Rain, Kang So-ra to star in ‘Uhm Bok-dong’

Singer-actor Rain and actress Kang So-ra have confirmed their roles in the upcoming film tentatively titled “Uhm Bok-dong.” Singer-actor Rain (left) and actress Kang So-ra (Rain Company/Plum Entertainment)“Rain and Kang So-ra have decided to accept the lead roles. Rain will play Uhm Bok-dong, a cyclist hero, and Kang will play an independence fighter," an official related to the film project said. This will mark Rain’s return to the big screen after tying the knot with actress Kim Tae-hee on Jan

April 18, 2017

Director-actor duos of Korean cinema

Actress Kim Min-hee has been enjoying a year of unprecedented success, winning best actress at the Berlin film fest for “Alone on the Beach at Night” and with two other films she has starred in -- “Clair’s Camera” and “The Day After” -- set to screen at the Cannes Film Festival in May. The common factor between the three films is director Hong Sang-soo, with whom she has openly admitted to having a romantic relationship. Strong creative bonds commonly exist between directors and actors, with the

April 16, 2017

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

The Fate of the Furious(US)Opened April 12Action, thriller. Directed by F. Gary GrayA team of criminals and racers led by Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) has been enjoying their long-awaited lives of normalcy and peace when they uncover plans for a large-scale attack by a group of cyberterrorists, helmed by the criminal mastermind Cipher (Charlize Theron). Cipher soon forces Dominic to betray his crew of many years, who must come together to put a halt to their former boss and friend from causing w

April 14, 2017

[Movie Review] ‘The Fate of the Furious’ is mostly spinning its wheels

Barely five minutes have elapsed in “The Fate of the Furious” before Michelle Rodriguez mutters, “It’s gonna be a bomb.” She is not talking about the movie (duh) but, rather, about a 1953 Chevy Fleetline whose hunkajunk engine Vin Diesel has cleverly souped up — though it might be more accurate to say he’s turned it into a dynamite stick on wheels — using little more than his wits, his muscles and the tab of a Coke can. You’ve got to admire that last part: it’s a plot point, a product placement

April 14, 2017

[Movie Review] ‘Colossal’ is an amazing experience

Talk about flipping the script! “Colossal” is a subversive, wildly ambitious groundbreaker among giant creature features. It ditches every classic trope and screenwriting rule from Asian kaiju films, telling the tale with a quirky voice all its own. It turns the monster movie genre into something darkly witty, weirdly modern, simultaneously sincere and screwball absurd.Don’t worry, traditionalists. There are dazzling sequences of a skyscraper-tall, roughly humanoid wild thing battling a massive

April 14, 2017

Upcoming JIFF enjoys surging ticket sales

Tickets for 80 of the 229 films screening at the Jeonju International Film Festival have sold out in advance, according to JIFF organizers.Tickets for “On the Body and Soul” and “Survival Family,” the festival’s opening and closing films, respectively, sold out Tuesday, while tickets for 80 films sold out Wednesday, a representative from JIFF said. Last year saw tickets for 41 films sell out.  Still from the opening film “On the Body and Soul” by Hungarian director Ildiko Enyedi (JIFF)“We believ

April 14, 2017

5 Korean films make Cannes’ official selection this year

The 70th Cannes Film Festival this year will offer up a feast of Korean cinema. A total of five films have been invited to the official selection, with two competing for the prestigious Palme d’Or award.Invited to the competition category are Hong Sang-soo’s “The Day After (Geu Hu),” filmed last February with Kim Min-hee, and Bong Joon-ho’s “Okja,” a fantasy story of a girl who sets out to save her giant animal friend starring Tilda Swinton. It is the second time two Korean films are competing a

April 14, 2017

‘Train to Busan’ director to start shooting new film

Casting for “Psychokinesis” (unofficial translation), the latest film by “Train to Busan” director Yeon Sang-ho, has been completed and shooting will begin Monday, the film’s distributor Next World Entertainment said Thursday. Shim Eun-kyung (left), Ryu Seung-ryong (NEW)Ryu Seung-ryong will play an ordinary man who acquires supernatural powers and uses them to help his wife, daughter and neighbors. The actor starred in “The Sound of a Flower” (2015). Actress Shim Eun-kyung, who appeared in the o

April 13, 2017

Han Hyo-joo considers role in ‘Inrang’

Actress Han Hyo-joo recently received an offer to play the female lead role in director Kim Jee-woon’s “Inrang,” according to Han’s agency Tuesday.“Han Hyo-joo has not decided whether to accept the offer. She’s currently considering it in a positive light,” BH Entertainment said.Actress Han Hyo-joo (Yonhap)Gang Dong-won and Jung Woo-sung were also offered lead roles in the sci-fi action blockbuster film. Kang has confirmed the casting, while Jung has not yet decided. If Han decides to take up th

April 12, 2017

Lee Ki-hong explains decision to star in Korean film

Korean-American actor Lee Ki-hong said the opportunity to act alongside Choi Min-sik was one of his key reasons for joining the cast of upcoming political thriller “Special Citizen.”　“The fact that I could act in the same scene with him was one of the biggest reasons I wanted to participate (in the film),” he said Tuesday. “I also wanted to learn from many of Korea’s veteran actors.” 　Lee, who starred in the Hollywood sci-fi film “The Maze Runner” in 2014, is set to make his first Korean film ap

April 11, 2017

[Box Office] Movies in theaters

House of the Disappeared (Korea)Opened April 5Mystery, thriller. Directed by Lim Dae-wung Mi-hee (Kim Yun-jin) is a mother of two boys living in an old house on a quiet hill with an abusive new husband (Jo Jae-yoon). Strange events start to occur in the house. Mi-hee and her children are visited one night by a violent, unidentifiable being, and she begins to feel a dark presence in the basement of the house. All the while, tension between her children and husband continue to mount. Oneday(Korea)

April 7, 2017

Park Chan-wook honored at Brussels film fest

Director Park Chan-wook was honored as one of the Knights of the Order of the Raven, in recognition of his achievements, at the Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival on Tuesday, the Korean Cultural Center Brussels announced Wednesday. 　The festival is spotlighting three film‘s by Park -- “Thirst” (2009), “I’m a Cyborg, but That’s Okay” (2006), “Lady Vengeance” (2005) -- this year. 　BIFFF is considered one of the world’s top three fantastic film festivals alongside Spain’s Sitges and Por

April 6, 2017

‘House of Disappeared’ invited to Far East Film Fest

Mystery-thriller flick “House of the Disappeared,” starring actress Kim Yun-jin and singer-actor Ok Taec-yeon, has been invited to the main competition category of the Far East Film Festival, the film’s distributor Peppermint & Company announced Wednesday.“(The film) is a deep, striking psychological thriller-horror film,” said the festival’s executive director Sabrina Baracetti. “The film flows smoothly, but it is also straightforward. ... Kim Yun-jin’s performance of going back and forth betwe

April 5, 2017

‘The Prison’ surpasses ‘Beauty and the Beast’ at box office

Korean crime action flick “The Prison” outpaced “Beauty and the Beast” at the Korean box office Tuesday, according to the Korean Film Council. “The Prison” topped the list of films, selling 60,713 tickets Monday, followed by “Beauty and the Beast,” which sold 49,484 tickets.  Han Suk-kyu (left) and Kim Rae-won star in “The Prison.” (Showbox)The two films have been competing for the top spot at the local box office since “The Prison” opened in theaters on March 23. The Korean movie stars Han Suk-

April 4, 2017

‘1987,’ film on historic democratic movement boasts star-studded cast

Kim Yoon-seok, Ha Jung-woo, Yoo hae-jin and Kim Tae-ri will star in the historical drama film tentatively titled “1987,” which draws on the democratization movement of 1987, a watershed event in the history of Korean democracy, the film’s distributor CJ Entertainment announced Monday.The film will chronicle the anti-government protests that took place from June 10-29, 1987, sparked in part by the death of Park Jong-chul, a Seoul National University student killed while being interrogated and tor

April 3, 2017

Actress Shim Eun-kyung signs contract with Japanese management firm

South Korean actress Shim Eun-kyung signed a management deal with a Japanese company, her Korean agency said Monday.Management AND said she inked the deal with Humanite Co., expecting the Japanese company to help the actress expand her career in Japan, as well as in other countries.  This undated photo provided by Management AND shows South Korean actress Shim Eun-kyung. (Yonhap)"We believe the good connection Humanite has established will serve as a stepping stone for Shim to enter other market

April 3, 2017

[Box Office] Movies in theaters

One Line(Korea)Opened March 29Crime, thriller. Directed by Yang Kyung-moUniversity student Lee Min-jae (Im Si-wan), struggling in poverty, seeks out loan brokerage services to borrow money from banks. The head of the operation is Jang Seok-goo (Jin Goo), who helps people fabricate documents and identities in order to obtain loans they do not qualify for. The two, both savvy at reading people and with a knack for numbers, eventually team up to funnel huge sums of fraudulent loans. The Prison(Kore

March 31, 2017

[Movie Review] ‘Ghost in the Shell’ is fascinating, not without glitches

One of the most striking sequences in “Ghost in the Shell,” a dystopian noir-thriller with no shortage of striking sequences, shows a female cyborg being assembled in mid-air, piece by piece. The circuitry pulses exquisitely. A fleshy pink brain snaps neatly into place. The body, once built, is submerged in a milk-white liquid, forming a hard, glossy shell that splinters open to reveal the impeccably sculpted form and features of Scarlett Johansson.While this “birth” sequence closely follows the

March 31, 2017