Box Office

Masquerade (Korea)Opened Sept. 13Drama. Directed by Choo Chang-min. In the midst of a gruesome fight over kingship in the Joseon period, fear and wrath drives King Gwanghae (Lee Byung-hun) into a frenzy. He orders his councilor, Heo Gyun (Ryoo Seung-ryong), to find him a double to avoid the constant threat of assassination. Heo Gyun finds Ha-sun (Lee Byung-hun) in a crowd of drunkards at a street market. With the appearance and mind-blowing eloquence of a king, he mimics the gestures of the king

Sept. 14, 2012

Starlets and causes come and go, but Susan Sarandon endures

Susan Sarandon has always made it look so easy.Generations of actresses launch careers and then flame out. Sarandon, 65, “transitioned” ― from ingenue to leading lady to strong female lead to “cougar” to stellar turns as moms. As others come and go, Sarandon reinvents herself and endures.“It’s just managing to get the part you need when you need it,” she says. “I just survived. I don’t understand how I’ve stuck around, and I have no idea what to say when people ask me how. I’ve made plenty of mi

Sept. 14, 2012

‘Pieta’ headed to Academy Awards

Director Kim Ki-duk’s Venice International Film Festival prize-winning “Pieta” has been selected as Korea’s entry to the 85th Academy Award’s foreign film section, the Korean Film Council announced on Thursday.A total of five films, including “Taste of Money” by director Im Sang-soo, “In Another Country” by director Hong Sang-soo, “Nameless Gangster” by Yun Jong-bin and “Masquerade” by Choo Chang-min applied to the film council to be considered as Korea’s entry to the Academy Awards. “Pieta” was

Sept. 13, 2012

DMZ Docs look at peace, communication

The 4th Korean International Documentary Film Festival to showcase 115 nonfiction films from 36 countriesThe annual Korean International Documentary Film Festival (DMZ Docs) kicks off this month, featuring a total of 115 nonfiction films from 36 countries.Celebrating the themes of peace, life and communication, the festival always takes place in Paju, a South Korean border city in Gyeonggi Province. The city is located near the demilitarized zone (DMZ) separating North and South Korea, a line re

Sept. 12, 2012

Director Kim unchanged by Venice triumph

South Korean film director Kim Ki-Duk said Tuesday he would stick to his maverick ways after winning the coveted Golden Lion prize at the Venice film festival for his anti-capitalist movie “Pieta.”“Pieta mirrors my philosophy ... I will continue to produce interesting and meaningful movies like this film,” Kim said.The eccentric director, long-treated as an outcast at home, won the top award in Venice for the film, which tells of a brutal loan shark who struggles for redemption after he meets a

Sept. 12, 2012

Famous Hollywood director says incest is okay

A big Hollywood director told news sources in an interview that he didn’t think there was anything wrong with incest, even comparing it to gay marriage. Nick Cassavetes, director of romance blockbuster “The Notebook,” was promoting his new film “Yellow” when he told interviewers that he didn’t see anything wrong with incest. Cassavetes said that because he did not have personal experience with incest, he could not condemn it, “Love who you want. Isn’t that what we say? Gay marriage — love who yo

Sept. 11, 2012

Makeup masks all-star cast in ‘Cloud Atlas’

TORONTO (AFP) ― Heaps of makeup transformed the all-star cast of “Cloud Atlas,” which premiered on Sunday at the Toronto International Film Festival, “startling” the cast members themselves, they said.“I loved working with Hugh (Grant), you didn’t know it was him until he said (in a thick English accent) ‘Oh fuck off,’” quipped actor Jim Broadbent at a press conference.Grant, who celebrated a birthday on Sunday, said “plastic was applied to their faces for hours” each day during filming.“I heard

Sept. 10, 2012

Can ‘Pieta’ enjoy success at home?

Film critics, distributor say the Venice fest winner is likely to earn Kim Ki-duk his biggest commercial success yet in KoreaAward-winning director Kim Ki-duk and his works may have succeeded in overseas markets, but he never enjoyed such triumph in his homeland. Nicknamed an outsider, the eccentric director has seen local audiences turning their backs on his films, even those that won prizes at prestigious international film festivals. “Bad Guy” (2001) which drew about 700,000 viewers was his b

Sept. 10, 2012

Former laborer becomes acclaimed filmmaker

Kim Ki-duk, who became the first Korean auteur to win the top prize at Venice with his gruesome morality tale “Pieta,” has long been considered an “outsider” in the local film industry.From the very beginning, he was nothing like any of the other filmmakers in the scene. He never went to film school, and never worked as an assistant for established filmmakers ― which was considered the “right way” of breaking into the industry. His life story, filled with drama and struggles, however, is nothing

Sept. 9, 2012

Venice festival winner a hard-hitting morality tale

Kim’s latest film bags the top prize, ‘The Master’ by Paul Thomas Anderson gets Silver Lion awardVENICE, Italy (AFP) ― South Korean director Kim Ki-duk’s “Pieta” won the top prize at the Venice film festival, while Paul Thomas Anderson’s Scientology-inspired “The Master” walked off with two major awards.The eccentric Kim delighted the audience at the awards ceremony by breaking into song on stage to celebrate winning the Golden Lion award for his bleak morality tale.The director, whose personali

Sept. 9, 2012

Kim Ki-duk becomes 1st Korean director to win top film prize at Venice

Gruesome morality tale ’Pieta’ tops Venice Kim Ki-duk received the Golden Lion award for his 18th feature-length film “Pieta” on Saturday to become the first Korean director to win the top prize at the Venice Film Festival.Venice, along with Cannes and Berlin, is considered one of the three most prestigious European film festivals. The film fests are often called the “Big Three.” No Korean directo

Sept. 9, 2012

Box Office

Pieta (Korea)Opened Sept. 6Drama. Directed by Kim Ki-duk. A man (Lee Jung-jin) lives as a brutal loan shark, making money by mercilessly threatening people to pay their debts. The solitary man, an orphan, has nothing or no one to lean on and hurts people shamelessly without realizing the pain he causes. One day, a mysterious woman (Jo Min-soo) appears claiming that she is his mother. The man rejects her at first, but gradually becomes attached to her accepting her into his life. He eventually de

Sept. 7, 2012

‘The Words’ is a drama 12 years in the making

There are two questions on the table during a recent interview regarding “The Words.” The first, to Bradley Cooper, is: What role did you play in helping the small independent movie with the big stars and bigger ideas get made?The second, to the writing-directing team, is: What’s the real scoop?“Why would you think I wouldn’t tell you the real answer?” asks a playful Cooper, who, at 37, is at a career point where just dropping his name could make or break a project. Then he laughs at the explana

Sept. 7, 2012

‘Pieta’ tipped for Venice win

VENICE, Italy (AFP) ― South Korean director Kim Ki-duk’s “Pieta” and U.S. director Paul Thomas Anderson’s “The Master” are tipped as the critics’ favorites to win the coveted Golden Lion award on Saturday night.The two are among the 18 movies in competition at the world’s oldest film festival in Venice where stars, auteurs and industry honchos have been rubbing shoulders at the seaside for nearly two weeks of art house cinema.The selection is “the best around,” said festival director Alberto Bar

Sept. 7, 2012