Carnage (France, Germany, Spain and Poland)Opened Aug. 16Comedy. Directed by Roman Polanski. Two pairs of middle-class parents meet to discuss why one couple’s child broke the front teeth of the other couple’s son. Though both parties try to remain “civilized” and “well-mannered” in the beginning of the meeting, they end up becoming childish and even attacking each other while drunk. Starring Jodie Foster, Kate Winslet, Christoph Waltz and John C. Reilly, the film is an adaptation of celebrated

Film Aug. 24, 2012

Boy, it sure looks like Dax Shepard is doing all his own crazy, gonzo stunt-driving in “Hit and Run,” the car-chase comedy he wrote and co-directed.“All me, 100 percent,” he says.You know how you can tell? Look in the eyes of his co-star and off-camera fiancee, Kristen Bell. Yeah, she’s in the car with him in those scenes. And no, she wasn’t scared.“Dax has always been in to off-roading, so I’ve logged many hours with him in the car doing crazy tricks,” Bell says. “I know how capable he is behin

Film Aug. 24, 2012

Kill DecisionBy Daniel Suarez (Dutton)The most interesting characters in Daniel Suarez’s new techno-thriller, “Kill Decision,” are a trained pair of ravens who hover over the good guys as guardian angels.That’s unfortunate.There are a lot of big ideas in this novel, which warns against a future where machines make even the ultimate decision ― to kill ― without human intervention.And I’m sure Suarez’s book will find many fans among tech heads and futurists. But his audience would be much larger,

Books Aug. 23, 2012

If author Tina Folsom let big publishing stand in her way, she never would have become a millionaire.In 2010, after more than 30 literary agents and publishers rejected “Samson’s Lovely Mortal,” the first in her series about lusty vampires, the San Francisco romance writer decided to self-publish her book on Amazon.com.Today, Folsom, 46, has made it e-big. She has generated at least $33,000 a month since December 2010 selling her full-length books, novellas and short stories online. In November

Books Aug. 23, 2012

The 78th PEN International Congress to feature North Korean writers, human rights issuesThree Nobel Prize winners in literature will be in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, next month to discuss human rights, literature and media at the upcoming 78th PEN International Congress. Orhan Pamuk, Wole Soyinka, and Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clezio will give lectures about their literary works along with renowned local poet Ko Un, PEN International Korean Center announced on Wednesday. No previous editio

Books Aug. 22, 2012

Director Choi Dong-hun’s star-studded film “The Thieves” has been a sensation since its opening in local theaters last month. Now, Choi’s biggest commercial hit ― the sixth domestic film to top 10 million viewers in Korean movie history at 10,095,387 viewers in 22 days ― is going overseas, slated to open in theaters in Hong Kong, Thailand and Indonesia next month. It will also be released in Singapore and Malaysia later this year.The film, featuring top stars including Kim Hye-soo, Jun Ji-hyun,

Film Aug. 21, 2012

The government purchased a historical building in Washington D.C., which was used as the legation building of Korea’s Joseon Dynasty (1392-1897) and the Korean Empire (1897-1910) in the U.S. from 1891 to 1905, the Cultural Heritage Administration announced on Tuesday. Korea retrieved ownership of the property 102 years after the country was annexed by Japan, the state-run organization said. The three-story building, which is located about 10 minutes away from the White House by car, was first bu

Culture Aug. 21, 2012

Total Recall (U.S.)Opened Aug. 15Action. Adventure. Directed by Len Wiseman. Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell), an ordinary factory worker suffers from violent nightmares every night. One day, he visits “ReKall,” a company that can implant an artificial memories and make fantasies into reality. A Rekall employee, McClane (John Cho), convinces Douglas to implant the memories of a secret agent. During a compatibility test in the process of “memory-implanting,” an accident occurs and McClane accuses hi

Film Aug. 17, 2012

Jennifer Garner is a mom three times over as of last February, when her son Samuel was born, joining sisters Violet (6) and Seraphina (3). But she’s still most at home playing women who don’t have a clue about motherhood.“NOBODY is prepared for this,” she says with a laugh. “And sometimes, the harder you try, the more you mess up. There’s nothing that will humble you more. I am constantly feeling that I’ve screwed something up, or will screw something up. You learn as you go along.”Learning to b

Film Aug. 17, 2012

Sandi Tan’s past is teeming with ghosts. The Pasadena, California-based filmmaker-turned-novelist isn’t a seer herself ― she’s a self-described scaredy-cat and doesn’t particularly enjoy supernatural books and movies ― but her childhood in Singapore in the 1980s was populated with ghost stories and family members who saw spirits. Even her elementary school, a dank World War II-era military hospital, was said to be haunted.“It’s such a big part of people’s lives in that part of the world,” says T

Books Aug. 16, 2012

Actor Oh Man-seok once again stars as transgender singer seven years after the musical’s first runIt took shaving armpits and legs, wearing a heavy wig, and going on a strict diet for actor Oh Man-seok to play the role he became famous for seven years ago.The actor recently made a comeback as “Hedwig,” the East German transgender singer, in the Korean adaptation of John Cameron Mitchell’s famous rock musical “Hedwig and the Angry Inch.” “I could not work out (because I’m not allowed to have mus

Performance Aug. 16, 2012

Three actresses direct and star in their own documentary film“Almost always it is the fear of being ourselves that brings us to the mirror,” late Argentinean poet Antonio Porchia once said.Making a personal video of oneself is, in many ways, constantly having a mirror before your eyes. It’s hard not to be conscious of the self-reflection shown in the viewfinder, as well as its seeming flaws and weaknesses. Three actresses, active in the local indie movie scene, brought themselves toward a specia

Film Aug. 15, 2012

A local movie starring hallyu star Rain has been sold to 30 different countries before its release, the movie’s producer CJ Entertainment announced on Tuesday.The film is the last movie Rain shot before joining the military for mandatory service in October 2011. In the movie, Rain stars as an elite Air Force pilot assigned to stop attacks from an unknown fighter jet along with his unit members. The singer and actor is currently in the Army. His co-stars include actress Shin Se-kyung, actor Yoo J

Film Aug. 14, 2012