[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

Baby Driver(US)Opened Sept. 13Action, crime. Directed by Edgar Wright Baby (Ansel Elgort) is a skilled getaway driver, who chauffeurs robbers seeking to flee crime scenes quickly and lives in Atlanta, Georgia. He meets a waitress named Debora (Lily James) at a diner, and the two start dating. He begins to dream of ditching his lifestyle and pursuing a normal life. But Baby’s next robbery goes awry and he narrowly manages to evade the police. Baby’s boss Doc (Kevin Spacey), a heist mastermind, fo

Sept. 15, 2017

Director Hong Sang-soo making new film with actress Kim Min-hee

Director Hong Sang-soo will release a new film with his actress-lover Kim Min-hee, according to film industry sources Thursday.They said Hong began shooting his 22nd feature film early this month with Kim and Kwon Hae-hyo, actors from his previous work "The Day After.""We understand (the movie) recently went into filming," Kwon's management agency said. "We don't know the name and other details of the film yet."It is the fifth work between Hong and Kim, who admitted to their extramarital relatio

Sept. 14, 2017

CJ E&M aims to become global film production studio

Contents conglomerate CJ E&M plans to aggressively expand global film production, the company announced at a press conference Wednesday.CJ E&M, the largest film distributor in Korea, plans to produce and distribute 20 films per year in foreign markets by 2020. Currently, the company funds and distributes some 10 to 15 films in Korea each year. 　“The Korean movie market has reached saturation point,” said Jeong Tae-sung, CEO of CJ Entertainment, the company’s movie arm, in a presentation at The P

Sept. 13, 2017

Colin Firth, Mark Strong, Taron Egerton to visit Korea for ‘Kingsman 2’

Colin Firth, Mark Strong and Taron Egerton from the cast of “Kingsman: The Golden Circle” will be coming to Korea on Sept. 20, 20th Century Fox Korea announced Tuesday.It will be the first Korea visit for English actor Firth, known here for the “Bridget Jones” series, “Love Actually” (2003) and “The King’s Speech” (2010). Welsh actor Egerton and Scottish actor Strong also gained popularity in the 2014 prequel “Kingsman: The Secret Service,” which was a box office hit here. Taron Egerton stars in

Sept. 12, 2017

Busan film fest to open, close with female directors

For the first time in its 22-year history, works by female directors will both open and close the Busan International Film Festival.　Korea’s “Glass Garden,” directed by Shin Su-won and starring actress Moon Geun-young, is set to open the festival, which will run in the southeastern port city of Busan from Oct. 12-21.　 Busan International Film Festival’s Executive Director Kang Soo-youn (left) and Chairman Kim Dong-ho speak to press at the President Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul, Monday. (Yonhap)The fi

Sept. 11, 2017

'Memoir of a Murderer' soars on debut weekend

"Memoir of a Murderer," starring actor Seol Kyung-gu, got off to a promising start over the weekend, data showed Monday.The Showbox crime-thriller, which received mostly positive reviews, attracted a solid audience of 899,986 on its opening weekend, according to real-time box office figures from the Korean Film Council. The movie's accumulated number of views reached 1.191 million.Based on Kim Young-ha's best-selling novel of the same name, the Won Shin-yun-directed film has topped the daily cha

Sept. 11, 2017

‘A Taxi Driver’ becomes 10th most-viewed Korean film

“A Taxi Driver” has become the first film this year to surpass the 12 million-ticket mark as of Saturday, according to the Korean Film Council. 　The film has sold 12,023,670 tickets in total, becoming the 10th most-viewed Korean film in the country. It sold some 40,000 tickets on Saturday alone. 　The ninth most-viewed Korean film is “King and the Clown” (2005) by Lee Joon-ik, with 12,302,831 tickets sold.  Song Kang-ho stars in “A Taxi Driver.” (Showbox)“A Taxi Driver,” directed by Jang Hoon, ha

Sept. 10, 2017

Gina Kim, Eugene YK Chung nab top VR awards at Venice film fest

Korean filmmaker Gina Kim won the best virtual reality story award for “Bloodless” at the 74th Venice International Film Festival, which closed Saturday.The best VR award went to the animation film “Arden’s Wake,” written and directed by Eugene YK Chung, director and founder of Penrose, a US startup that focuses on augmented and virtual reality. “Bloodless,” a 12-minute film about a sex worker’s final moments, is based on the case of a US soldier’s brutal murder of a Korean bar worker in the US

Sept. 10, 2017

Del Toro’s ‘The Shape of Water’ wins Golden Lion at Venice

Guillermo del Toro’s monster thriller “The Shape of Water” took the top prize at the Venice Film Festival on Saturday, capping an 11-day event where the demons of social division and environmental disaster loomed large on the screen.Del Toro was named winner of the Golden Lion by a jury headed by US actress Annette Bening, beating contenders including George Clooney’s “Suburbicon” and Alexander Payne’s “Downsizing.” Mexican director Guillermo Del Toro holds the Golden Lion award he received for

Sept. 10, 2017

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

Memoir of a Murderer(Korea)Opened Sept. 6Drama, thriller. Directed by Won Shin-yun Byung-soo (Sol Kyung-gu), a former serial killer, is now an emaciated elderly man suffering from early stage Alzheimer’s disease. His unsuspecting daughter Eun-hee (Kim Seol-hyun) looks after her erratic father, who disappears for lengthy periods into the bamboo forest. During one of his outings, Byung-soo’s car collides into the car of police officer Tae-joo (Kim Nam-gil), who seems to have a corpse hidden in his

Sept. 8, 2017

Veteran film director dies at 83

A veteran film director best known for his melodrama hit "Barefooted Youth" in the 1960s died on Thursday after battling lung cancer. Kim Ki-duk, a former professor at Seoul Institute of the Arts, passed in the afternoon about four months after he was diagnosed with the terminal illness, according to sources familiar with the matter. He was 83.  This file photo shows late South Korean film director Kim Ki-duk on Sept. 7, 2017. (Yonhap)Born in Seoul, he directed some 60 films during his 16-year c

Sept. 7, 2017

Moon Geun-young to return with new film at Busan Film Fest

Moon Geun-young will return to the big screen with “Glass Garden” (unofficial translation), according to reports.In February, the actress was diagnosed with acute compartment syndrome, which prevents blood flow to the nerves and muscle cells. She has since underwent four surgeries.In the new film, Moon stars as Jae-yeon, a doctoral student who witnesses an odd reality after living a secluded life. Shooting for the film took place from May to July last year.  Moon Geun-young (Herald Pop)Actor Kim

Sept. 7, 2017

‘I Can Speak’ talks about comfort women in indirect way: director

“I Can Speak” has been marketed as a comedy film. At Wednesday‘s press screening, however, the film was revealed to deal with issues of women forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese military during World War II.“I discovered it was about comfort women as I read the script,” said actress Na Moon-hee after the press screening in Seoul. Comfort women is a euphemism used to refer to former military sex slaves.　Veteran actress Na, 75, plays Na Ok-boon, a neighborhood busybody who wants to learn En

Sept. 7, 2017

[Herald Interview] Now a director and scriptwriter, actress Moon So-ri speaks about her film

After nearly 20 years as an actress, Moon So-ri has now penned and directed a film.　Titled “The Running Actress,” it is a semi-autobiopic about an actress who struggles with her career, family life and public perception. It is a compilation of three shorts that Moon made during her studies at Chung-Ang University School of Art and Technology in 2014 and 2015 as part of her master’s degree program.The film, a comedy, pokes fun at its lead character with self-deprecating humor.　“Humor is a big par

Sept. 6, 2017

Director Lee Chang-dong to return with film starring Yoo Ah-in

Director Lee Chang-dong will direct a new film tentatively titled “Burning,” its production company Pine House Film said Tuesday. It will be the director’s new film in eight years since he released his last film “Poetry” in 2010. “Burning,” based on Japanese novel “Norwegian Wood” by Haruki Murakami, centers on Jong-su who tries to solve the mystery surrounding his lover Hae-mi.  Lee Chang-dong (Yonhap)Yoo Ah-in is confirmed to play the role of Jong-su while the role of Hae-mi has not yet been f

Sept. 5, 2017

‘A Taxi Driver’ submitted to the Academy for Best Foreign Language Film

South Korean historical drama “A Taxi Driver” was submitted to the 90th Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, its distributor Showbox said Monday. The section allows only one entry per country. Korean films were submitted for the section every year but none of them made it to the final nominees. In 2016, “The Age of Shadows” was submitted for the section.  (Showbox)“’A Taxi Driver,’ based on the real story, well-illustrated the characteristic of Korea as well as human rights and democrat

Sept. 5, 2017

'Hitman's Bodyguards' lands at No. 1 in S. Korean box office

The American action-comedy "Hitman's Bodyguard" topped the South Korean box office on its opening weekend by selling 556,100 tickets, data showed Monday. According to the computerized box office figures from the Korean Film Council, the R-rated film starring mega-stars like Samuel L. Jackson, Ryan Reynolds and Salma Hayek outdid its South Korean rival, "Midnight Runners," which gathered 286,097 views. The Korean comedy-action movie, starring Park Seo-jun and Kang Ha-neul, revolves around two cad

Sept. 4, 2017

‘Memoir of Murderer’ invited to London film fest

South Korean crime-thriller “Memoir of a Murderer” has been invited to this year‘s BFI London Film Festival, the movie’s local distributor said Monday.The movie led by actor Seol Kyung-gu will be screened in the Thrill section at the 61st edition of the festival, which is the largest film festival in Britain. This year‘s event will run from Oct. 4-15. "Memoir of a Murderer" (Showbox)Previous Korean titles that have been invited to the same category were “New World” (2013), “A Hard Day” (2014), “

Sept. 4, 2017

Busan film fest to hold memorial events for late deputy director

Various memorial events are planned through this year's Busan International Film Festival to remember its deputy executive director who died during his last business trip to France, the festival said Sunday.Kim Ji-seok, 57, died of a heart attack at a hotel in Cannes where he visited to attend the 70th Cannes Film Festival in May. He was a founding member and executive programmer of the Busan film festival that launched in 1996. Kim Ji-seok (Yonhap)Screening a memorial video during the opening c

Sept. 3, 2017

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets(France)Opened Aug. 30Sci-fi, adventure. Directed by Luc BessonIt is the 28th century. Species from all corners of the universe have formed a federation and come together to build Alpha, a sort of galactic capital. They live in harmony there, exchanging knowledge and culture. Valerian (Dane DeHaan) and Laureline (Cara Delevingne) are federal agents who keep the order of space. The two set out on a mission to retrieve a rare treasure, and uncover the sec

Sept. 1, 2017