Doctor Strange(US)Opened Oct. 26Superhero, Fantasy. Directed by Scott DerricksonDoctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) is a genius surgeon who has fallen deep into despair after an unfortunate accident. His last thread of hope leads him to the Ancient One (Tilda Swinton), who bestows on him unconquerable superpowers that will save the world. Kubo and the Two Strings(US)Opened Oct. 26Animation, Adventure. Directed by Travis KnightKubo (Art Parkinson) is a young boy living on the edge of a cliff wi

Film Oct. 28, 2016

While it doesn’t tear up the envelope of the action genre or stray far from the familiar template of mysteries, “Jack Reacher: Never Go Back” is agreeable middle-of-the-road entertainment.Following up on the successful 2012 original, Tom Cruise returns as the ex-Army officer turned hitchhiking-nomadic-vigilante, inflicting pain and injuries on wrongdoers, henchmen and anybody who gives him too much lip. It’s a change of pace from Cruise’s work as intellectual superspy Ethan Hawk in the “Mission

Film Oct. 28, 2016

Actor Song Joong-ki made viewers swoon as a dashing army lieutenant in “Descendants of the Sun” earlier this year, but the latter half of 2016 has seen actor Park Bo-gum stir the hearts of many as Prince Lee Young in “Love in the Moonlight.”The historical romance series, which began in August and wrapped up last week on KBS, surpassed the 20 percent viewership mark after just three episodes. Park’s portrayal of an impish Joseon era prince, his gradual transformation into a thoughtful ruler, and

Television Oct. 26, 2016

Interactive participation via mobile platforms, social media, Facebook LiveWill take place on Tuesday, Nov. 8Tickets can be reserved until Tuesday, Nov. 1Featuring design experts from around the world, Herald Design Forum 2016 will take place at Grand Hyatt Seoul on Tuesday, Nov. 8. A must-attend forum for industry insiders, Herald Design Forum, now in its sixth edition, offers exciting new features■ More speakersThe scope of our speakers has broadened. From Kickstarter co-founder Yancey Strickl

Arts & Design Oct. 25, 2016

When it comes to fashion, designer Choi Eu-don’s philosophy is one that emphasizes both creativity and practicality.While he believes that his pieces should “contain a different idea, something unique that differentiates them from ready-to-wear collections,” Choi places equal emphasis on how “wearable” an outfit is.“After all, fashion design is for clothes, and clothes become significant when someone wears them,” he said in an interview with The Korea Herald. Choi will be delivering a talk title

Arts & Design Oct. 25, 2016

Electro-dance music group Far East Movement dropped its fifth album “Identity” on global music streaming sites Friday, featuring a handful of K-pop stars. The title track “Fighter” features rapper-singer Yoon Mi-rae. Filmed in Los Angeles and Seoul, the song’s music video is a tribute to Korean immigrants who went to America amid war and hardships in their home country, according to Far East Movement’s management Transparent Agency.Rapper Jay Park participated in the retro hip-hop track “SXWME,”

Performance Oct. 21, 2016

K-pop group EXO’s main dancer Lay, a Chinese national, is set to debut as a solo artist in China, the boy band’s management agency S.M. Entertainment announced Friday. Lay’s album “Lose Control” will be released on Oct. 28 on Xiami Music, a subsidiary of Ali Music Group, the music arm of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, and on major Korean music streaming sites, S.M. said.The album consists of six songs in Chinese, all written, composed and arranged by Lay.EXO’s member Lay poses for a promotion

Performance Oct. 21, 2016

“Michael Moore in TrumpLand” is not only the title of the new film by the cinematic provocateur but it is also an accurate description of what it provides.Not an investigative documentary on the order of the writer-director’s previous films like “Fahrenheit 9/ll,” “Bowling for Columbine” or “Sicko,” “TrumpLand” is rather a rambling, mildly entertaining performance film recording a stand-up appearance Moore recently made in the heart of Trump country.That would be the city of Wilmington, Ohio, th

Film Oct. 21, 2016

Queen of Walking(Korea)Opened Oct. 20Drama. Directed by Baek Seung-hwa Sprightly high school student Manbok (Shim Eun-kyung), suffering from chronic motion sickness and unable to stand any type of transportation, walks for four hours every day to school. Inferno(US)Opened Oct. 19Mystery, thriller. Directed by Ron HowardA madman biologist (Ben Foster) plans to annihilate half of the world’s population by unleashing a virus; famous symbologist Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks) follows a trail of clues to

Film Oct. 21, 2016

A scene from artist Yang Kyung-soo’s webtoon series depicts a senior executive and several junior employees engaged in seemingly amicable conversation. The executive cheerily tells his department members, “They say there’s a crazy person in every team, but there isn’t in ours!” The employees, smiling politely, think to themselves, “It’s you.”　Such single-frame webtoons, uploaded regularly on Yang’s Instagram handle “yangchikii,” have gained a popular following among Korean office workers. Each p

Culture Oct. 20, 2016

A video being used by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to promote the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games is the subject of heated criticism over what viewers are calling subpar content. Responding to the adverse public reaction, the ministry said Tuesday that the clip is not the official promotional video for the sporting event.The nearly four-minute video depicts K-pop singers and comedians who, infected with the “Can’t Stop Moving” virus, dance uncontrollably to an

Culture Oct. 19, 2016

In “Drinking Solo,” newbie lecturer Park Han-na struggles to capture students’ attention in the cutthroat world of Korean private education while pursuing a slippery romance with her co-worker. Kim Dong-young, one of her pupils, crams every day to pass the exhausting state exam that will reward him with a stable job as public servant, all the while working part time so as not to burden his lower-middle class family. Recently, television shows like the tvN production have been nabbing audiences b

Television Oct. 18, 2016

Alberto Alessi represents the third generation of his family to helm Italian houseware brand Alessi Spa, which is renowned for its elegantly inventive designs that spin a whimsical take on everyday utensils. But he did not always pursue the creative path, said the 70-year-old managing director in an interview with The Korea Herald.　His father Carlo, the former leader of the now-global brand and an industrial designer, had been against his son’s artistic pursuits, said Alessi, who will speak at t

Arts & Design Oct. 18, 2016

Korean comedy film “Luck-Key,” starring Yoo Hae-jin as a killer, drew more than 2 million viewers during its premiere weekend to hit No. 1 at the box office, data showed on Monday.The movie sold 1,642,824 tickets, which is 68.2 percent of all ticket sales, over the Oct. 14-16 weekend, keeping the Hollywood fantasy film “Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children” in a distant second, according to the real-time box office tally from the Korean Film Council.　Released on Thursday, “Luck-Key” surpa

Film Oct. 17, 2016