BUSAN -- The 21st edition of the Busan International Film Festival, Asia’s largest, kicked off Thursday amid a number of complications both unexpected and long-standing -- outdoor facilities damaged by Wednesday’s Typhoon Chaba and local filmmakers’ ongoing boycott over BIFF’s artistic autonomy.Sets at BIFF Village, the venue on Haeundae Beach which was to host many of the festival’s outdoor events, were almost completely destroyed when the typhoon swept through the southeastern tip of the Korea

Film Oct. 6, 2016

“Whether the cow is brown, black or spotted, its milk is all white,” Kim Dong-ho muses in “White Milk,” included in his newly published compilation of translated poems “Belly Button Disc.”The book comprises 56 selected poems originally written by Kim in Korean and co-translated into English by Kim Won-chung, professor of English literature at Sungkyunkwan University, and poet-translator Ko Chang-soo. 　In his work, 82-year-old poet Kim examines life’s mysteries and the world from a Taoistic persp

Books Oct. 5, 2016

Over an election season dominated by blatant flip-flops and lofty claims, there is one position that Republican presidential nominee Donald J. Trump has stood by firmly: He hates the media.But his strong and often times brutal disdain for reporters is surprising, given that in his four decades in the public light, no one has been able to take him down. Not a single newspaper article has prevented him from getting this close to the presidency, and for that he should be thankful.Because Trump has

Books Oct. 5, 2016

NEW YORK (AP) -- Nearly 50 years have passed since police raided New York’s Stonewall Inn, touching off protests on Christopher Street that fueled the LGBT movement.To mark the moment, the popular bar and haven for homeless youth, sex workers, trans people and others in search of community and self was designated a national park in June by President Barack Obama.It’s against that backdrop that longtime resident of the Greenwich Village neighborhood, famed photographer Mark Seliger, decided on a

Books Oct. 5, 2016

Tate Taylor’s “The Girl on the Train” may be technically set in the Westchester suburb of Ardsley-on-Hudson, but its cocktail of commuter trains, marital infidelity and alcoholism make its proper setting Cheever Country. The unhappy, martini-stained lives of New York suburbanites have long been a rich vein for writers like John Cheever, Richard Yates and Paula Fox. “The Girl on the Train” is the trashier, paperback version. Its old-school title may suggest Hitchcock or maybe Fincher (who himself

Film Oct. 5, 2016

K-pop boy band SHINee has come back with its fifth album “1 of 1” which, both visually and musically, spins a hyper-modernized twist on the retro genre, according to its members.　The band appeared onstage in full embodiments of the new concept -- sporting multicolored bell bottoms, golden neck chains and slicked back hairstyles at the press showcase. Sooyoung of Girls’ Generation served as the MC for the event marking the release of the latest album held at SMTOWN Coex Artium theater in southeas

Performance Oct. 4, 2016

This year saw a rich slew of actors making their mark in both television dramas and movies. Memorable performances in cinema came from actresses like Kim Tae-ri, who received international attention for her role as the earthy heroine of Park Chan-wook’s erotic thriller “The Handmaiden,” Kwak Do-won, who appeared as the fear-stricken policeman in Na Hong-jin’s horror flick “The Wailing” and the shrewdly domineering prosecutor in Kim Sung-su’s crime-noir “Asura: The City of Madness.”　On television

Film Oct. 4, 2016

Tourists seeking to immerse themselves in the natural beauty of Korea’s autumn may want to visit the city of Ulsan in the upcoming months. Nestled in the southeastern tip of the Korean peninsula, the city is famous for its wide range of scenery that includes vast fields, mountains, quaint villages and a booming maritime commercial district. Traditional dancers perform at the 50th Cheoyong Culture Festival, which ran from Sept. 29-Oct. 3. (Ulsan Metropolitan City)One noteworthy event is the Ulju

Culture Oct. 3, 2016

Actor Song Joong-ki nabbed the grand prize for his lead role in the KBS2 drama series “Descendant of the Sun,” which aired early this year to explosive pan-Asian popularity, at the Asia Pacific Actors Network Star Awards on Sunday.“I don’t know what to say, it’s the first time I’ve received such a big prize,” Song said in his acceptance speech at the ceremony, held at broadcasting network MBC’s headquarters in Sangam-dong, Seoul. The APAN awards, hosted by MBC and the Korea Entertainment Managem

Television Oct. 3, 2016

Crime-noir “Asura: The City of Madness” topped the local weekend box office, drawing some 826,655 admissions Oct. 1-2, according to the Korean Film Council.The film has sold over 1.8 million tickets since its opening Wednesday, when it broke the record for best-selling rated “R” movie on its opening day. A scene from "Asura: The City of Madness" (CJ Entertainment)The bloody thriller, starring a handful of Korean cinema’s A-listers including Jung Woo-sung, Hwang Jung-min and Kwak Do-won, tells th

Film Oct. 3, 2016

Asura: The City of Madness(Korea)Opened Sept. 28Crime, noir. Directed by Kim Sung-suIn desperate need of money, corrupt cop Han Do-kyung (Jung Woo-sung) agrees to cover up the illegal dealings of avaricious Mayor Park Sung-bae (Hwang Jung-min), consorting with low-lives and sinking deeper into the criminal world.Bridget Jones’ Baby(US)Opened Sept. 28Romantic comedy. Directed by Sharon MaguireThe clumsy, lovable Bridget Jones (Renee Zellweger) has returned, now over 40 and single once again. Brid

Film Sept. 30, 2016

Bob Weir“Blue Mountain”(Columbia/Legacy and ROAR)The Grateful Dead’s Bob Weir, showing more than a little touch of grey at age 68, delivers a heartfelt and earthy solo record with “Blue Mountain.”It’s Weir’s first solo effort in a decade and the first of entirely original material in 30 years.Weir, who sang with the Dead that he may be going to hell in a bucket but at least he’s enjoying the ride, strikes a more reflective pose on “Blue Mountain.” It’s a deeply personal collection of cowboy song

Performance Sept. 30, 2016

Lives there a film fan anywhere who doesn’t wish his or her country made better films, who couldn’t sympathize with Kim Jong-il when he’s heard to say, “There’s nothing new to our films. We don’t have any films that get into film festivals. People here are so close-minded?"Kim Jong-il was no everyday film fan, however. Oh, no. He was the absolute ruler of North Korea, and though you’d think he’d have more important matters to attend to, he not only did something about his complaint, he did it in

Film Sept. 30, 2016

Controversial director Kim Ki-duk has veered away from the provocative in his latest psychological drama “The Net,” which centers on a North Korean fisherman who accidentally drifts into South Korean waters. Verbose, calculated and bordering on didactic, the film, which premiered at the Venice International Film Festival last month, might be described as the prolific and brazen director’s most wholesome, public-friendly work to date. While relatively low on shock factor, coming from Kim, it does

Film Sept. 29, 2016

Korean-American actor Aaron Yoo has been building a low-key yet eclectic career since starting out in off-Broadway shows in the early 2000s. A University of Pennsylvania theater graduate, Yoo has gone on to play recurring characters on the small screen, as well as supporting roles on the big screen in movies such as “Disturbia” (2007) and “21” (2008).Yoo has jumped onto the web space in his most recent project. Taking up the role of Machiavellian billionaire venture capitalist Alex Bell in web s

Television Sept. 28, 2016