Life Men in Esquire Magazine, thanks to midnight sun for the captures

my most precious & fave pic of the BSL Men :wub::lol:

Kim Young Chul, Lee Byung Hun, Kim Roi Ha, Hwang Jung Min, Dir. Kim Jee Woon

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Thursday, December 25, 2008

Hollywood Eyes on Korean Movies

A little good news for the Korean film industry at the end of a tough year. Two Korean movies appeared on the International Watch List, an unofficial survey of 50 Hollywood film industry executives and their assistants. They were asked to vote for up to five international features and five short films released in 2008, "to highlight new filmmaking talent from abroad, to inspire creativity and spread the word about the international favorites of the year."

No surprised which two films made the list, as they were the most successful two Korean films last year -- Na Hong-jin's THE CHASER (which tied for third with eight votes) and Kim Jee-woon's THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE WEIRD (four votes).

I wonder how long that International Watch List has been compiled. Would be interesting to see what films appeared on it in past years.

(Thanks to Nikki Finke's Deadline Hollywood Daily).

Posted by Mark Russell at 9:12 AM via koreapopwars.com

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2008 Movie International Watch List (by Nikki Finke)

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So alongside The Black List is The International Watch List, which just came out with its 2008 roster. It's an unofficial list of the American film industry's favorite foreign feature and short films from the past year according to the judgment of over 50 US film executives and their assistants were asked to vote for up to five foreign feature films and five foreign short films. The International Watch List includes all the features and shorts that received two or more votes. Considered were foreign features and foreign shorts released in theaters internationally or shown at an international film festival in 2008, and directed by a foreign filmmaker. The stated aim of The International Watch List is "to highlight new filmmaking talent from abroad, to inspire creativity and spread the word about the international favorites of the year":

The International Watch List 2008

FEATURE FILMS

15 Votes

LET THE RIGHT ONE IN

by Tomas Alfredson (Cinetic Media/Christina Bazdekis)

13 Votes

MARTYRS

by Pascal Laugier (ICM/Nathan Ross & Robert Lazar)

8 Votes

BEFORE THE FALL

by F. Javier Gutiérrez (Paradigm/Marc Helwig)

GOMORRAH

by Matteo Garrone (ICM/Jeff Berg & Nathan Ross)

THE CHASER

by Hong-jin

7 Votes

WALTZ WITH BASHIR

by Ari Folman (CAA/Maha Dakhil)

6 Votes

JCVD

by Mabrouk El Mechri (Endeavor/Elia Infascelli-Smith)

THE SQUARE

by Nash Edgerton (ICM/Doug MacLaren)

5 Votes

HUNGER

by Steve McQueen (CAA/Beth Swofford)

JERUSALEMA

by Ralph Ziman (ICM/Nathan Ross)

4 Votes

KISSES

by Lance Daly (AP Watt Ltd/Rob Kraitt)

CLASS

by Laurent Cantet

THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE WEIRD

by Jee-Woon Kim (CAA/Spencer Baumgarten)

In a lawless Manchurian desert during the tumultuous thirties, three Korean men meet on a train. Do-won the Good, is an infamous bounty hunter with a deadly shot. Chang-yi is the Bad, a merciless gang leader with a colossal ego. Tae-goo, the Weird, is a gifted but unpredictable train robber who favors his motor scooter over horseback. Along with the Japanese army and hordes of bandits grappling for control of this desert territory, the Good, the Bad and the Weird face off in every possible combination. They seize and cede power in quick succession, all the while trying to exploit a mysterious map that promises huge riches.

2 Votes

SLEEP DEALER

by Alex Rivera (CAA/Stuart Manashil)

TERRIBLY HAPPY

by Henrik Ruben Genz (Conspiracy/Melinda Jason)

THE SONG OF SPARROWS

by Majid Majidi

ZIFT

by Javor Gardev (WMA/Carolyn Sivitz)

SHORT FILMS

10 Votes

AFTERVILLE

by Fabio Guaglione & Fabio Resinaro (The Safran Company/Peter Safran)

8 Votes

OF CATS AND WOMEN

by Jonas Govaerts (The Safran Company/Tom Drumm)

5 Votes

TREEVENGE

by Jason Eisener (UTA/Jason Burns)

3 Votes

I LOVE SARAH JANE

by Spencer Susser (Endeavor/Bryan Besser)

THE RAIN HORSE

by Sebastian Godwin (Independent Talent Group/Jessica Sykes)

Source: deadlinehollywooddaily.com

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For anyone interested in director Kim Ji-woon, check out the new book about him, released in the great Korean Film Directors Series by KOFIC:

http://www.seoulselection.com/shopping_boo...w.html?pid=1777

I highly recommend these books, they are very informative and handy. The series also features books about Park Chan-wook, Lee Chang-dong, Kang Woo-suk, Im Kwon-taek and many others. I will get all of them.

But see for yourself:

http://www.seoulselection.com/film-d.html

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^ That is excellent info, Morty! Thanks very much for sharing with the thread the cool highlight of the Korean Film Directors Series.. they are indeed great filmakers.

I'll definitely add this into Dir. Kim's profile post #1 as it's truly a cool info to share. ^^ There are also the GBW index & media compilation finally updated at the movie thread -- HERE for everyone to check it out. :D

And.. the best update of all.. another wonderful achievement for Dir. Kim & GBW. Thanks to melusine-ssi for the posting at GBW. :blush:

An awesome year, indeed.. CONGRATS DIR. KIM! :w00t: NOMNOMNOM!

Cine21's Best of 2008

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Director of the Year: Kim Ji-Woon (The Good, The Bad, The Weird)

Actor of the Year: Ha Jung-Woo (The Chaser, Beastie Boys, My Dear Enemy)

Actress of the Year: Gong Hyo-Jin (Crush & Blush)

New Actor of the Year: Kang Ji-Hwan (Rough Cut)

New Actress of the Year: Park Bo-Young (Speed Scandal)

New Director of the Year: Na Hong-Jin (The Chaser)

Producer of the Year: Kim Soo-Jin (The Chaser)

Cinematographer of the Year: Lee Mo-Gae (The Good, The Bad, The Weird)

Screenplay of the Year: *tie* Na Hong-Jin (The Chaser), Lee Kyung-Mi (Crush & Blush)

Top 5 Movies: #1 Night and Day, #2 My Dear Enemy, #3 The Chaser, #4 My Friend and His Wife, #5 Chongqing

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December 31, 2008

CJ Entertainment Vice Chairwoman Voted Most Influential Figure in Korean Entertainment

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Please help me complete the list, would appreciate any help/correction. Thanks.

1. Lee Mi-kyung, CJ Entertainment

2. Park Jin-young, JYP Entertainment

3. Yoo Jae-suk, comedian & tv host

4.

5. Kang Ho-dong, tv personality

6.

7. Choi See-joong

8.

9. Song Kang-ho, actor

10. Big Bang, pop group

11. Park Chan-wook, film director

12.

13. Wonder Girls, pop group

14. Bae Yong-jun. actor

15. Kim Ji-woon, film director

CJ Entertainment vice chairwoman Lee Mi-kyung (Miky Lee), JYP Entertainment CEO Park Jin-young, and comedian Yoo Jae-suk were voted the most influential figures in Korean entertainment.

The Herald Business reported on Monday that vice-chairwoman Lee topped, for three consecutive years, the '30 Most Influential Leaders in Korea's Pop Culture' co-selected by the newspaper and entertainment figures. JYP CEO Park Jin-young took second place for the second year running. Comedian Yoo ranked third, the highest-ranked broadcaster featured. Kang Ho-dong, who is dominating the second half of the entertainment program market, ranked fifth.

Park Jin-young, Lee Soo-man from SM Entertainment, and Yang Hyun-suk from YG Entertainment, each of whom currently dominates a third of Korea's pop music market, ranked above tenth.

Korea Communications Commission chairman Choi See-joong appeared on the list for the first time, in seventh place, representing the transformation of the broadcasting industry caused by government change. Yu In-chon, Minister of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, ranked 29th. MBC president Ohm Ki-young and KBS president Lee Byung-soon took the 19th and 21st positions, respectively. Former announcer Sohn Suk-hee, now working as a professor at Sungshin Women's University, advanced to 17th from last year's 30th place.

Credits: englishnews@chosun.com, image from empas.com

http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/new...0812310008.html

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Previously posted update HERE (re: page 295, News thread)

December 31, 2008

Korean Hits on U.S. International Watch List

Two of South Korea’s top box office winners for 2008 have made it into the International Watch List, a survey of the American film industry's favorite foreign films from the past year. The list is put together based on votes from over 50 US film executives. Director NA Hong-jin’s debut thriller, The Chaser, placed third in number of votes received while KIM Ji-woon’s kimchi-western The Good, The Bad, The Weird was seventh.

The stated aim of The International Watch List is “to highlight new filmmaking talent from abroad, to inspire creativity and spread the word about the international favorites of the year.” Number one on the list was Swedish horror, Let the Right One In, which had its Korean release last month.

KIM’s The Good, The Bad, The Weird was the top-grossing film of 2008, selling 6.68 million tickets. It revolves around a treasure map, and stars Korea’s top male leads, SONG Kang-ho, LEE Byung-hun, and JUNG Woo-sung. NA’s The Chaser was the second highest grossing film at 5.1 million tickets sold. It follows an ex-cop-turned pimp chasing down an elusive prostitute killer.

Both films have won a slew of awards at home and abroad. The International Watch List is an unofficial U.S. industry survey. It considers foreign features and foreign shorts released in theaters internationally or shown at an international film festival in 2008, and directed by a foreign filmmaker.

Credits: Nigel D'Sa (KOFIC)

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January 7, 2009

Domestic movies see worst sales in 8 years: report

SEOUL, Jan. 7 (Yonhap) -- Hit by the economic downturn and a deluge of foreign films, South Korean movies saw their worst sales in eight years in 2008, a local report said Wednesday.

Domestic movies took up 42.5 percent of the film market last year, plunging by more than 20 percent from the previous year, according to CJ Entertainment, South Korea's largest film distributor. The market share of domestic movies has been steadily increasing since 2002, hitting a record-high 64.9 percent in 2006.

Only eight local movies succeeded in drawing more than 2 million viewers last year, a sharp decrease from the 16 and 10 movies that gathered such numbers in 2006 and 2007, respectively.

The number of overall moviegoers in 2008 decreased by 5 percent from 2007 and 10.5 percent from 2006, the report added.

The Korean movie "The Good, the Bad, the Weird," which debuted at the Cannes Film Festival and was well received by overseas audiences, drew the largest audience of 6.8 million, while the Hollywood film "Mama Mia!" drew 4.6 million people.

Credits: hayney@yonhapnews.co.kr

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December 21, 2008

The Good, The Bad, The Weird

Posted by luna6 rbhcool.gif

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Source

Movie: The Good, The Bad, and the Weird

Release Date: July 17, 2008

Country: South Korea

Director: Ji-woon Kim

Starring: Byung-hun Lee, Kang-ho Song, Woo-sung Jung

Runtime: 137 min.

Editor Rating: 9.0

Users Rating: 8.44 / 9.5 stars out of 10 (27 votes)

“The Good, The Bad, The Weird” is easily the most anticipated Korean movie of the year and, for once, the movie lives up to all the hype. The film has had some rough spots in its early production stages, losing investor/distributor Showbox during mid-production and encountering numerous delays after that. Even with these problems, the film features director Ji-woon Kim (The Quiet Family/The Foul King/A Tale of Two Sisters/A Bittersweet Life) and three of Korea's most recognized acting names (Byung-hun Lee, Kang-ho Song, Woo-sung Jung) in the lead roles. It’s also an unique Asian Western film. Now that’s a lot to get excited about.

Set in Manchuria, China, during the 1930’s, a legendary map leading to priceless buried treasures is sold to the Japanese Army by an unscrupulous Korean criminal organization. The Korean crime gang then hires notorious killer Chang-yi Park (Byung-hun Lee) to steal back the map, so they can retrieve the buried treasures for themselves. Meanwhile, the Korean Independence Movement hires bounty hunter extraordinaire Do-won Park (Woo-sung Jung) to steal the map from the Japanese Army before killer Chang-yi Park is able to do so. Both of these men then descend upon a train traveling through the Manchurian desert to retake the legendary map.

A hitch is thrown in both of these men’s plan when train bandit Tae-gu Yun (Kang-ho Song) descends upon the train and takes the map while these two rivals fight among themselves. Now a race is on between killer Chang-yi Park and bounty hunter Do-won Park to find Tae-gu Yun, before he takes the buried treasures and disappears into the Manchurian dessert.

Holy Kimchi Western! “The Good, The Bad, The Weird” is the action picture of the year and provides the kind of popcorn entertainment not seen since Joon-ho Bong’s “The Host”. The film takes inspiration from the Spaghetti Westerns of yesteryears and incorporates that style into the backdrop of Manchuria, China circa 1930’s, a chaotic time not so dissimilar to the days of the wild west in America. The visuals are stunning, with colors as bright as a comic book and action sequences that are exhilarating. Some of the reasons for the action scenes having such a unique look lies with director Ji-woon Kim’s unique technique of incorporating wired cameramen following the actors as they ride & fly through the dessert.

The actors, especially Byung-hun Lee and Kang-ho Song, give the type of performances that stays in your head long after the end credits roll around. Although Woo-sung Jung’s ultra-cool persona may have been just too precise, Byung-hun Lee simply gives the most charismatic performance of his career & Kang-ho Song gives a performance that will make non-Koreans understand why he is so revered by Koreans.

Make note that Kim doesn’t hold back on the violence and the movie sheds enough blood to fill up two Asian horror films. I found the level perfectly acceptable and needed to keep the movie from straying too much into comic book land. While the script isn’t very deep, there’s enough depth to make the film work.

“The Good, The Bad, The Weird” offers fun & excitement on a level not found in many recent Korean films. Action fans will simply love the film, while most others will find there own different reasons to love the movie. For myself, what I gleamed from “The Good, The Bad, The Weird” is: 1.) director Ji-woon Kim is on par with Chan-wook Park & Joon-ho Bong 2.) Byung-hun Lee is way better than originally thought 3.) Kang-ho Song is the man! - can’t think of another Korean actor on his level right now.

Check out “The Good, The Bad, The Weird,” for pure popcorn fun you’re going to be hard pressed to find a better movie. thumbup.gif

Credits: lunapark6

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3 Stars out of 5

The Good the Bad and the Weird

22nd Dec 09:46

A tale of adventure set in the 1930s Manchurian desert where lawlessness rules.

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Three Korean men fatefully meet each other on a train. Do-Won (Jung Woo-sung) is a bounty hunter who tracks down dangerous criminals. Chang- yi (Lee Byung-hun) is the leader of a group of tough-as-nails bandits.

Tae-goo (Song Kang-ho) is a train robber with nine lives. The three strangers engage in a chase across Manchuria to take possession of a map Tae-goo discovers while robbing the train. Also on the hunt for the mysterious map are the Japanese army and Asian bandits.

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In this unpredictable, escalating battle for the map, who will stand as the winner in the end? Directed by, Kim Jee-Woon (A Bittersweet Life), The Good, The Bad, The Weird was a smash-hit box office sensation in South Korea, with over 7 million cinema admissions.

Source: femalefirst.co.uk

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Official website FIFF 2009

January 14, 2009

Fajr Film Fest Hosts Korean Retrospective

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Iran’s major annual film event, the 27th Fajr International Film Festival (FIFF), held in Tehran, will showcase a retrospective of contemporary Korean films. 13 features produced from the years 2000 through 2008 will screen in the Persian capital, January 30 to February 10, 2009.

Along with the retrospective, JEON Soo-il’s With a Girl of Black Soil (2007) was selected in the line-up of the Asian Cinema competition section. It will vie alongside North Korean film A School Girl’s Diary by JAN In-hak and 11 other features from across Asia.

Among selections in the retrospective are titles such as PARK Chan-wook’s Joint Security Area (2000), BAEK Woon-Hak’s Tube (2003), KIM Ji-woon’s The Good, the Bad, the Weird (2008), JOO Kyung-jung’s A Little Monk (2002), and SHIM Hyung-rae’s Dragon Wars (2007).

In previous year’s a number of Korean films have won awards at FIFF, including YOON Jong-chan’s Blue Swallow, which won the Best Screenplay award for Asian Cinema in 2007 and IM Tae-hyun’s Little Brother, which won the Best Director award for Spiritual Cinema in 2006.

Credits: Nigel D'Sa (KOFIC)

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Related excerpts only

Lee Byung Hun talks about GBW and Dir. Kim Ji Woon, full interview at GBW and EverythingLBH threads

Thanks to Mike Edwards at obsessedwithfilm.com

Mike Edwards talks to Byung-hun Lee about

THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE WEIRD and a little bit about G.I. JOE!

Posted by Michael Edwards (ME)

ME: Was The Good The Bad The Weird as fun to make as it was to watch?

It was really fun because this was my first villain role. In fact I asked him to do this, I had two contracts starting at the same time but I chose this because it looked so great.

ME: What was the most fun thing you did when shooting THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE WEIRD?

Some of the most fun bits are in the deleted scenes. I had two facial expressions I really liked because each time I was given a reaction shot we did several takes and I always suggested to him [Mr Kim] that I do the last one just however I wanted to and that was always my favourite and was the most fun because I could just put myself in the situation and react to how it felt. And what came out of it made myself and the director happy, which was great fun. Although, as I said, unfortunately some have been deleted.

ME: How about re-enacting some for me now?

(Laughs) I think that’d be pretty hard.

ME: It has been unusual for you to play such dark and unsympathetic roles…

Yeah, I’ve never done it before so it was a very new experience for me. I could realise that I had those expressions, those eyes and those emotions. It was surprising to find these aspects that I never knew. And Mr Kim was surprised too. We’d worked together previously and he saw a new side of me.

ME: Was there anything in particular that inspired your performance or that influenced the way you played the character?

No, actually. I just read the script and tried to emphasize the bad guy inside of me.

ME: So he took a chance casting you in that role then?

I don’t think so. He’s got confidence in me, he even gave me a choice between playing The Good and The Bad and I asked him ‘What do YOU want me to do?’. And he said ‘have the bad guy, you would be so cold.’ But I really wanted to have that role too, so it worked out well.

ME: Have you been surprised by the international reception of the film?

Of course. When I went to Cannes with the film I was so nervous. The actors hadn’t even seen it yet! It was our first screening and also we were wondering about the response of the audience. But after the screening they were talking for like ten minutes. They were clapping for a long time, it was a surprising experience.

ME: What do you think it is about the film that really appeals to people?

Ummm. First of all it’s a western that everybody can like, and secondly it’s an oriental western which is funny. There are a lot of comedy, a lot of twists and so on. A western western is harder, just two guys in the desert fighting. Bang! That’s it. Maybe some flies. Some staring. But this film is more active.

ME: What is it about (Dir.) Kim that attracts you to his films?

A lot of things, but he can make a story so interesting and defined. He never loses the details. He always cares about the set, props, wardrobe - everything! He must have a headache every time he films, there’s just so much there. That’s what actors like to work with.

ME: How did you find working with The Good and The Weird?

People, especially Asian journalists, are always wondering whether the guys are in competition with each other. And we’d also thought like that. But when we got into the desert in China we just didn’t have time to think about it. The environment was the worst, it was so hard. Not only because of the action but the place was terrible, we’re talking about huge amount of heat and sometimes we couldn’t breath because of the sandstorms. And it wasn’t just sandstorms, everything was just so awkward and uncomfortable so you have to gather. You can’t worry about those kind of things. We were so happy whenever we had free time, we’d just make a team and the stunt guys and the actors we play a game of soccer. There were no actresses, only guys. It was like the army!

ME: Having played romantic leads before were you disappointed by the lack of women?

(Laughs) Yeah! But still, although with guys only we can talk about anything, we could talk about girls, we can walk around naked. :w00t: We can do anything!

THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE WEIRD is out in UK cinemas on 6th February. thumbup.gif Watch it, it’s awesome!

Mike Edwards

Chief Film Critic obsessedwithfilm.com

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January 18, 2009

Cultureline

Korean Film Remakes Debut in US

Hollywood adaptations of such South Korean movies as "The Tale of Two Sisters" make nationwide releases in the United States at the end of the month.

"The Uninvited," the Dreamworks version of the Kim Jee-woon thriller inspired by a famous Korean folktale "The Tale of Two Sisters," will appear in theaters Jan. 30.

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The Tale of Two Sisters / The Uninvited

Brothers Charles and Thomas Guards direct the franchise and actresses Arielle Kebbel ("The Grudge 2") and Emily Browning ("Lemony Snicket's: A Series of Unfortunate Events") have replaced Korean stars Lim Soo-jung and Moon Geun-young, respectively.

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Addiction (Addicted) / Possession

Meanwhile, "Possession," based on "Addiction" starring Lee Byung-hun and Lee Mi-yeon, will be released Jan. 23. Directed by Joel Bergvall and Simon Sandquist, the Hollywood rendition stars Lee Pace as a man claiming to be his brother opposite Sarah Michelle Gellar.

[Il Mare / The Lake House] [Into the Mirror / Mirrors] [My Sassy Girl] (Korean/Hollywood)

Of the Korean movies that have sold adaptation rights to American producers, three have been released: "The Lake House" based on Lee Hyun-seung's "Il Mare" in 2006 and "Mirror" inspired by Kim Seong-ho's "Into the Mirror" and "My Sassy Girl" adapted from the Kwak Jae-yong film of the same title in 2008.

Source (for more info): koreatimes.co.kr

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January 20, 2009

Top Cineastes to Grace Art Film Fest

That special time of the year has come around, when South Korea's top filmmakers and actors turn into film festival programmers. The 4th Cinematheque Friends Film Festival will take place Jan. 29-March 1 in Seoul, and director Park Chan-wook and some 20 other cineastes will meet with the audience to show and discuss 26 movies they have personally selected.

"I don't think there is a film festival like the Cinematheque Friends Film Festival anywhere else in the world," Park told reporters last week in Seoul. "Where else can you see all the representative cineastes ― directors, critics and stars ― gather in one place to introduce, watch and discuss old movies with fans?"

"Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans" (1927) by F.W. Murnau will open the festival. Actors Kwon Hae-hyo and Ye Ji-won will host the opening event at Cinematheque Seoul Art Cinema in Jongno.

The country's singular "cinema library" will transform into "The Cinematheque of Happiness," a venue for screenings and live conversation. Festival programmers have chosen classic Hollywood movies including Marylin Monroe's "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" (1953), and other selections by participating actors and directors vary in time and space, ranging from Italian classics to Korean contemporary films.

Conversing With Stars

Park, the creator of the "Vengeance" trilogy, and director Oh Seung-uk ("Kilimanjaro" ) chose three films starring the "best villains'" : Marco Ferreri's "The Grande Bouffe" (1973), Andrzej Zulawski's " Possession" (1981) and Jules Dassin's "Night and the City" (1950). They will join the audience after each screening (Feb. 7-8) to discuss the films.

Director Jeon Kye-soo ("Midnight Ballad for Ghost Theater") and heartthrob Ha Jung-woo ("The Chaser") will join the audience for "His Girl Friday" (1940), Feb. 20. Jeon said he chose the movie because his upcoming project starring Ha is also a romantic comedy. "When romantic comedies started to appear in the sound film era, 'His Girl Friday' presented something new and fresh. It is heavy with dialogue and takes place in a limited space, but it has an exciting tempo," he said, adding that the film might inspire him for his own work. "I also wanted to show Ha Jung-woo, Cary Grant," he said.

Ryu Seung-wan, the hip young maker of "Dachimawa Lee," will speak about "All the Marbles" (1981) Feb. 12 and "The Good, the Bad, the Weird" director Kim Jee-woon will present "Boy Meets Girl" (1984) Feb. 14. The following evening, veteran actor Ahn Sung-ki will provide commentaries on "Midnight Cowboy" (1969).

Hong Sang-soo, the master of minimal realism ("Night and Day" ), will present "Greed" (1924) Feb. 22.

Also featured in the festival is "Mouchette" (1967) by Robert Bresson. "Cinema Angels" ― actors Lee Na-young, Kim Joo-hyuk, Shin Ha-kyun, Jung Jae-young, Ha Jung-woo, Park Hae-il and Kim Kang-woo ― have donated funds to purchase the film for the cinematheque.

Festivalgoers will also be able to see an exhibition of photos taken by some 30 cineastes, including directors Im Kwon-taek, Park Chan-wook and Im Soon-rye and actors Ha Jung-woo and Ryu Seung-bum.

Many non-English language films are offered with English subtitles. Tickets cost 6,000 won for adults, 5,000 won for teenagers and 4,000 won for senior citizens and the physically disabled. Admissions for the opening ceremony is 10,000 won (including the after party).

Visit www.cinematheque.seoul.kr for more information.

Source: The Korea Times

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