maundy thursday ( film )
korean film “miracle in cell no. 7” premieres on maundy thursday | maundy thursday, thursday and films
today' s maundy thursday so i used google to search for a
maundy thursday movie
and this one showed up .
the yeomen of the guard carry in trays of maundy money during the traditional maundy thursday service .
the queen has attended a special service at leicester cathedral in celebration of maundy thursday. her majesty, accompanied by prince philip, observed the historical tradition of handing out maundy money to a group of 91 men and 91 women for the local community. but what is the tradition of maundy thursday, and why do people receive special coins? maundy thursday always takes place on the thursday before easter sunday – the day on which christians celebrate jesus' last supper. the queen marks it by giving out special silver coins, known as' maundy money' to local pensioners .
easter is christianity’s most important festival, and some will visit churches to mark maundy thursday, though most people in iceland will stay home and relax .
the yeomen of the guard carry in trays of maundy money during the traditional ...
the film is about a convicted murderer awaiting execution, and the bond he forms with a suicidal young woman who starts visiting him in jail every thursday .
the royal maundy was traditionally about giving alms to poor pensioners. the number chosen reflects the monarch' s age .
the queen has handed out commemorative maundy coins for the 60th time as she undertook the pre - easter tradition in sheffield cathedral .
the queen will visit leicester cathedral for the annual maundy service. accompanied by his royal highness the duke of edinburgh, her majesty will observe the tradition of handing out maundy money to 91 men and 91 women. the maundy service begins at 11. 00am and will be preluded by a convoy around the city centre beginning at humberstone gate and ending at jubilee square. big screens on jubilee square and beside the clock tower will broadcast the service and parade .
maundy thursday can be easily missed, as it’s not the most romantic story out there nor the most complex psychological account but it’s one of those little ones that can make quite an impression on the viewer if given the chance. it also teaches the lesson of getting to know someone before judging them, as eyes really can be deceiving, and that’s the most important thing you can gain from film; a lesson in life .
impending death is often the impetus for romance in korean films, but maundy thursday is a bit different from the rest. based on kong ji young' s famous novel, maundy thursday is both a tender love story and a sensitive look at the capital punishment system. the title refers to holy thursday, or the feast day before easter commemorating the last supper, and the film makes use of the stolen time between uncertain life and certain death to present an unlikely romance about a suicidal young woman and a death row prisoner. director song hae sung (failan) and actors kang dong won (duelist) and lee na young (who are you ?) paint a delicate portrait with compelling characters, subtle political undertones, and commentary on the value of life. university lecturer yu jung (lee na young) does not trust her surroundings and does not believe in love. troubled by a traumatic past, she has attempted suicide many times. at her aunt' s urging, she reluctantly enters therapy and meets convicted murderer and death row prisoner yun su (kang dong won). drawn to each other, two people with no will to live find a new motivation for life: a meeting every thursday from 10 a. m. to 1 p. m .
maundy money as such started in the reign of charles ii with an undated issue of hammered coins in 1662. the coins were a four penny, three penny, two penny and one penny piece but it was not until 1670 that a dated set of all four coins appeared. prior to this, ordinary coinage was used for maundy gifts, silver pennies alone being used by the tudors and stuarts for the ceremony .
growing up, who do we tend to lend our hearts to? it could be the classmate at school or perhaps someone who becomes alive on the computer screen. falling in love can be seen as somewhat equivalent of booking an appointment with a surgeon, having to make the important choice of throwing away some of the rational part of our brain. the way i fell for leading man kang dong - won in this heartbreaking film maundy thursday (or directly translated as our happy times) is slightly less dramatic .
yu ha also deserves credit for keeping the film' s violence resolutely unglamorous .
was on its way to becoming the best - selling korean film in history .
when his overseer, a brutishly practical man named manuel, punishes a returned runaway by slicing off the slave' s ear, the count feels the victim' s pain. the count doesn' t question the system, of course. instead; he devotes himself to making it work. to this end he invites 12 slaves, picked at random, to join him for dinner on maundy thursday, in effect‐to re‐enact the last supper that jesus shared with his disciples the' night before his crucifixion .
. (the film almost broke even in its attempt to reach that audience. )
this was overall a great sad film although the story left me with some questions .
with the headline: film: the last supper, ’ a parable from cuba .
instead of starring in more mainstream fare, kang surprised audiences with his next roles as an inmate on death row in maundy thursday, [ 9 ] and the antagonist in voice of a murderer. [ 10 ] his two collaborations with auteur lee myung - se in duelist and m further cemented kang' s status as one of the top young actors in korean cinema, [ 11 ] [ 12 ] [ 13 ] [ 14 ] [ 6 ] earning him critical recognition for his stylish flair and diverse choice of roles. [ 5 ]
icelandic film editor elísabet ronaldsdóttir has been invited to join the academy of motion ...
this film is not currently playing on mubi but 30 other great films are. see what’s now showing
yun - soo (kang dong - won) is a convicted murderer awaiting execution who has had a troublesome childhood. he was left to be homeless because of his mother and had to care for his sick brother. the two have to meet every thursday and with time they grow to have a connection with each other .
according to the royal mint, the custom of members of the royal family taking part in maundy services dates back as early as the 13th century, when they gave out gifts and money, and even took part in foot - washing ceremonies to symbolise jesus’ display of humility when he washed the feet of his disciples .
, i won' t be too surprised if his next film turns out to be a contemporary musical. (
in brief, maundy thursday is a tearjerker: yun - soo (kang dong - won) is a convicted murderer and awaiting his execution. he’s had a traumatic childhood and is negative of everything around him; he has given up completely. yu - jung (lee na - young) on the other hand has gotten a head start on life but a disturbing event at fifteen would eventually cause her to become suicidal, even years after what has happened. by chance they meet, and with them both feeling neglected they soon start to share an unspoken bond, becoming a solace for each other’s mind. however, as feelings come closer so is the day of yun - soo’s execution .
artistically too, it was a year with several highlights. hong sang - soo was widely praised for his seventh film
is a film that i' ll let in again if it comes knocking on my door a second time. (
indicated an interest in helming a more contemplative, slower - paced, less violent film than was expected of him .
the film “our happy time, ” which went on general release on thursday, tells a doomed love story between a woman who longs for death and a man who is being forced to face it against his will. the movie has all the typical elements of a melodrama, and the simple plot makes it easy to predict what the two have been doing and will be doing next - - and that is just what happens. what makes the movie special is the undeniable charm of the two young stars and the director’s ability to express nuances. the film is an excellent choice for those who are looking for a weepie this fall .
my dear monsieur paquet! it' s me, the joan rivers of korean film criticism, yuhn myikuk again! congratulations on being appointed as one of the judges for puchon fantastic film festival. i tell you what, just give the award to
has been absent in most discussions of south korean cinema. it appears that yeo may himself feel frustrated by this because he did say during a discussion after the screening of his film at 2005' s piff that there are some bits of autobiography in his recent film
this list collects every film from the starting list that became they shoot pictures don' t they' s 1000 greatest films. this…
the tomatometer rating – based on the published opinions of hundreds of film and television critics – is a trusted measurement of movie and tv programming quality for millions of moviegoers. it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .
. i presented a contrarian view to the freudian text that the film presents. but for this review, i' ll let that be and present the film closer to what it is rather than a text with which to debate. premiering as part of the new currents award series, it didn' t win but seemed to generate some buzz at the festival. and this may be because of how psychoanalysis and film seem to stroll hand in hand. (my favorite film book title ever is a testament to this - the slavoj zizek edited
lee na - young and kang dong - won pose for a photo during a press conference for the film ‘our happy time’ on tuesday .
the crowd i watched this with was screaming in delight at the film' s humor, though so much of it is verbal - based that i wonder if it will translate. but for me the most exciting aspect of this film was what it lacked. contrasted to something like
henry iv began the practice of relating the number of recipients of gifts to the sovereign' s age, and as it became the custom of the sovereign to perform the ceremony, the event became known as the royal maundy ,
the website explains .
in the eighteenth century the act of washing the feet of the poor was discontinued and in the nineteenth century money allowances were substituted for the various gifts of food and clothing .
, which sold just over 13 million tickets (the equivalent of over $ 90 million). several other films did quite well too, including gambling film
,
has aesthetically contributed to debuting the directors who now represent the korean film industry? such as kim sung - su, im sang - soo, bong joon - ho, hur jin - ho, and jang joon - hwan? and accomplished the large capitalization of the korean film industry .
and although
with one' s', but it has no relation to this one. this later work was originally screened at the 2005 pusan international film festival. (
as a contest between good and evil. from a moral viewpoint (but not an emotional one) the film resembles wildlife videos of lions taking down gazelles .
in this film park returns to one of his frequent themes, the difficulty, or even impossibility, of communication. just as the deaf and mute ryu in
gradually, however, the film starts to produce some well - deserved laughs, and by the time kim a - jung is allowed to shed her latex, we end up with a fairly entertaining comedy. the film has various little strengths i can point to, such as a surprisingly good performance by joo jin - mo (
for the viewer as well, the emotions of the characters - - and that of the film itself - - are sometimes expressed in such extreme ways that we, too, feel alienated, or simply turned off. at the film' s press screening in seoul, nasty titters often broke out among the seated critics - - many of whom have a long, contentious relationship with kim' s work. kim eventually pushes the symbols and narrative patterns of his work so hard that the underlying structure starts to crack. characters' actions violate psychological norms, and the film' s coincidences flaunt plausibility. the hand behind the film seems to be taking over .
( 2004). from looking at their names, koreans might assume that the two men are brothers, however they are not related. with their highly praised debut film
had a story this year about one of their reviewers being physically restrained from entering after arriving a few minutes late .) just before the film began i looked to see that every seat was occupied, every step in the theatre appropriated as a seat, and still more people were lined up along the walls anxious to see this film .
shit is the future; the future is shit. (and if you haven' t realized it yet, reviewing this film requires more of this shit - talking. )
. an estonian film starring a feline wizard, i mean come on, what could possibly beat that? oh you are only allowed to judge short films, huh. now
despite more than a few serious flaws, the most glaring of which are its pointlessly overlong expositions and almost fatal lack of suspense, the film nonetheless has its moments. director
but in a way the film' s most important performance is that of na moon - hee as dae - shik' s mother. (much of the screen time that passes before her appearance feels like wasted time, to be honest). originally appearing mostly on tv, na' s first film role was in kim jee - woon' s
whenever a great film is made by a pair of co - directors, it is tempting to wonder who among the two is the truly talented one. was the real genius behind
around drama rather than gore or technique. the film' s emotional kick emerges from its claustrophobic setting, and the young actresses are good enough to keep us interested in the story as it unfolds. pleasingly enough, however, the film also makes sense from a logical and dramatic point of view - - something not to be taken for granted in most korean horror films .
we know from genre conventions that thunder will return and that certain sports genre tropes will intrude. even nationalism, a common motif in sports genre films, rears its horse' s rear end since much is made of the fact that thunder' s ability is doubted since he is a korean - bred horse. the occasional cliched feel of these requisite moments, particularly the meet - cutes, keep this film from being a great film. but the fact that the genre - demanded male love interest is jettisoned and si - eun' s character exhibits several shining moments of nicely flowing, feminist agency? the most powerful being her intrusion into the privileged male space of the locker room to confront a colleague whose (lack of) sporting ethics put another colleague in danger? make this a film that expands the genre enough to placate both those who insist on genre demands and those who insist on something original. although i can' t say the film is a stellar piece of work, i resolve to let the film be what it is, a decent film within the young adult, coming - of - age genre. (
may not have been what teenage fans were expecting, but director e has nonetheless given us a highly original and satisfying film, assuming you go in with the right expectations. basically, he has taken the original comic' s spirit of transgression and transformed it into a film that defies the mainstream in other, quieter ways. if korean society often portrays itself as being homogenous ,
in the movie' s monumentally unexciting climax. i am going to echo djuna' s sentiment in this regard: korean filmmakers, if you are embarrassed about making a horror film, then
is a different sort of action film, one that largely avoids impressive displays of physical movement, and instead focuses on the gritty, sensual aspects of fighting. set in a grim, ugly - looking town where the people seem motivated by boredom rather than any enthusiasm for life, the film is most memorable for its black humor and the great presence shown by its two lead actors .
) is a struggling film director whose last film failed at the box office. some soft - spoken gangsters use this as an opportunity to force man - soo into using his director skills to create a faux - north korea with a haphazard collection of actors. the gangsters will fund this endeavor because the gang boss wishes to provide this facade for his dementia - stricken father. the film begins with a nice use of text, (a common enough presence in south korean cinema to warrant its own dissertation), that would ruin the joke if i said any more about it. along with providing film industry insider commentary within the film, the gangsters' misunderstandings about the film funding process begin the underlying theme of misunderstandings of memory and history that are present throughout the film. man - soo is mistaken for the gang boss by the gang boss' s grandfather when they meet and man - soo begins to take on this identity for the grandfather, a grandfather who alludes to all the
grandfathers
and
grandmothers
who have memories of the northern homes of their youth that they will never be able to reinforce and question by returning to the north before their deaths. scenes are enacted and re - enacted based on ambiguous and questionable recollections of the historical past and questionable conceptualizations of the hermit country to the north, all while trying to avoid the intrusion of the realities of the present from disrupting what is believed to be grandfather' s wish. the importance of place and space to our memory is wonderfully portrayed throughout the film .
, was never released in theaters). tv stations like mbc have not been much involved in the film industry to date, but the start of broadcasting in hd format has created a new demand for these type of films. son picked two well - known but not particularly in demand actors, park yong - woo and choi gang - hee, and quietly set about shooting his film .
) does not star in this movie. she is prominently featured in the trailer but her screen time is much shorter than that given to blofeld' s persian cat in a james bond film .
as my favorite korean film of this decade. every scene of the latter work is golden, and the more you watch it, the more it resonates as a haunting, brilliantly - shaped composition .
like the earlier film, it seems to say more than one ever expects to hear in popular revolutionary literature, where ideas and feelings are supposed to be recognized and accommodated by even the dimmest minds .
. and perhaps nothing supports leesong' s film of hope more than the smiles on the faces of many of us who watched this ground - breaking film, smiles shared on the faces of su - min and jae - min (lee han) as they survive the tragedy that surrounds them, reminding us that until we can live honestly with ourselves in all countries, such tragedy surrounds us all. (
begins with an actual news montage chronicling the explosive rise of meth use in the busan area following the 1997 imf crisis. the film then introduces two protagonists: sang - do (ryoo seung - beom from
r: what distinguishes it from any other run - of - the - mill japanese or korean horror film? ymk: nothing. um, okay, that' s not quite true. this movie is
the film itself is directed with an earthy appreciation for korea' s half - developed, concrete - filled countryside. the polar opposite of the bright colors and glossy cinematography that characterize most contemporary korean films ,
for me this is not the sort of synopsis that inspires great confidence, and the first 20 minutes of the film seemed only to confirm my worst fears. the fetching young actress kim a - jung (
is well acted and capably put together, with a mostly predictable but engrossing narrative. yet the film leaves you with an odd sense of emptiness. part of this may be due to the inherent pessimism in the work, and its portrayal of a town where life is bleak and unlikely to improve. yet on a cinematic level too, one wishes that there were just a bit more substance to the film. ultimately
, is a difficult film to talk about spoiler - free. you just have to expose the first surprise to make any sense and even the advertising blurbs know this and do just that. but knowing this surprise doesn' t ruin the film because this is a melodrama and certain things are' known' to happen within the genre. it' s the getting there that' s more than half the fun .
, a film he would also direct. that film was released in 2005 and, from what i' ve been told, is apparently, similar to becker' s film. however, due to its time of origin and the unlikelihood that becker and jo kick it together, jo' s script should not be seen as a copycat but as an example of parallel evolution. both germany and korea have been divided. (do i need to state the obvious that germany isn' t now and korea still is? ok, i just did .) so it makes complete sense that the creatives in each country might come up with such a scenario as having to fake the memories of their estranged twin nation to appease the minds of an elder. as for yeo' s film, that arose from mutual conversations he had with jo back in 1997 and in no way was inspired or copied from becker' s film. becker does not own this theme of divided memories anymore than yeo or jo do. that said, let me summarize the plot .
, and over $ 16 million worth of tickets sold. this from a film that was expected to earn back maybe half of its little budget. hopefully this will encourage korean producers to keep trying new things. (
is not a horror film. it' s way scarier than that. shin presents a moral dilemma most of us, thankfully, will never have to face. but for those who do, i don' t know how they could possibly survive. but that is exactly what shin explores in this film, how to survive extreme moral tragedy, pondering if forgiveness is indeed ever possible considering the nature of certain humanly - wrought calamities .
, which world - premiered at piff' s 11th edition. telling you what i fear most would cause me to reveal the all too important and too horrifying plot twist of this film, so let me just clarify that
in 2010 he scored an acting coup by being cast opposite acclaimed veteran actor song kang - ho in jang hoon' s spy film secret reunion. [ 22 ] [ 23 ] [ 24 ] it became one of the biggest korean box office hits of 2010, with over 5 million tickets sold. he then joined the busan - centered omnibus camellia, starring in jang joon - hwan' s short film love for sale. [ 25 ]
the film' s soft and fluffy setup outlined above is ultimately overwritten by darker and more interesting plot developments - - like a romantic comedy left out on the counter that starts to turn black. park plays his role, as he is meant to, like a cheerful and stupid puppy who can' t see what he' s got coming. in contrast, choi gang - hee, whose only major film role before this was in the original
( 2005), had a huge summer blockbuster opening, commanding more than 550 screens in the opening week. while it was by no means a commercial disaster, the film' s final tally of box office tickets sold was around 3, 880, 000 tickets nationwide, falling short of the film' s break - even point of approximately 4. 5 million tickets and trampled flat by the monster - tadpole - from - han - river movie
suffers from serious budgetary constraints and a general lack of visual imagination. asian horror fans looking for some outrageous, gymnastic scare tactics will be sorely disappointed by the film' s low - octane (timid ?) approach. yet, for a low - budget, hd - lensed quickie, essentially a made - for - tv movie, the film manages to retain its dignity, and is in many ways superior to ahn' s higher - profile
that it is well - acted and always engaging, if awkward and uneven at times. i also found it refreshing to watch a film from kim that was neither outrageously misogynist nor out to make a deep philosophical point. the ending doesn' t quite work, but strangely i find myself left with good memories of watching this film. am i going soft on kim ki - duk, or was i just in a good mood that day? (
about a convicted murderer awaiting execution, and the bond he forms with a suicidal young woman who starts visiting him in jail every thursday. yu - jung (lee na - young) has now attempted her third suicide attempt. her disdain for her mother and indifference to the rest of the world, isolates her from any chance for happiness. yu - jung also has an aunt named sister monica. her aunt often goes to prison to meet with death row inmates. sister monica meets a new death row inmate, who asks sister monica if he could meet her niece yu - jung. sister monica asks yu - jung if she would counsel this death row inmate and yu - jung reluctantly agrees to do so .
the context of the film is the recession south korea was experiencing at the time this film was made. ho - jun struggles with his masculinity and his entitlements along with his general asocial tendencies that his immersion in film only exacerbates. there' s a compelling scene in a multiplex theater that is screening, of all things, an obscure turkish film, where ho - jun' s attempt to recover from economic wounds only makes him more pathetic. he lambastes the manager for not supporting independent cinema when in fact it is. hell, the theater he' s kicked out of is packed and its packed capacity is partly responsible for getting him kicked out, since he tried to sneak into a better seat other than the one he was assigned. (south korean movie theaters require you to purchase tickets where you are assigned a specific seat .) ho - jun is a character who is clearly his own worst enemy .
. first, there is how everyone appears to move listlessly through the film, as if walking through a viscuous liquid, or as if carrying a heavy burden, such as soon - hee' s (ji liu lian) excruciatingly slow pedalling of her kim - chee cart across the screen. and second, there is the prevalence of frames within frames, the centering of a doorway within the film frame where we watch what happens on screen and infer what happens beyond the border of the doorway. for those unfamiliar with film theory terms, what happens within the frame is called
diegetic
while that which happens outside the frame is
non - diegetic .
what is lovely about zhang' s
, the cult horror film from 1999 that is well remembered for its nuanced and haunting portrait of a girls' high school. yet we may have to get used to the idea that min kyu - dong, who went on to direct
that’s the whole purpose of the film: forgiveness. by the end of it, one cannot help but question over the controversial subject of the death penalty. i appreciate it for not being one of those works that is created with the sole purpose of delivering one definite message or belief across — but rather gets you thinking about what your honest opinions are. does it really define justice? is it fair to them? what if they’re truly regretful over what they have done? that is all up to the viewers to judge for themselves. the film doesn’t dictate to us what is right and what is wrong, which is a decision that i appreciate; it certainly adds a sense of profundity to the film .
“the last supper, ” which opens today at the 68th street playhotise, is not an easy film. it has something of the haunted, guilt‐ridden manner. of the count, the character who dominates the film and who remains forever mysterious. it' s not, i think, that the director or nelson villagra, who plays the count, withhold information. it is, rather, that the truth of human behavior can never be more than action observed. the rest is speculation .
won over critical praise to go with its commercial success; and the 11th pusan international film festival boasted a large number of independent films that stirred up excitement among critics. a number of films shot in a more commercial vein, such as gangster movie
the film also treats narrative in the same relaxed way it engages moral issues. largely episodic in nature, it will linger on one character' s concerns and actions for a certain period of time before dropping it and moving on to another character. although most screen time is spent on kim ok - bin' s
girl who carries poverty on her back
, attention is also paid to other characters who have little or no relation to her. even in the latter part of the film, there are few signs of the plot coalescing into a decisive conclusion; instead, the film takes its time exploring the corners of its world and the characters that inhabit it. the director even throws in a few catchy song - and - dance numbers .
- - the final screenplay has ended up differing quite a bit from the source material. it' s tempting to try to tease some sort of social insight out of the film, given the rage for plastic surgery among young koreans (for men as much as women). i' m not sure the film really supports this, however - - ultimately it' s just an entertaining comedy with nothing particularly new to say. nonetheless, korean audiences were certainly charmed, as they bought a stunning 6. 5 million tickets, for a box office take of about $ 45 million. it may be
hard to be a beauty
( the original korean title of this film), but it certainly doesn' t hurt ticket sales. (
' s debut film picks up momentum and develops into one of the season' s most enjoyable comedies. much of this can be credited to the decision to cast actor bong tae - gyu in the lead role. after injecting similar life into romantic comedy
. i think a korean filmmaker can legitimately criticize the right - wing turn in japanese politics and tie it to the undealt - with legacy of japanese imperialism of a half - century ago, and still make a thoughtful, persuasive, even entertaining film .
sometimes it seems that western film critics look down on asian films that take family issues seriously, compared to (for example) the hip, ironic portrayals of family breakdown seen in many u. s. independent films. when im sang - soo' s
edited by anne l. bower. and his slow, lumbering style is not just for show, for it is syntonic with the environment and lives of the characters on screen. equally congruent is zhang' s stationary camera, because even though the characters are moving, albeit slowly, they still appear to remain in the same place, further underscored by the kim - chee cart peddling and dancers parading in one direction early on in the film and then later in the opposite direction. we can add to this the non - diegetic diegetic space of the doorways and windows, for both are entry and exit ways, underscoring the feelings of inevitability that trap soon - hee. and the overall pace of all inactive actions of the majority of the film provide a stark contrast to the speed with which soon - hee moves at the end of the film. all this amounts to a powerful film about the sisyphean uphill climb of flat, false assumptions about who we are and can be and what we' re capable of when all hope is lost. (
feels like an expanded version of a student thesis film that' s a little too much in love with its own cleverness. in particular, the screenplay, for me, did not live up to its reputation. a handgun makes an appearance only at the requisite
. at this point, professor kim is wishing that this summer' s horror film crop turns out to be at least a moderate improvement over the 2004 fiasco. fat chance, like his tummy, but who knows? me, i would rather wait for another
, like many korean films loved by certain critics, is ultimately a rather formulaic film, overly concerned with the mechanics of plotting and symbolic representation: you can readily whip up an academic essay, based on this film, on the systematic perpetuation of violence in korean society as driven by capitalist consumption (nicely
signified
by the professor' s white mercedes !) and oppressive social institutions (police! military !). i think truly great films, bloody violent or not, tend to resist this type of pat analysis .
but its utter, complete and thorough indifference to any quality we associate with good cinema. (i won' t even go into the film' s historical mindset that directly connects the fall of the joseon monarchy to the film' s fictional
crisis
faced by the rok, and pretends that the vast span of korean history between 1895 and 1990 simply
did not happen
- - except to note that it is profoundly wackoid even by the usual
nationalist
standard. when will self - identified
nationalists
realize that
i really enjoyed the plot line of this film because i felt that it was different to what i usually watched. there was so many sentimental and sweet scenes in this that draw you back to reality. i liked the fact that his love for her was based all because of his childhood and it almost seems as if they were tragic star crossed lovers. the ending scene was so sad but it makes you remember the film more. all his words were so cute and everything he wanted out of the lady was all for his brother
the omnibus is a well - meaning, nicely put - together showcase of typical low - budget, indie - film sensibilities. its low - octane, soft - in - the - heart approach and lack of cinematic razzle - dazzle will likely disappoint some viewers. nonetheless ,
( 2005), bong is emerging as a successor to song kang - ho and ryoo seung - beom, who proved they can be top - notch actors in both comedy and drama. charismatic and funny, he is 80% of the reason to watch this film .
nonetheless, e j - yong seemed the perfect choice for such a project, given his demonstrated flair for scandalous topics and his new - generation attitude towards moral issues. a young cast was quickly assembled, headed by actress kim ok - bin (from the 2005 horror film
), a jehovah' s witness who comes to ho - jun' s door a second time in an improbable scenario to save ho - jun from being trapped naked in his bathroom, ready to rest him on his bed sprawled out all christ - complex - y. both searching for something beyond their human existence, ho - jun and kye - sang become forced friends and we witness several moments of ho - jun' s anger at the world, contextualized within an elitism and entitlement that present some nearly hong - ian discomforting moments. the film evolves into a discussion of family, faith, nationalism, war, and film, each of which i found myself appreciating, even if i' m not able to really say what, if anything, i' m supposed to
get
from this film .
) is the owner of this door. well, he may not be the owner, just the renter, because things aren' t going well for ho - jun. he' s a divorced father with a little boy, he' s out - of work as a film professor, and he' s never made a film. he' s also quite irascible, so it' s compelling that he' d meet his opposite, the incredibly understanding kye - sang (kang ji - hwan, who debuted in musical theatre, receiving recognition in
though “memories” looks at the cuban revolution through the eyes of a middle‐class intellectual who can' t bring himself to participate, the film itself is passionately committed. “the last supper” is about death resurrection, not only about the death and resurrection of freedom, but also of repression .
was obviously enhanced by the crowd and their positive reactions to what they were watching. i almost missed this film, but thankfully ran into italian film critic (and urltoken contributor) paolo bertolin in the maze of streets in haeundae that confound one' s sense of cardinal directions. he insisted i get a standing - room ticket for the sold - out show. so i did just that and was one of the lucky standing - room - ers who was able to snag a seat from the late ticket holders. (piff is notorious for its strict time schedules .
choi jung - woo (born february 17, 1957) is a south korean actor. he began his acting career in theater, then became active as a supporting actor in film and television, notably in the sitcom standby and the procedural dramas god' s quiz and dr. frost .
( the original korean title is
creature
) without inserting puns on the word
monster .
the temptation arises not only because of the subject matter, but because everything about the film - - its scale, its budget, its record - breaking performance at the box office, its overseas potential - - is huge within the context of the local film industry. it is a monster movie - - about a truck - sized mutant that crawls out of the han river and unleashes terror upon the citizens of seoul - - and yet, it is not one. part of
pitches the sappy ending right out the window. the film never labors to provide melodramatic justification for our heroine' s behavior, due to a troubled childhood or whatever. it doesn' t transform her into a soft, passive kitten at the story' s end. korean romances and comedies tend to be loaded with emotional and narrative baggage, but there is none of that here at all. as a viewer it' s tremendously refreshing. it makes me wonder if this film' s agnostic attitude would have survived if it were set up as a mainstream, normal - budgeted production .
in english, tripped out of the gate. viewers familiar with the comic were clearly expecting something far more racy - - to be honest, the film is a bit of a tease (it ended up being given only a mild 15 + rating). it also opened just as monster movie
but kim a - jung is the reason to watch this film. i have to say it, kim a - jung is the bomb. not only does she look great, but she does all of the singing on her own and she displays a nice instinct for comedy. when hanna transforms herself, she becomes beautiful but doesn' t really
act
beautiful, having grown up as someone almost universally looked down on. kim manages to capture this element of the role nicely, even when it gets rather heavy - handed towards the film' s end. when this film was in the casting stage, quite a few established actresses turned down the role, including ha ji - won, kim ha - neul, kim hee - sun and ko so - young. it' s hard to imagine the movie doing nearly as well if any of these other women had been cast .
mixes more than a few political barbs into its genre cocktail: a bit of sars here, a bit of iraq there. yet it' s with a black sense of playfulness and absurdity that these satirical quips are delivered to the audience, suggesting that the film' s chief concerns lie elsewhere .
in 2014, kang returned to the big screen in yoon jong - bin' s period action film kundo: age of the rampant, playing an illegitimate nobleman' s son who attempts to destroy a group of robin hood - like outlaws in 19th century joseon dynasty. [ 34 ] [ 35 ]
' s tragic romance is almost entirely carried forward by the film' s ridiculously attractive stars: directorial help is not quite forthcoming, especially in the second half. particularly groan - inducing is the clumsy montage connecting seon - ho and young - hwa' s trips to the northern and southern amusement parks .
noh dong - seok' s short
a tough life
tackles korean racism towards people of the african diaspora. a grade - school - aged boy returns late to a party held at his house where all his friends are waiting. he arrives with his schoolboy crush, a girl who is black. childhood innocence and parental anxieties abound, including a humorous display of internet use in an effort to attempt to resolve a moment of motherly ignorance and childhood inquisitiveness. unfortunately, the impact of his film is reduced somewhat by the occasional moments of less than adept child actors, but noh' s film still holds itself together well .
' s reputation overseas will chiefly rely on its action scenes. the film' s extended climax, featuring four beautiful, white - clad bodyguards beating the bejeesus out of our scrappy heroes and an audacious, beat takeshi - meets - sam peckinpah sequence in which they have to pass through a gauntlet comprised of about two dozen
explodes that notion in favor of diversity. hierarchical social structures, too familiar in real - life korea, crumble within the world of the film. social outcasts may still exist at musseulmo high, but interestingly enough it' s the
normal
students who are more often made to feel uncomfortable and unsure of themselves .
, my favorite film from the 10th anniversary of piff in 2005. here shin is limiting his scope to the three points of this triangle. although i found the film to drag initially, once the turning point arose, i found myself returning to the beginning with respect for its gradual pace with which to develop the relationships between the characters. and although there are moments that are more surreal than shin appears to intend, such as during the moment when the characters are obviously dealing with a prop rather than something livingly lifeless, the demanding attention of the bigger picture allowed me to ignore where shin' s technical knowledge and skill failed him .
film momentarily endearing - si - eun' s trials have nothing whatsoever to do with pursuing a boyfriend. it has everything to do with realizing her agency, specifically jockeying for her position within this male enclave while retaining her ethical tenets of fair play and mutual respect. fellow jockey cheol is misunderstood as a love interest by si - eun' s roommate, but cheol is clearly a rival (therefore her equal) in the vein of any other male sports genre film. yes, the set - ups of si - eun and thunder reuniting after a long absence present them looking longingly at each other as if torn straight out of a romantic comedy, so it can be argued that the genre demands of a male love interest have been displaced onto a horse. (and this is an area where many could make fun of the film, since these classic hollywood
meet cutes
are overdone and regurgitated often .) but this love interest is that of the type of love felt between family members, including the family pet, not of the erotic kind. i may not relate to the feelings some have for their animal companions, but i don' t doubt that love is felt between them, and felt intensely, especially amongst young people, who are the primary target of a film like
) sinks into a bowl of second banana pudding. lee jung - hwan' s live - wire primary villain seems to think he is juan peron and his wife evita. at least that goes in sync with the film' s mortifying reference to tango and its cringe - inducing use of the dance tunes as background music .
may warrant a spark of optimism. a co - operative effort between leading production company sidus fnh and broadcaster mbc, the film was conceived as sort of an experiment. its comparatively low budget of $ 800, 000 meant that neither side was risking a lot of money, so not much pressure was placed on writer / director
is an omnibus consisting of three short stories and hilariously bizarre opening and closing sequences, taking the stale genre of comedy momentarily away from' funny' gangsters and feisty lovers. bizarre is the operative word when describing the film and the characters running through it, and most of the movie takes on the atmosphere of a light - hearted
, my expectations are hoisted way up for his next film, said to be the final installment of the
street violence
trilogy. perhaps in it the older protagonist will finally learn how to either fight back against the system, or renounce violence and stop living as the peculiarly noxious species known as the macho korean male. (
, drags us deep into the pysche of an emotionally shattered gangster in the hopes of uncovering a hint - - but perhaps only a hint - - of human warmth. in this sense, it' s a work that relies more than anything on the performance of its lead actors. in this, the film has been fortunate .
. otherwise, the film presents some wonderful images, such as this white aura that resonates from certain characters and window panes at the beginning, and awkward dialogue throughout that carries you across scene after scene. i don' t mean that the dialogue is awkward, but that it causes awkward feelings in the characters and, if debut director
maundy thursday ( hangul : 우리들의 행복한 시간 ; rr : urideului haengbokhan shigan ; lit . our happy time ) is a 2006 south korean film directed by song hae-sung based on a bestselling novel by gong ji-young . starring kang dong-won and lee na-young , the film is about a convicted murderer awaiting execution , and the bond he forms with a suicidal young woman who starts visiting him in jail every thursday . with 3,132,320 admissions , maundy thursday was the seventh most popular korean film of 2006 . 
maundy thursday (hangul: 우리들의 행복한 시간; rr: urideului haengbokhan shigan; lit. our happy time) is a 2006 south korean film directed by song hae-sung based on a bestselling novel by gong ji-young. starring kang dong-won and lee na-young, the film is about a convicted murderer awaiting execution, and the bond he forms with a suicidal young woman who starts visiting him in jail every thursday. with 3,132,320 admissions, maundy thursday was the seventh most popular korean film of 2006.
maundy thursday (hangul: 우리들의 행복한 시간; rr: urideului haengbokhan shigan; lit. our happy time) is a 2006 south korean film directed by song hae-sung based on a bestselling novel by gong ji-young. starring kang dong-won and lee na-young, the film is about a convicted murderer awaiting execution, and the bond he forms with a suicidal young woman who starts visiting him in jail every thursday. with 3,132,320 admissions, maundy thursday was the seventh most popular korean film of 2006.