[Herald Interview] Ana Ruggiero says ‘Sophie’s World’ brought outside perspective on Korea

Actor Ana Ruggiero said she was a little skeptical when director Lee Jea-han offered her the role of Sophie, the protagonist in his indie film “Sophie’s World.” The Brazilian actor, 27, who first came to Korea as an exchange student, explained during her interview with The Korea Herald that it was because he proposed the role via an Instagram message. “I was like, what is this?” she said. “I do receive a lot of messages on Instagram and half of them are scam

March 3, 2022

'The Batman' scores biggest opening of the year to date in South Korea

"The Batman" has set the best opening-day record for this year to date at the South Korean box office with more than 190,000 people, data showed Wednesday. The Hollywood action blockbuster sold 192,000 tickets, which is 74 percent of all tickets sold at movie theaters nationwide, on Tuesday and topped the box office the following day, according to the data from the Korean Film Council (KOFIC). Two blockbuster films released earlier this year -- "The Pirates: The Last Royal Treasur

March 2, 2022

[URGENT] Lee Jung-jae bags trophy at SAG Awards

Lee Jung-jae took home the best actor award at Screen Actors Guild Awards for his performance in Netflix’s global hit “Squid Game” on Monday. Lee was named the winner of the outstanding performance by a male actor in a drama series award for playing debt-ridden divorcee Seong Gi-hun. Billy Crudup of Apple TV+’s “The Morning Show,” as well as Brian Cox, Jeremy Strong and Kieran Culkin of HBO’s “Succession” were also nominated for the award.

Feb. 28, 2022

[URGENT] “Squid Game” Jung Ho-yeon wins SAG Award

Jung Ho-yeon, who played Sae-byeok in Netflix‘s global hit “Squid Game” won a Screen Actors Guild Award for outstanding performance by a female actor in a drama series on Monday. Jung was nominated in the category along with Jennifer Aniston of “The Morning Show,” Elisabeth Moss of “The Handmaid‘s Tale,” Sarah Snook of “Succession” and Reese Witherspoon of “The Morning Show.”

Feb. 28, 2022

[Herald Interview] Director Park Moon-chil connects ‘comfort woman’ with #MeToo victims in ‘Comfort’

In his new documentary film “Comfort,” director Park Moon-chil has set up a special “meeting” between the late Kim Soon-ak, a former wartime sex slave of the Japanese military, and victims of sexual misconduct that have been taking part in the #MeToo movement. Park said he read Kim’s autobiography with the #MeToo victims before filming. The young women victims in their 20s and 30s also read Kim’s testimony out loud in the movie. “Her oral records also

Feb. 25, 2022

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

Serve the People (Korea) Opened Feb. 23 Romance Directed by Jang Cheol-soo Mu-gwang (Yeon Woo-jin), who is a soldier hungry for success, sees an opportunity for a promotion in the army when he starts working at the house of his commander (Jo Sung-ha). There he meets his boss’s wife, Soo-ryun (Ji An). When his commander is away, Mu-gwang and Soo-ryun engage in a dangerous and forbidden love affair. Uncharted (US) Opened Feb. 16 Action Directed by Ruben Fleischer Nathan Drake (Tom Holland

Feb. 25, 2022

Choi Min-sik returns as math genius in Korean version of ‘Good Will Hunting’

Choi Min-sik is returning to the big screen as a genius mathematician from North Korea in “In Our Prime,” which has been promoted as the Korean version of Gus Van Sant’s American classic “Good Will Hunting.” “Our film can’t be compared with ‘Good Will Hunting’ and Robin Williams,” Choi said humbly during a press conference held after a press preview at Lotte Cinema Konkuk University on Tuesday. “I remember how moving that movie w

Feb. 23, 2022

[Herald Interview] 'Ms. Shibal': Actor Lee Eun-saem surprised by show of love from global fans

Among the many Korean high school students who starred in the latest Netflix zombie thriller “All of Us Are Dead,” Park Mi-jin (played by Lee Eun-saem) is arguably the most mesmerizing character, especially to foreign audiences, who were unfamiliar with the Korean curse word “ssibal” until they watched the series. With the 12-part project topping Netflix’s streaming chart around the globe, the Korean swear words have intrigued many viewers. From online posts to h

Feb. 22, 2022

[Herald Interview] Yeon Woo-jin ‘thirsty’ for innovative movies like ‘Serve the People’

For Korean actor Yeon Woo-jin, director Jang Cheol-soo’s new project, “Serve the People,” caught his eye because it was full of new challenges and innovative elements. “I thought that I would be jealous to see another actor play the role. I felt this way for the first time,” Yeon said during an interview via Zoom with a group of local reporters. “If I were to choose a safer, more commercially appealing film, I would have chosen a different project, but at the

Feb. 21, 2022

Top movie stars heat up clash of global streaming titans

Global streaming service Netflix, which launched in South Korea in 2015, has been enjoying the first-mover’s advantage, with its megahit “Kingdom” series, which debuted in 2019, among its successes. Looking to strengthen its foothold in the country, Netflix is scheduled to release long-awaited top actor Kim Hye-soo’s streaming debut “Juvenile Justice” on Friday. But Netflix rivals Disney+ and Apple TV+ are close on its heels, seeking to challenge Netflix&rsq

Feb. 20, 2022

Director Park Chan-wook unveils iPhone film 'Life is But A Dream'

Park Chan-wook, the director of ‘Oldboy,’ and ‘The Handmaiden,’ unveiled a short martial arts fantasy filmed with Apple iPhone 13 Pro on Friday. “Life is But a Dream ‘’ revolves around an undertaker, played by Yoo Hae-jin, who needs wood to build a coffin for the savior of his village, played by Kim Ok-vin, and digs up an abandoned grave. But while doing so, he accidentally awakens the ghost of an ancient swordsman, played by Park Jeong-min, who want

Feb. 19, 2022

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

Dune (US) Reopened Feb. 9 Science fiction Directed by Denis Villeneuve In the year 10191, Paul Atreides (Timothy Chalamet) is born into a great destiny beyond his understanding. In his dream, he meets a strange woman from the dangerous desert planet Arrakis. As malevolent forces explode into conflict over Arrakis’ exclusive supply of precious resources that could unlock humanity’s great potential, Paul and his family receive an order to head to the planet.  Death on the Nile (

Feb. 18, 2022

[Newsmaker] Hong Sang-soo’s ‘The Novelist’s Film’ wins grand jury prize at Berlinale

Filmmaker Hong Sang-soo’s 27th feature “The Novelist’s Film” on Thursday won the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize at Berlin International Film Festival. The 72nd Berlin International Film Festival is being held from Feb. 10 to 20 as an in-person event. “I really didn’t expect this big prize. I’m very surprised. Thank you all the jury members for your appreciation,” Hong said in an acceptance speech in English. “I feel like I should say somethin

Feb. 17, 2022

Korean director Hong Sang-soo wins grand jury prize for 'The Novelist's Film' at Berlin film fest

South Korean director Hong Sang-soo on Thursday (Korean time) won the grand jury prize at this year's Berlin International Film Festival for his latest film, "The Novelist's Film." At the award ceremony streamed online, the director's 27th feature was awarded the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize at the 72nd Berlin festival, which kicked off on Feb. 10 in-person. It is the third year in a row that auteur Hong has won a silver bear prize at the Berlinale, following his best director honor fo

Feb. 17, 2022

[Herald Interview] Director Jang Cheol-soo defends provocative scenes in ‘Serve the People’

After the press screening of director Jang Cheol-soo’s new film “Serve the People” on Monday, a few local media outlets criticized his work, saying that it has too many unnecessary erotic scenes. During his interview via Zoom with a group of local reporters on Tuesday, Jang addressed these criticisms. “I did not intend to make it provocative. I value the emotion (of the characters),” Jang said. “When filming sex scenes, I focused on how I would portray the c

Feb. 16, 2022

[Feature] Local audiences conflicted over sensational Netflix Korean originals

Global expectations for and interest in Korean content, specifically Korean Netflix originals, look set to endure, with series -- such as “My Name,” “Hellbound,” “The Silent Sea” and “All of Us Are Dead” -- all having followed Squid Game's lead to enter the platform's global top 10. According to the global streaming service Netflix, its latest zombie thriller “All of Us Are Dead” retained the No. 1 slot on the service’s weekly v

Feb. 16, 2022

Pre-event of 20th Director’s Cut Awards to be held on Thursday, Friday

The 20th Director’s Cut Awards announced on Tuesday that it will hold its special pre-event Director’s Chair online on Thursday and Friday at 7 p.m., before the award ceremony takes place on Feb. 24. Director’s Chair is a panel discussion event that had been held in person with five nominated Korean directors for the award. However, the event organizer, the Directors Guild of Korea, said that this year it is holding it through Zoom, and audiences will be able to watch on bot

Feb. 15, 2022

[Herald Interview] Lee You-mi embraces hate for her character in ‘All of Us Are Dead’

Actor Lee You-mi, 27, returned to the small screen as self-centered high school student Na-yeon in “All of Us Are Dead,” after rising to global stardom with Netflix’s megahit “Squid Game.” Playing a character that is nearly the opposite of her role in “Squid Game,” Lee was surprised to receive barbed comments from drama aficionados, but was satisfied with her performance in the latest zombie thriller. “Unlike how the viewers showed their love an

Feb. 15, 2022

‘Hellbound’ director Yeon Sang-ho joins hands with Smilegate

Director Yeon Sang-ho, best known for producing the Netflix series “Hellbound” and directing smash-hit zombie film “Train to Busan,” has signed a partnership deal with South Korean game developer Smilegate. The game company is responsible for the popular role-playing PC game Lost Ark in November 2018. The South Korean game developer and Yeon will together create a new universe with its own storyline which can be adapted for use in games, movies, TV dramas and webtoons

Feb. 14, 2022

Documentary film ‘Comfort’ tells untold story about former ‘comfort women’

The late Kim Soon-ak had been testifying about her experience living as a wartime sex slave of the Japanese military, and also her life living as a housekeeper after Korea‘s liberation before she died in 2010. However, there were parts of her life that she had been reluctant to speak out in public about for quite some time. After the Japanese colonial period ended, she lived in prostitutes’ quarters and did sex work at a US military camp town to survive. Director Park Moon-chil&

Feb. 13, 2022