Doorbell song, chapaguri from 'Parasite' become talk of town

With the Oscar-winning film "Parasite" creating a lot of buzz throughout the world, a short catchy song and a recipe from the sensational movie are also sweeping the internet. The so-called Jessica jingle is a line that the character Ki-jung, played Park So-dam, sings with her brother Ki-woo (Choi Woo-sik) in order to remember her false identity before ringing the doorbell of a rich family's house. In the movie, the wily siblings sweet-talk the affluent Park family into employing th

Feb. 11, 2020

Moon congratulates 'Parasite' on winning 4 Oscars

President Moon Jae-in sent a congratulatory message Monday to Bong Joon-ho and his "Parasite" team for the historic Oscar success of the South Korean film, saying it has given South Koreans pride and courage as they try to overcome the challenges of the novel coronavirus outbreak. The president wrote in an official letter that his government will "be with our movie people" so that they can engage in imaginative filmmaking free from worry. He was apparently reaffirming his

Feb. 10, 2020

Oscars yield to Bong Joon-ho and ‘Parasite’

Auteur Bong Joon-ho of “Parasite” has become the first South Korean director to win an Oscar, and he has broken down barriers in a big way with four trophies, including the festival’s most coveted award -- for best picture. At the 92nd Oscars on Sunday night, Bong received four Oscars for “Parasite” -- best international feature film, best original screenplay, best director and best picture. It turns out the Korean movie had been making history not just for its ho

Feb. 10, 2020

‘In the Absence’ raises international awareness of Sewol ferry disaster

Director Yi Seung-jun’s “In the Absence” missed out on the award Oscar for best short-subject documentary Monday, but leaves the Academy Awards having broken new ground as the first-ever Korean documentary to be nominated. “Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl),” a documentary on Afghanistan girls learning to skateboard and gain confidence in life, took home the prize. “In the Absence” deals with the Sewol ferry sinking in April

Feb. 10, 2020

‘Parasite’ makes Oscars history with four wins

Korean filmmaker Bong Joon-ho made history with his feature film “Parasite,” winning four awards at the Oscars on Sunday, including the coveted award for best picture. “Parasite” became the second film ever to win the Palme d’Or and the Oscar for best picture together, after the 1955 romance film “Marty” by Delbert Mann.   The awards ceremony for the 92nd Academy Awards was held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday. Attended by renowned f

Feb. 10, 2020

Bong Joon-ho trains his eyes on class divide

Director Bong Joong-ho and his film “Parasite” were the toast of this year’s Oscars. The dark satire-thriller made history, nabbing four awards, including the prized best picture award, at Monday’s Academy Awards in Los Angeles. While the film may have been unfamiliar to many international audiences, South Korean film enthusiasts and fans of Bong know that the movie is an amalgamation of the director-screenwriter’s past works. During his press conference after he

Feb. 10, 2020

Meet songwriting duo behind Red Velvet’s ‘Zimzalabim’

  Girls’ Generation, SHINee, Loona and TVXQ -- some of these biggest names in K-pop have one thing in common. They’ve released a song from Swedish songwriting duo Caesar & Loui, or Daniel Caesar and Ludwig Lindell. Since the two began working in music professionally in 2013, they have churned out a great number of hits. Their most memorable track yet? It’s Red Velvet’s 2017 mega-hit single “Red Flavor.” The song was a chart success, topp

Feb. 10, 2020

[Herald Interview] Why you can’t stop listening to Red Velvet’s ‘Psycho’

Diving straight in with a grandiose operatic intro with dramatic pizzicato strings, Red Velvet’s latest hit bursts into the swooping chorus, “You got me feeling like a psycho, psycho.” For 3 1/2 minutes straight, the five singers showcase their skillful vocals as the story of a hot-and-cold relationship unfolds. Released in December as the lead single from the band’s latest album, “The ReVe Festival: Finale,” “Psycho” continues to please, after

Feb. 10, 2020

[Newsmaker] 8 stars of ‘Parasite’

When “Parasite” became the first non-English-language movie to win the top honor of best ensemble cast at the Screen Actors Guild Awards, actor Lee Sun-kyun joked, “I am a little embarrassed. It feels like we are parasites of Hollywood now.” He was being humble. Bong Joon-ho’s satire-thriller “Parasite” on Monday won best picture, best director, best international feature film and best original screenplay at the Academy Awards, becoming the first Kor

Feb. 10, 2020

Executive producer of best picture ‘Parasite’ thanks Korean audience

While filmmaker Bong Joon-ho made history with “Parasite” by winning the best picture award at the Oscars -- first non-English language film to get the honor and the first time in the event’s 92-year history that a foreign film has won four awards in a single night -- Lee Mi-kyung, vice chairwoman of CJ Group, thanked the Korean audience for their “straightforward opinions.”   Lee, also known as Miky Lee, is the executive producer of the film. “I would

Feb. 10, 2020

Oscars’ best director Bong Joon-ho honors Martin Scorsese

Filmmaker Bong Joon-ho of “Parasite” won the best director at the 92nd Oscars held in Los Angeles, Monday. 　 “After winning (the best international feature), I thought I was done for the day and was ready to relax,” Bong said in his acceptance speech. “When I was young and studying cinema, there was a saying that I carved deep into my heart, which is ‘the most personal is the most creative,’” he said. “That quote came from our great Marti

Feb. 10, 2020

‘Parasite’ wins best picture at Oscars

Korean satirical-thriller “Parasite” won best picture at the Oscars on Sunday, making history in its home country and the international film scene. Director-producer Bong Joon-ho shared the honor with co-producer Kwak Sin-ae, CEO of film production company Barunson E&A. With the award, “Parasite” became the first foreign-language picture to win the most coveted prize in film. Conquering the Oscars, Bong and the “Parasite” team have reached what may

Feb. 10, 2020

‘Parasite’ Bong Joon-ho named best director: Oscars

South Korean auteur Bong Joon-ho was given the Oscar for best director at the 92nd Academy Awards on Sunday. The director of the epic comedy-horror “Parasite” has become the first South Korean director to win the award. With “Parasite,” Bong is the second director of a non-English-language film to be honored as director at the Oscars, following Alfonso Cuaron, who won it for the Spanish-language drama “Roma” from last year. Bong Joon-ho previously mad

Feb. 10, 2020

With best int’l feature, Bong Joon-ho says he is ‘ready to drink’

After clinching the Oscar for best international feature, filmmaker Bong Joon-ho of “Parasite” said he is “very ready to drink.” The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences recently changed the name of the category from “best foreign language film” because the old name was seen as outdated. 　 　 “The category has a new name now, from foreign language film to international feature film. I am so happy to be its first recipient under the new name,&rdq

Feb. 10, 2020

Oscars kick off with politics and historic 'Parasite' win

HOLLYWOOD (AFP) -- The Oscars kicked off Sunday with a historic early triumph for South Korea's black comedy thriller "Parasite" -- tipped to battle war epic "1917" for the night's top prize -- as winners including Brad Pitt struck a political note. Hollywood's biggest night began with a vibrant musical medley, which addressed a swirling row over the lack of minorities and female directors on the star-studded nominee list. "We celebrate all the women who directed phe

Feb. 10, 2020

‘Parasite’ named best international feature of this year: Oscars

Director Bong Joon-ho’s “Parasite” took the best international feature Oscar at this year’s Academy Awards. The Academy, in announcing the winners of the 92nd Oscars on Sunday, pronounced the South Korean movie as this year’s best international feature film. “Parasite” beat four other successful features -- the Polish drama “Corpus Christi” directed by Jan Komasa, the documentary from North Macedonia “Honeyland,” the French dra

Feb. 10, 2020

‘Parasite’ Bong joon-ho thanks wife for inspiration

South Korean auteur Bong Joon-ho and Han Jin-won of “Parasite” won the best original screenplay award at the Oscars on Sunday. “It is a lonely job to write a film script. I am not writing to represent Korea, but it is the first Oscar to South Korea,” Bong said in his acceptance speech at the ceremony. “I thank my wife, who always inspired me, and the ‘Parasite’ actors who beautifully delivered the lines on screen.”   Bong shared the honor wi

Feb. 10, 2020

[Herald Interview] Enoi talks about debut, hiatus, value of teamwork

Starting from scratch during a time of uncertainty definitely wasn’t easy for rookie act Enoi. The seven-piece act debuted under the newly established Kithewhale Company in April last year with the digital single “Bloom,” but then had to take an unexpected nine-month hiatus -- quite a long time for a rookie band in the fast-changing K-pop field. Now after putting out a new single, “Cheeky,” the bandmates talked about the twists and turns in their blooming career and

Feb. 10, 2020

Bong Joon-ho lands best original screenplay with ‘Parasite’ at Oscars

South Korean filmmaker Bong Joon-ho of the genre-defying flick “Parasite” clinched the best original screenplay award at the Oscars on Sunday. Bong shared the honor with his co-screenwriter of the movie, Han Jin-won. The writer, who assisted Bong in the director’s English-language film “Okja,” made his official debut as a screenwriter with “Parasite.” In leading up to the Oscars victory, Bong and Han had been named for the top original screenplay at W

Feb. 10, 2020

At rain-soaked Oscars, 'Parasite' hopes to upset '1917'

  LOS ANGELES (AP) -- The Oscars are here, already. After the shortest awards season in decades, the 92nd annual Academy Awards is getting underway Sunday at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. The red carpet was rolled out two to three weeks earlier than usual in a bid to freshen up a ceremony and potentially boost ratings. The truncated time table has put the normally bloated Oscars season on a diet (Sunday's show will also, for the second straight year, be hostless) and sent film acade

Feb. 10, 2020