Jennifer Lawrence slams stolen nude photos as ‘sex crime’

NEW YORK (AFP) ― Oscar-winning actress Jennifer Lawrence has spoken publicly for the first time after naked pictures of her were hacked and posted online, angrily slamming the leak as a “sex crime.”Speaking exclusively to Vanity Fair, the rising siren of the silver screen said she felt violated and was afraid how the hacked photographs would affect her career.“Just because I’m a public figure, just because I’m an actress, does not mean that I asked for this,” she told the November issue of the m

Oct. 8, 2014

Sewol sinking documentary screened in Busan despite controversy

A controversial documentary that deals with the April 16 sinking of the Sewol ferry, which claimed more than 300 lives, made its world premiere at the Busan International Film Festival as planned on Monday despite calls and protests against its screening. “The Truth Shall Not Sink with the Sewol” (a.k.a. “Diving Bell”), directed by journalist Lee Sang-ho and director Ahn Hae-ryong, tells the stories behind the failed search for survivors that used a diving bell. “It was when I arrived at Paengmo

Oct. 7, 2014

‘Girl’ nabs No. 1 at U.S. box office

LOS ANGELES (AP) ― “Annabelle” couldn’t scare off “Gone Girl” at the weekend box office. The Fox thriller starring Ben Affleck as a man whose wife goes missing overcame the Warner Bros. possessed-doll horror movie with a $38 million debut, according to studio estimates Sunday. Both films join the recently released “The Maze Runner” and “The Equalizer” in crossing the $30 million mark this fall, a typically low-earning season at the box office. “It was virtually a photo finish,” said Paul Dergara

Oct. 6, 2014

Stars, directors and film lovers flock to Busan

BUSAN ― Chinese actress Tang Wei, during her visit to the 19th annual Busan International Film Festival, shared her thoughts and experiences on her role as Chinese literary icon Xiao Hong in director Ann Hui’s latest film, “The Golden Era.”The Hong Kong film is a biopic of legendary Chinese writer Xiao (real name Zhang Naiying), who lived through a period of political turmoil in modern Chinese history from 1911 to 1942. Before the writer died at the young age of 32, she published many short stor

Oct. 5, 2014

Chinese director Zhang Yimou says his film captures human hope

Zhang Yimou                                                                                                                      (Yonhap)  Renowned Chinese director Zhang Yimou said Saturday he wanted to tell about the "inextinguishable" hope of mankind through "Coming Home," his latest film about a long-awaited love.   Starring Gong Li, the period drama tells the story of a devoted married couple who is separated when the husband is sent away to a labor camp for his right-leaning thoughts durin

Oct. 4, 2014

Actress Tang Wei: ‘This is my golden era’

Chinese actress Tang Wei poses at a press conference of the film, “The Golden Era,” in Busan during the 2014 BIFF on Friday. (Yonhap)BUSAN -- Chinese actress Tang Wei, in her visit to the 19th annual Busan International Film Festival, shared her thoughts and experiences on her role as Chinese literary icon, Xiao Hong, in director Ann Hui’s latest film, “The Golden Era.”　The Chinese – Hong Kong film is a biopic of legendary Chinese writer Xiao (real name Zhang Naiying), who lived through a period

Oct. 3, 2014

BIFF 2014: Red carpet arrivals

BUSAN--The 19th Busan International Film Festival has kicked off and the red carpet is in full swing with A-listers gracing the moment at the Busan Cinema Center in Busan on Thursday evening.Check out the best red carpet looks at the 2014 BIFF:1. Actor Jung Woo-sung and Actress Esom Film “Scarlet Innocence” stars, actor Jung Woo-sung and actress Esom attend the red carpet ceremony. 2. Actress Tang WeiChinese actress Tang Wei waves at the red carpet ceremony for her film “The Golden Era.” 3. Acto

Oct. 2, 2014

Busan festival to feature 314 films

The 19th edition of the Busan International Film Festival will roll out the red carpet for a slew of big name actors and filmmakers, drawing film lovers to the southeastern port city of Busan from Oct. 2-11. The largest film festival in Asia will screen 314 films from 79 different countries, including 98 world premieres. “The Truth Shall Not Sink with the Sewol,” a Korean documentary directed by Lee Sang-ho and Ahn Hae-ryong, has stirred up controversy as it deals with the April 16 sinking of th

Oct. 1, 2014

[Herald Review] Exploring blurred line between truth and national interest

Which comes first, truth or national interest?This question is asked several times in the film “Whistle-Blower” by director Yim Soon-rye (“The Best Moment of Our Lives,” “Southbound”). “The truth,” the TV producer of an investigative journalism program answers in less than a second. “Because truth ultimately contributes to the national interest.” But what if the truth is ugly, unwanted or tarnishes the national image? In that case, how many people would give the same answer without a second thou

Sept. 28, 2014

Box Office

Scarlet Innocence (Korea)Opening Oct.2Romance, Thriller. Directed by Yim Pil-sungAdapted from the classic Korean tale “The Story of Simcheong,” “Scarlet Innocence” begins with Hak-kyu (Jung Woo-sung), a young, charming literature professor, who was embroiled in a sex scandal and had to move to the countryside from Seoul until the matter was settled. It is in the country where he encounters 20-year-old Deok-yi (Esom), an innocent girl working at an amusement park. They fall madly for each other,

Sept. 26, 2014

Gross and funny ‘Boxtrolls’ is animated film of the year

There’s something about stop motion 3D animation ― the not-quite-real textures of skin and hair, the quite real cloth and metal, the subtle gloomy lighting effects ― that says “spooky.”All the best animated films with a hint of Halloween have been stop motion animation or digital efforts that duplicate that hand-molded model look ― “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” “Coraline.”“The Boxtrolls” is from Laika, the studio that made “ParaNorman” and “Coraline.” This adaptation of an Alan Snow novel (“

Sept. 26, 2014

Box Office

Little White Lies (France)Opening Sept. 25Comedy, Drama. Directed by Guillaume Canet.Every year, Max (Francois Cluzet) invites his group of friends to his vacation house at Cap Ferrat in southeastern France. A day before the trip, the group’s party man Ludo (Jean Dujardin) gets into a gruesome accident, hit by a truck while riding his motorbike. Despite Ludo’s severe condition -- he is hanging on the brink of death -- seven members of the group, including Marie (Marion Cotillard), embark on thei

Sept. 19, 2014

‘Dolphin Tale 2’s star, story and setting a life-changer for many

During production of “Dolphin Tale 2” at Clearwater Marine Aquarium in Florida, the nonprofit facility operated 24/7 to rescue, rehab and release injured sea creatures, including dolphins and turtles.The center was open to the public only on weekends, but during the first week of shooting, the aquarium made an exception, and production shut down for a special visitor: a gravely ill girl from Sweden who had flown in to see Winter, star of the 2011 film “Dolphin Tale.” The Atlantic bottlenose dolp

Sept. 19, 2014

Alan Turing biopic wins top prize at Toronto fest

OTTAWA (AFP) ― “The Imitation Game,” a biopic of British code-breaker Alan Turing starring Benedict Cumberbatch, won the Toronto film festivals top prize Sunday, confirming its status as an early Oscars contender.Morten Tyldum’s World War II-era drama also stars Keira Knightley, Matthew Goode and Allen Leech of the hit television series “Downton Abbey,” and features a rare German Enigma code machine from the war.“There was something very subtle, uncompromising and unusual about (Turing) but also

Sept. 15, 2014

‘God Help the Girl’ finds remedy for troubles in catchy songs

The lively, playful, self-aware musical “God Help the Girl” has such a will-o’-the-wisp quality you fear it will disappear if you attempt to fence it. Writer-director Stuart Murdoch called it “our little hymn to the possibility of healing in music” when he introduced the film at Sundance, and that’s about as close as you’re going to get.Murdoch, the lead singer and songwriter of Scottish band Belle & Sebastian, also wrote the film’s supremely melodic score as a stand-alone pop opera and nurtured

Sept. 12, 2014

Box Office

Sin City: A Dame to Kill For (U.S.)Opened Sept. 11Crime, Thriller. Directed by Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller“Sin City: A Dame to Kill For,” based on codirector Frank Miller’s graphic novel of the same name, is a sequel to the 2005 film “Sin City.” The film combines five crime stories from the novel set in the fictional Sin City, beginning with that of Johnny (Joseph Gordon Levitt), a fearless gambler, who arrives in the city, faces the villainous Senator Roarke (Powers Boothe) and plays a hi

Sept. 12, 2014