“SHINee’s back!” whispered Minho’s voice, and the Olympic Park Gymnastics Arena erupted with cheers of the 10,000-strong crowd on Sunday as SHINee took the stage on the last day of their three-day concert “SHINee World IV in Seoul.”Clad in white military-style costumes, the five SHINee members moved through a remix medley of “Note,” “Clue,” and “Sherlock,” followed up by renditions of “SHINe,” “Stranger,” and “Picasso.”“We have something to tell you about today’s concert,” said member Minho afte

Performance May 18, 2015

Dusty, ashen and gray, the visual element in Oh Seung-uk’s “The Shameless” follows the typical formula of a crime noir film. However, it is not a crime film, or a thriller. Its genre is melodramatic romance. But love is not the core theme of the film either, according to director Oh. “It’s about a world that is rough, degenerate and horrifying, teeming with people who have no human respect,” he said at a press preview at CGV Wangsimni, Seoul, on May 13. “Through these main characters, I wanted t

Film May 17, 2015

BoA stays true to her style with ‘Kiss My Lips’BoA“Kiss My Lips” (KT Music)BoA, arguably hallyu’s most iconic star, shows ease and maturity with her eighth studio album “Kiss My Lips.” The album is steady and true to BoA’s style, with generally predictable melodies and easy beats that hit smooth with listeners.The 12-song album starts out with “Kiss My Lips,” which has a strong beat but trades in power and punch for a more seductive, sultry vibe. The rhythm turns funky with “Smash,” and dreamlik

Performance May 15, 2015

The Treacherous (Korea)Opening May 21Historical drama. Directed by Min Kyu-dongIn the reign of the tyrant Joseon king Yeonsangun (Kim Kang-woo), the throne is surrounded by treacherous advisers such as Im Sung-jae (Ju Ji-hoon) who feign loyalty while seeking to grab influence for themselves. When Yeonsangun orders that 10,000 beautiful women be brought for his pleasure, his subjects see an opportunity to wield true power. In this historical drama, Korea’s most beautiful women become trained pawn

Film May 15, 2015

In a world of bloodthirsty vampires, a young human boy and a vampire girl end up as unlikely lovers in the new KBS drama “Orange Marmalade.”The show, an adaptation of the eponymous Web cartoon, premiered on Friday with a strong hallyu cast featuring Yeo Jin-goo, AOA’s Seolhyun and CNBLUE’s Lee Jong-hyun as the leads.“It wasn’t an easy decision to take the role,” Yeo admitted during a press event at the GLAD Hotel in Yeongdeungpo-gu on Tuesday. He plays Jung Jae-min, a smart, handsome and athleti

Television May 15, 2015

Im Heung-soon, winner of the Silver Lion Award at this year’s Venice Biennale, hopes his work “Factory Complex” spurs interest in the lives of working women in Korea and around Asia. “In the 60s, 70s, and 80s women worked physically demanding jobs. After the 80s, they became focused in service and emotional labor. I thought about what happened to all of those laborers, and realized that they were our mothers, our sisters, people around us,” said Im at a press conference held at the Art Nine thea

Performance May 14, 2015

Good people do evil things. When do those actions turn them from good to evil? This is the core question asked in “The Chronicles of Evil,” a new thriller by director Baek Woon-hak. Actor Son Hyun-joo stars as Choi Chang-sik, a decorated detective who commits a murder in self-defense but covers it up for fear of spoiling his chances of a big promotion. However, things become complicated when the dead body turns up hanging from a crane in front of the station where Choi works, and he is put in ch

Film May 13, 2015

Choi Mag-gi and Kim Chun-hee are two old ladies living together in Yeongdeok-gun, North Gyeongsang Province. Their relationship is difficult to explain at first. After Mag-gi lost her two sons to a typhoon and measles, respectively, she and her husband brought in Chun-hee, who has a slight mental impairment, to live with them and to bear them a son. Although Mag-gi’s husband died decades ago, the two women ― the wife and the concubine ― still live together and look after each other.They are the

Film May 11, 2015

A young mother with an autistic child is chased by a loan shark who demands that she pay off her husband’s gambling debt. She is beautiful and doting; her husband is well-meaning but plagued by his addiction; the loan shark is ruthless and psychotic. “Coin Locker,” which made its world premiere in the Korean Competition section of this year’s Jeonju International Film Festival, is a parade of cliches and extremes. That was what director Kim Tae-kyung intended. “I began with the thought that toda

Film May 11, 2015

Up & Coming is a series of interviews with emerging artists in various fields of arts and entertainment. ― Ed.Widely hailed as one of the leading violinists of her generation, 26-year-old Cho Jin-joo continues to make waves in the world of classical music. However, her relationship with the violin was not one of instant passion. On the contrary, she was introduced to the instrument because her mom believed it would help her child’s brain development. “My mother had this ambition for her daughter

Performance May 10, 2015

Zac Brown Band eclectic on ‘Jekyll + Hyde’Zac Brown Band“Jekyll + Hyde” (Southern Ground-John Varvatos-Big Machine-Republic Nashville)Zac Brown rightly names his new release after a famous, fictional schizophrenic, for few artists in this genre-focused era so openly embrace an eclectic muse. 　 Brown sets the tone immediately on “Jekyll + Hyde,” which opens with an aggressively rhythmic “Beautiful Drug,” the most electronic-driven track Brown has recorded. The variety doesn‘t stop there, as he br

Performance May 8, 2015

The Chronicles of Evil (Korea)Opening May 14Thriller. Directed by Baek Woon-hakA police officer named Chang-sik (Son Hyun-ju) is kidnapped by a taxi driver late at night. They get into a fight, and Chang-sik kills the driver. He cleans up the scene and returns home, but the next day the body is found hanging from a crane in front of the police station where Chang-sik works. Chang-sik is put in charge of the investigation, and he nervously watches his own team close in on him as he tries to find

Film May 8, 2015

The mild weather in May makes it a great month to get out and enjoy Seoul’s vibrant cultural scene. This year, that culture comes with a dash of awareness about the world around us at three film festivals themed around social issues such as the environment, animals and gender equality. First up is the Green Film Festival in Seoul, which kicked off its 12th year on May 7. The festival was established by environmental activist Choi Yul and is now hosted by the Korea Green Foundation. This year, th

Film May 8, 2015

“Poet on a Business Trip” by Chinese director Ju Anqi won the grand prize in the International Competition of the 16th Jeonju International Film Festival, while the top honor in the Korean competition section went to “Alice in Earnestland” from Ahn Gooc-jin, it was announced Wednesday. “Blossom” by Han In-mi took the trophy in Korean Competition for Shorts category. “Poet on a Business Trip,” which made its Asian premiere in Jeonju, follows a poet named Xiou as he travels through the mountains,

Film May 7, 2015