Portman rings in 2011 with awards, 4 movies and baby

LOS ANGELES (AP) ― For Natalie Portman, 2011 is already shaping up to be an unforgettable year.The actress is getting big awards buzz for her turn as a ballerina gone mad in “Black Swan.” She already won a Golden Globe, she is up for a Screen Actors Guild award and she is sure to hear her name when Oscar nominations are announced next week.Portman also has four other movies slated for release this

Jan. 21, 2011

Box office

Shanghai (U.S.)Opening Jan. 27Thriller. Directed by Mikael Hafstrom. Paul Soames (John Cusack) is an American agent from the Naval Intelligence Office. He arrives in Shanghai during World War II to visit his friend who also serves as an agent. But soon after his arrival, Soames finds out his friend has been murdered. In the process of investigating what’s behind his friend’s death, Soames falls in

Jan. 21, 2011

Film sparks sexual harassment debate

‘678’ sheds light on everyday crime shrouded in silenceThe big screen shows a man eyeing a middle-aged woman on a jam-packed bus and sliding up quietly behind her. Even before his hands reach for her hips, the young women watching in the darkened theater squirm in their seats. They know the offending move all too well.In overcrowded, male-dominated Cairo, four out of five Egyptian women say they’v

Jan. 21, 2011

Clooney to discuss recovery from malaria on CNN

George Clooney has recovered from the malaria he contracted in Sudan.  (AP)LOS ANGELES (AP) _ George Clooney has recovered from the malaria he contracted earlier this month during a visit to Sudan.Publicist Stan Rosenfield says it was the actor's second bout with the disease.Clooney is set to discuss the condition and his work in Africa on Piers Morgan's CNN show Friday.The actor says his own expe

Jan. 21, 2011

Actor Hyun’s new movie delves into love, communication

A woman, who has been married for five years, one day tells her husband she wants to leave him for another man. The husband, an introvert who rarely speaks his mind, does not ask her why. On the day she moves out, he makes coffee and wraps her favorite teacup so she can take it with her.Starring Hyun Bin and Im Soo-jeong, director Lee Yoon-ki’s new film, “Come Rain, Come Shine,“ tells the story of

Jan. 20, 2011

Anne Hathaway to play Catwoman in Batman movie

LOS ANGELES (AP) ― Anne Hathaway has clawed her way into the latest Batman movie, nabbing the role of Selina Kyle and her alter ego, Catwoman.Warner Bros. announced the casting Wednesday for Christopher Nolan’s latest film in the superhero saga, “The Dark Knight Rises.” Hathaway will appear opposite Christian Bale, who is returning as Bruce Wayne and Batman. Anne Hathaway. (AP-Yonhap News)The stud

Jan. 20, 2011

Nine Korean films invited to Berlin International Film Festival

 A total of nine Korean films, including “Night Fishing,” a short film by director Park Chan-wook shot entirely with an iPhone, and “Love, or Not,” a feature-length film starring Hyun-Bin and Im Soo-jeong, have been invited to next month’s Berlin International Film Festival.Of the nine, three films have been invited to the competition section: “Night Fishing,” “Love, or Not,” and “Broken Night.”Pa

Jan. 19, 2011

‘Green Hornet’ director: 3-D hype will fade

Gondry prefers to use computer-generated images to enhance the narrativeJames Cameron’s 2009 film “Avatar” may be seen as legendary by many, but for French director Michel Gondry, director of the newly-released superhero flick “The Green Hornet,” the 3-D technology of “Avatar” just does not appeal.“I personally don’t like using CGI technology when shooting the characters’ faces,” Gondry told repor

Jan. 19, 2011

Kidman, Urban have 2nd child through surrogate

NASHVILLE, Tennessee _ Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban have added a second daughter to their family, born through a surrogate mother.The couple announced Monday the arrival of Faith Margaret Kidman Urban, born on Dec. 28 at a Nashville, Tennessee, hospital. Nicole Kidman arrives with her husband Keith Urban for the Golden Globe Awards Sunday, Jan. 16, 2011, in Beverly Hills, Calif. (AP-Yonhap News0K

Jan. 18, 2011

Gong Li, Tang Wei set to visit Korea

Prominent Chinese-born actresses Gong Li and Tang Wei are to visit Korea in promotion of their upcoming films.Gong, who last year finished shooting her latest film “Shanghai,” a mystery thriller co-starring American actor John Cusack, will make her very first visit to Seoul on Jan. 23. Chinese-born actress Gong Li’s latest film is “Shanghai,” a mystery-thriller co-starring John Cusack and Chow Yun

Jan. 17, 2011

Golden Globes to launch Hollywood awards season

LOS ANGELES (AFP) ― Hollywood’s annual awards season kicks off Sunday as stars and filmmakers gather for the Golden Globes, with British historical drama “The King’s Speech” hoping for a boost toward Oscars glory.Starring Colin Firth as the stuttering King George VI, the movie is nominated in seven categories at the Globes, seen as a key pointer to who will win prizes at the Academy Awards next mo

Jan. 16, 2011

KT supports online French film festival

Cinephiles in Korea now have a novel way of enjoying a film festival in a novel way ― completely paperless and online.“The objective of the MyFrenchFilmFestival.com is to take fully into account the evolution of cultural consumption and to reach a new audience for French cinema abroad,” said Audiovisual Attach at the French Embassy Daniel Kapelian.Film lovers anywhere in the world will be able to

Jan. 16, 2011

The troubled flight of the ‘Green Hornet’ to screen

What’s the buzz on “The Green Hornet”? Enough to make Michel Gondry as mad as one. After the director of the new action-comedy about a masked crime fighter, a cool car and a high-kicking sidekick saw fans stampeding out of the movie’s Q&A panel at Comic-Con International this summer, Gondry lit into them with a vengeance not unlike that of the hero himself.“Their values are Fascistic,” he seethed

Jan. 14, 2011

Box office

I Am Love (Italy)Opening Jan. 20Drama. Directed by Luca Guadagnino. The polished rooms of a Milanese villa ignite with anxious activity as a wealthy industrial family, the Recchis, prepare to celebrate the birthday of their patriarch. It is an occasion designed to ensconce family traditions -- the handsome grandson, Edoardo, introduces his new girlfriend; his sister presents another piece of her a

Jan. 14, 2011

Peter Yates, director of ‘Bullitt,’ dies at 81

Peter Yates, the British director of “Breaking Away,” “The Dresser” and “Bullitt,” the 1968 Steve McQueen movie whose landmark car chase sequence over the hilly streets of San Francisco was a career-defining moment for both director and star, has died. He was 81.Yates died Sunday in London after an illness, his agent, Judy Daish, said in a statement reported by the Associated Press.In a career tha

Jan. 14, 2011

Deaf boys grow up through baseball

Kang’s new movie ‘Glove’ tells true story of hopeLike many other sports, baseball is a game of communication. Catchers are yelling which base to go, the crowd screams when someone hits a home run, and coaches constantly shout what to do when the players are at their bases. It’s also a sport of accumulated team effort. Having one great pitcher cannot make a strong team.Director Kang Woo-suk’s new f

Jan. 13, 2011

Chinese director coy over political satire’s message

HONG KONG (AP) ― Jiang Wen’s latest film has earned rare box-office success in the sensitive genre of Chinese political satire, but theories are flying that it accomplishes much more: eluding strict censorship to criticize China’s current government.Set in the chaotic years after the collapse of imperial rule, “Let the Bullets Fly” tells the story of a Robin Hood-like bandit who kidnaps a con man

Jan. 12, 2011

iPhone becomes cinematic medium

From visual voicemail to a portable media player and an Internet client, the iPhone has been serving the international public as a great multi-tasker with its revolutionary, diverse functionalities.The small handheld device has now arguably made another step, as Korea’s highly acclaimed director Park Chan-wook and his brother Park Chan-kyong ― a renowned media artist ― revealed their latest collab

Jan. 11, 2011