Babes by Pamela Adlon, co-written and starring Ilana Glazer, debuts in limited release with films by Hang Song-soo and Bertrand Bonello and docs on a controversial Venice Biennale, ground-breaking female clerics, and the Blue Angels Navy Squadron. A trio of festival favorites expand. While eyes now are on fare at Cannes — where Neon has been making high-profile moves — each week Stateside remains a test of indie film’s theatrical boundaries in a post-Covid, streaming-centric marketplace.
There have been notable hits. A24’s I Saw The TV Glow by Jane Schoenbrun is having a nice run so far as is Evil Does Not Exist — Sideshow/Janus Films’ second outing with Ryusuke Hamaguchi after Oscar-winning Drive My Car. (That 2021 Japanese film about a...
There have been notable hits. A24’s I Saw The TV Glow by Jane Schoenbrun is having a nice run so far as is Evil Does Not Exist — Sideshow/Janus Films’ second outing with Ryusuke Hamaguchi after Oscar-winning Drive My Car. (That 2021 Japanese film about a...
- 5/17/2024
- by Jill Goldsmith
- Deadline Film + TV
‘In Our Day’ Review: Hong Sang-soo Celebrates Hot Pepper Paste in Bifurcated Ode to Simple Pleasures
Writing and directing your 30th feature film is a milestone that few filmmakers ever reach, and likely prompts a bit of introspection. It could be seen as an opportunity for reinvention and experimentation now that your legacy is secure, or it could be justification to double down on the traits that made you so successful in the first place.
Hong Sang-soo takes the latter approach with “In Our Day,” a film that sees him playing many of his greatest stylistic hits. There’s an excellent performance from Kim Min-hee, a script that’s divided into separate vignettes, lengthy shots that afford actors the room to dive into their characters’ subtlest mannerisms, and of course, bottles of soju that lurk over the story like a Chekhov’s Gun as we wait for everyone to begin imbibing and sharing their true feelings. It’s the kind of film that might be described...
Hong Sang-soo takes the latter approach with “In Our Day,” a film that sees him playing many of his greatest stylistic hits. There’s an excellent performance from Kim Min-hee, a script that’s divided into separate vignettes, lengthy shots that afford actors the room to dive into their characters’ subtlest mannerisms, and of course, bottles of soju that lurk over the story like a Chekhov’s Gun as we wait for everyone to begin imbibing and sharing their true feelings. It’s the kind of film that might be described...
- 5/17/2024
- by Christian Zilko
- Indiewire
Death, taxes, and one-to-three Hong Sang-soo movies per year. I much prefer the latter, and it’s nice knowing we’re just a month out from In Our Day, his 30th feature and latest on which he serves as director, writer, producer, cinematographer, and composer. Following last year’s Directors’ Fortnight debut, the film begins a rollout on May 17 at Film at Lincoln Center before expanding; naturally, there is a trailer.
As Michael Frank said in his review, “In Our Day remains straightforward in its filmmaking, attaining depth through dialogue designed to cause the viewer to think about the value and meaning of the art they consume––among other things, the film itself. It’s cyclical in a way, and Hong knows that, adding to his collection of understated, underseen films with great performances.”
Find the preview below:
Sangwon (Kim Minhee), an actress recently returned to South Korea, is temporarily staying with her friend,...
As Michael Frank said in his review, “In Our Day remains straightforward in its filmmaking, attaining depth through dialogue designed to cause the viewer to think about the value and meaning of the art they consume––among other things, the film itself. It’s cyclical in a way, and Hong knows that, adding to his collection of understated, underseen films with great performances.”
Find the preview below:
Sangwon (Kim Minhee), an actress recently returned to South Korea, is temporarily staying with her friend,...
- 4/15/2024
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
You’d be forgiven for not having seen every Hong Sangsoo movie. The South Korean director, known for films like “On the Beach at Night Alone,” “Claire’s Camera,” and “The Novelist’s Film” has released 29 features, and often more than one in the same year. So was the case for 2023, which saw the festival circuit premieres of “In Water” and “In Our Day.” And as of writing, Hong already has another movie that premiered at the Berlinale, “A Traveller’s Needs.” A new Hong movie is always a pleasure to celebrate, and so IndieWire shares the exclusive trailer for “In Our Day” ahead of the upcoming release from Cinema Guild. Watch below.
Here’s the synopsis for the film:
Sangwon (Kim Minhee), an actress recently returned to South Korea, is temporarily staying with her friend, Jungsoo (Song Sunmi), and her cat, Us. Elsewhere in the city, the aging poet Hong Uiju (Ki Joobong) lives alone,...
Here’s the synopsis for the film:
Sangwon (Kim Minhee), an actress recently returned to South Korea, is temporarily staying with her friend, Jungsoo (Song Sunmi), and her cat, Us. Elsewhere in the city, the aging poet Hong Uiju (Ki Joobong) lives alone,...
- 4/15/2024
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
After a career as producer and few short films, independent director Kim Cho-hee brings to light her debut feature, “Lucky Chan-sil”, a charming story of, well … a film producer, dealing with the challenges that life throws at her. Like many of this year's movies, her work was caught in the COVID19 storm, just in between Festival runs and (cancelled) theatrical releases; therefore, after gaining a rich palmarès in Festivals (Kbs Independent Film Award and the Cgv Arthouse Award at Biff and the Audience Award at the Seoul Independent Film Festival), got stalled abruptly. Hopefully not for long.
on Amazon by clicking on the image below
Offbeat sweet ‘n' sour comedy “Lucky Chan-sil” follows the titular character, an indie film producer in her forties played by Gang Mal-geum, going through a moment of intense crisis. She has dedicated her work-life and career to the same director, a well-known auteur,...
on Amazon by clicking on the image below
Offbeat sweet ‘n' sour comedy “Lucky Chan-sil” follows the titular character, an indie film producer in her forties played by Gang Mal-geum, going through a moment of intense crisis. She has dedicated her work-life and career to the same director, a well-known auteur,...
- 1/12/2024
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
Let’s not be quite so declarative as to insist there are only two types of cinephile, but among the many varieties that exist, there are those who have never managed to connect with Hong Sang-soo’s ongoing movie project, and those who can watch a minutes-long sequence of Kim Min-hee petting and feeding an already portly cat, and think ecstatically “This is cinema!” The former type will know by now to steer wide clear of “In Our Day,” which will look to them like yet another reinvention of Hong’s eternal mandala-wheel of talky two-shots, unadorned aesthetics and glancing, enigmatic, echoing themes. The latter type will love it for much the same reasons, and may even find themselves surprised by a film that, while not as robust in construction as recent career highlight “Walk Up,” does work in new elements, amongst so much that is welcomingly familiar.
One obvious new development is intertitles,...
One obvious new development is intertitles,...
- 10/11/2023
- by Jessica Kiang
- Variety Film + TV
Like other Hong Sang-soo films, In Our Day passes, on the surface, for simple fare. The prolific South Korean director layers weighty themes amidst naturalistic filmmaking, almost documentary-style in his willingness to let the camera sit without needing any extra flourishes. Cutting between two scenes––both playing out over a single afternoon––Hong focuses his energy on the dialogue between his characters, on the rapid intergenerational misconceptions. In doing so he muses on the pessimism of art, the somewhat meaningless nature of life, and how we interpret the actions and words of our fictional heroes.
In one scene, a student goes to visit Ui-ju (Ki Joo-bong), a poet who lives like a hermit, drinking his days away. In the other, a young woman visits her cousin, a former actress named Sang-won (Kim Min-hee) who’s disillusioned by the roles she’s been given, due to lack of autonomy on set.
In one scene, a student goes to visit Ui-ju (Ki Joo-bong), a poet who lives like a hermit, drinking his days away. In the other, a young woman visits her cousin, a former actress named Sang-won (Kim Min-hee) who’s disillusioned by the roles she’s been given, due to lack of autonomy on set.
- 10/10/2023
- by Michael Frank
- The Film Stage
Hong Sang-soo’s In Our Day is composed of two alternating strands, both pivoting on conversations between artists and their acolytes. The film has no plot in the conventional sense, even by Hong’s spare standards, and the audacious structural gamesmanship of films like Walk Up has been abandoned. In Our Day is meant to feel tossed-off, though Hong’s braiding of scenes—by echoes, symbols, and subjects—is characteristically deliberate.
The uninitiated may find In Our Day baffling or uneventful, as inscrutability is a risk that Hong is willing to run for his art, but for the admirer the familiarity of Hong’s subjects and patterns is pleasing and reflective of a working ethos so obsessive that it’s become a life philosophy. Hong keeps chipping away at the mandates of commercial narrative cinema, fashioning a radical cinema aesthetic that abounds in the fleeting observational textures of poetry or journals.
The uninitiated may find In Our Day baffling or uneventful, as inscrutability is a risk that Hong is willing to run for his art, but for the admirer the familiarity of Hong’s subjects and patterns is pleasing and reflective of a working ethos so obsessive that it’s become a life philosophy. Hong keeps chipping away at the mandates of commercial narrative cinema, fashioning a radical cinema aesthetic that abounds in the fleeting observational textures of poetry or journals.
- 9/22/2023
- by Chuck Bowen
- Slant Magazine
Back in 2010, screenwriter director Lee Jeong-beom's “The Man from Nowhere” which starred Won Bin, was the highest grossing film in South Korea. Best known for its amazing and thrilling action sequences, the film had fans longing for more from Lee. Therefore it is not really a surprise that he would follow it up with yet another action thriller that featured even more spectacular action but with a similar theme.
on Amazon by clicking on the image below
South Korean screen veteran Jang Dong-gun, best known for “Friends” (2001) and “Taegukgi: The Brotherhood of War” (2004) and one of the country's most recognized and bankable stars plays Gon, a Korean-born but raised in America hitman. As it happens, a Korean company man is selling information to the Russians in the back room of a nightclub. Assigned to retrieve it, Gon calmly shows up and effortlessly takes out everyone there but...
on Amazon by clicking on the image below
South Korean screen veteran Jang Dong-gun, best known for “Friends” (2001) and “Taegukgi: The Brotherhood of War” (2004) and one of the country's most recognized and bankable stars plays Gon, a Korean-born but raised in America hitman. As it happens, a Korean company man is selling information to the Russians in the back room of a nightclub. Assigned to retrieve it, Gon calmly shows up and effortlessly takes out everyone there but...
- 8/25/2023
- by David Chew
- AsianMoviePulse
By Khushi Jain
Can the theory of art help develop the theory of being? Or perhaps the theory of art is the theory of being? The conversationalists in Hong Sang-soo's latest feature “In Our Day” immerse themselves in these questions over bowls of spicy ramyeon and the company of a fat and fluffy cat. The film's calm and observant engagement with such universal creative and existential material made it the perfect way to close the 2023 edition of Directors' Fortnight at Cannes. A dissertation on routine, “In Our Day” is a nihilistic cinematic game of rock-paper-scissors with several bottles of soju.
In Our Days screened at Cannes Official poster – 76th edition © Photo © Jack Garofalo/Paris Match/Scoop – Création graphique © Hartland Villa
The film runs on two parallel strands of a threadbare narrative. Sang-won (Kim Min-hee) is an actress in her 40s, staying with her friend Jung-soo and her cat ‘Us.
Can the theory of art help develop the theory of being? Or perhaps the theory of art is the theory of being? The conversationalists in Hong Sang-soo's latest feature “In Our Day” immerse themselves in these questions over bowls of spicy ramyeon and the company of a fat and fluffy cat. The film's calm and observant engagement with such universal creative and existential material made it the perfect way to close the 2023 edition of Directors' Fortnight at Cannes. A dissertation on routine, “In Our Day” is a nihilistic cinematic game of rock-paper-scissors with several bottles of soju.
In Our Days screened at Cannes Official poster – 76th edition © Photo © Jack Garofalo/Paris Match/Scoop – Création graphique © Hartland Villa
The film runs on two parallel strands of a threadbare narrative. Sang-won (Kim Min-hee) is an actress in her 40s, staying with her friend Jung-soo and her cat ‘Us.
- 6/6/2023
- by Guest Writer
- AsianMoviePulse
There are only two days left until Cannes 2023 comes to a close, and much like yesterday, things have seemed a bit quiet. The movie on most everyone’s lips, at least if social media is any indicator, was Trần Anh Hùng’s period drama “The Pot au Feu,” a feature that, according to TheWrap’s Ben Croll in his review, “might very well be the most handsomely shot and soothingly felt serving of art house food porn ever brought to screen. It’s about to become your mother’s favorite film, and it’s an absolute delight.”
But before the screening started, as Variety reported, a demonstration in support of Indigenous land rights took place on the film’s red carpet. It was led by the directors and actors of “The Buriti Flower,” a film showing in Un Certain Regard directed by Portugal’s João Salaviza and Renée Nader Messora.
But before the screening started, as Variety reported, a demonstration in support of Indigenous land rights took place on the film’s red carpet. It was led by the directors and actors of “The Buriti Flower,” a film showing in Un Certain Regard directed by Portugal’s João Salaviza and Renée Nader Messora.
- 5/25/2023
- by Kristen Lopez
- The Wrap
“In Our Day,” the new Hong Sang-soo film premiering later this week as the Cannes Film Festival’s closing night film, has been acquired by Cinema Guild. A theatrical release is planned following its North American festival premiere later this year.
The picture stars Kim Min-hee, Song Seon-mi, Gi Ju-bong and Ha Seong-guk. This character dramedy marks Hong’s 30th feature film, this time using long, elaborate takes to articulate simple pleasures like an interspecies encounter, the discovery of a new drink and a game of rock, paper, scissors.
Also Read:
Rebel Wilson to Make Directorial Debut With Musical Comedy ‘The Deb’
“Adding to the rich tableau of his work, Hong Sang-soo’s ‘In Our Day’ not only makes us laugh, it makes us think about what it means to be alive,” Cinema Guild president Peter Kelly said in a statement. “It’s a gift that we hope continues and continues.
The picture stars Kim Min-hee, Song Seon-mi, Gi Ju-bong and Ha Seong-guk. This character dramedy marks Hong’s 30th feature film, this time using long, elaborate takes to articulate simple pleasures like an interspecies encounter, the discovery of a new drink and a game of rock, paper, scissors.
Also Read:
Rebel Wilson to Make Directorial Debut With Musical Comedy ‘The Deb’
“Adding to the rich tableau of his work, Hong Sang-soo’s ‘In Our Day’ not only makes us laugh, it makes us think about what it means to be alive,” Cinema Guild president Peter Kelly said in a statement. “It’s a gift that we hope continues and continues.
- 5/24/2023
- by Scott Mendelson
- The Wrap
Hong Sang-soo’s latest film “In Our Day,” which will premiere on closing night of Cannes’ Directors Fortnight, has been acquired by Cinema Guild for North America.
Cinema Guild will release the film in theaters following its North American festival premiere later this year.
“In Our Day” stars Kim Minhee as Sangwon, an actress who has recently returned to South Korea and is temporarily staying with her friend, Jungsoo (Song Sunmi), and her cat, Us. Elsewhere in the city, the aging poet Uiju (Ki Joobong) lives alone, his cat having recently passed away. On this ordinary day, each of them has a visitor: Sangwon is visited by her cousin, Jisoo (Park Miso) and Uiju, by a young actor,
Jaewon (Ha Seongguk). Each of them wants to learn about a career in the arts, but they also
have bigger questions.
Hong’s 30th feature outing, “In Our Day” demonstrates a new...
Cinema Guild will release the film in theaters following its North American festival premiere later this year.
“In Our Day” stars Kim Minhee as Sangwon, an actress who has recently returned to South Korea and is temporarily staying with her friend, Jungsoo (Song Sunmi), and her cat, Us. Elsewhere in the city, the aging poet Uiju (Ki Joobong) lives alone, his cat having recently passed away. On this ordinary day, each of them has a visitor: Sangwon is visited by her cousin, Jisoo (Park Miso) and Uiju, by a young actor,
Jaewon (Ha Seongguk). Each of them wants to learn about a career in the arts, but they also
have bigger questions.
Hong’s 30th feature outing, “In Our Day” demonstrates a new...
- 5/24/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
While it certainly wasn’t a surprise in the lineup, one of our most-anticipated films premiering at Cannes––specifically at Directors’ Fortnight––is the 30th feature film from Hong Sangsoo. Following the radical formal gamble of In Water at Berlinale earlier this year, In Our Day seems to return the prolific South Korean director to a more familiar mode. Starring Ki Joobong, Kim Minhee, Song Sunmi, Park Miso, Ha Seongguk, Kim Seungyun, the film clocks in at 84 minutes and ahead of a premiere on May 25, the first festival trailer has now arrived.
Here’s the synopsis from the festival website: “In Seoul, two alternating conversations: an actress is solicited by an amateur; an old poet hosts a fan. The two stars dodge the existential questions of their guests with food, alcohol, guitar playing and naps, games with a cat and rock, paper, scissors. The actress is thinking of giving up...
Here’s the synopsis from the festival website: “In Seoul, two alternating conversations: an actress is solicited by an amateur; an old poet hosts a fan. The two stars dodge the existential questions of their guests with food, alcohol, guitar playing and naps, games with a cat and rock, paper, scissors. The actress is thinking of giving up...
- 5/16/2023
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
The Cannes Directors’ Fortnight lineup has been unveiled ahead of this year’s festival.
Set for May 16 through May 27, the Directors’ Fortnight will debut 20 feature films and 10 short films this year.
Cédric Kahn’s “The Goldman Case” is the opening night selection. The film centers on the 1976 trial of left-wing revolutionary Pierre Goldman who was convicted of multiple armed robberies and later murdered.
Korean director Hong Sangsoo’s “In Our Day” will conclude the festival. The feature stars Kim Minhee and Ki Joobong in parallel stories of cat owners grappling with their felines’ respective mortality.
Directors’ Fortnight highlights also include Oscar winner Michel Gondry’s French comedy “The Book of Solutions,” starring Pierre Niney as a filmmaker with writer’s block. The film marks “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” director Gondry’s first feature in seven years.
“Good Time” director of photography Sean Price William makes his directorial feature...
Set for May 16 through May 27, the Directors’ Fortnight will debut 20 feature films and 10 short films this year.
Cédric Kahn’s “The Goldman Case” is the opening night selection. The film centers on the 1976 trial of left-wing revolutionary Pierre Goldman who was convicted of multiple armed robberies and later murdered.
Korean director Hong Sangsoo’s “In Our Day” will conclude the festival. The feature stars Kim Minhee and Ki Joobong in parallel stories of cat owners grappling with their felines’ respective mortality.
Directors’ Fortnight highlights also include Oscar winner Michel Gondry’s French comedy “The Book of Solutions,” starring Pierre Niney as a filmmaker with writer’s block. The film marks “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” director Gondry’s first feature in seven years.
“Good Time” director of photography Sean Price William makes his directorial feature...
- 4/18/2023
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
The Cannes Directors’ Fortnight sidebar has unveiled its 2023 lineup, which will feature new films from arthouse favorites Hong Sang-soo, Michel Gondry and Cédric, Kahn as well as a broad selection from up-and-coming international directors.
Gondry’s French-language comedy The Book of Solutions, the first film in seven years from the Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and The Science of Sleep director, is a clear Fortnight highlight this year. Franz and Yves Saint Laurent star Pierre Niney plays the lead as a director dealing with a creative block. The project was a hot seller for Kinology at the Cannes market last year.
The phenomenally-productive Hong Sangsoo will close this year’s Fortnight section with In Our Day, a drama starring Kim Minhee as a 40-something woman temporarily living at the home of a friend and Ki Joobong as a 70-something man living alone. Both receive visitors, eat noodles, and talk.
Gondry’s French-language comedy The Book of Solutions, the first film in seven years from the Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and The Science of Sleep director, is a clear Fortnight highlight this year. Franz and Yves Saint Laurent star Pierre Niney plays the lead as a director dealing with a creative block. The project was a hot seller for Kinology at the Cannes market last year.
The phenomenally-productive Hong Sangsoo will close this year’s Fortnight section with In Our Day, a drama starring Kim Minhee as a 40-something woman temporarily living at the home of a friend and Ki Joobong as a 70-something man living alone. Both receive visitors, eat noodles, and talk.
- 4/18/2023
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Leading indie sales agent Finecut has picked up international rights to “In Our Day” by idiosyncratic South Korean director Hong Sang-soo. The film is set as the closing title of the Directors’ Fortnight sidebar of the Cannes festival.
Hong, who works on low budgets, controls much of the production process and makes repeated use of a small pool of actors, is one of the most prolific feature directors in the world. This is already his second feature this year. His earlier, “In Water” played in the Encounters section at Berlin in February
His films are known for their minimalist style, a focus on female characters, serial chance encounters and oblique references to the media industry. On paper, “In Our Day” fits exactly in that groove.
Finecut pitches the synopsis as: “A woman in her early 40s, is temporarily living at the home of a friend, who is raising a cat.
Hong, who works on low budgets, controls much of the production process and makes repeated use of a small pool of actors, is one of the most prolific feature directors in the world. This is already his second feature this year. His earlier, “In Water” played in the Encounters section at Berlin in February
His films are known for their minimalist style, a focus on female characters, serial chance encounters and oblique references to the media industry. On paper, “In Our Day” fits exactly in that groove.
Finecut pitches the synopsis as: “A woman in her early 40s, is temporarily living at the home of a friend, who is raising a cat.
- 4/18/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
After Cannes Film Festival announced its main lineup last week, the Directors’ Fortnight and Critics’ Week sidebars have unveiled their slates. Now in its 55th edition, Directors’ Fortnight features Hong Sangsoo’s second feature of the year, In Our Day, while Sean Price Williams’ The Sweet East, Michel Gondry’s The Book of Solutions, Bertrand Mandico’s She Is Conann, and more.
“The Directors’ Fortnight was born when a community of directors came together with the desire to create an independent space that would encourage the emergence of free filmmaking regardless of geographical provenance or any other limiting criteria,” said Julien Rejl, Artistic Director of the Directors’ Fortnight. “At the heart of the creation of the Directors’ Fortnight was the singular quality of a work of art and the impossibility of pigeonholing it. We have chosen to present 30 films to you which, through their own unique language, embody a spirit...
“The Directors’ Fortnight was born when a community of directors came together with the desire to create an independent space that would encourage the emergence of free filmmaking regardless of geographical provenance or any other limiting criteria,” said Julien Rejl, Artistic Director of the Directors’ Fortnight. “At the heart of the creation of the Directors’ Fortnight was the singular quality of a work of art and the impossibility of pigeonholing it. We have chosen to present 30 films to you which, through their own unique language, embody a spirit...
- 4/18/2023
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Cannes Directors’ Fortnight has announced the selection for its 55th edition, running May 17 to 26.
The once renegade Cannes parallel section – launched in 1969 and overseen ever since by the French Directors Guild (Société des Réalisateurs de Films) – will present 20 features and 10 shorts this year. Scroll down for the full list.
The selection is the inaugural line-up of incoming Delegate General Julien Rejl, who was announced as predecessor Paolo Moretti’s replacement last June.
This edition also marks the section’s first outing under the new French name of Quinzaine des Cinéastes.
The name change from Quinzaine des Réalisateurs was announced back in June as a move to make its French-language banner title more gender-inclusive. This year, seven of the 21 filmmakers in the 20-title feature selection are women.
Rejl and his new selection team have pulled together an eclectic line-up mixing confirmed directors, buzzed-about newcomers and a handful of off-the-radar titles.
French...
The once renegade Cannes parallel section – launched in 1969 and overseen ever since by the French Directors Guild (Société des Réalisateurs de Films) – will present 20 features and 10 shorts this year. Scroll down for the full list.
The selection is the inaugural line-up of incoming Delegate General Julien Rejl, who was announced as predecessor Paolo Moretti’s replacement last June.
This edition also marks the section’s first outing under the new French name of Quinzaine des Cinéastes.
The name change from Quinzaine des Réalisateurs was announced back in June as a move to make its French-language banner title more gender-inclusive. This year, seven of the 21 filmmakers in the 20-title feature selection are women.
Rejl and his new selection team have pulled together an eclectic line-up mixing confirmed directors, buzzed-about newcomers and a handful of off-the-radar titles.
French...
- 4/18/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
As years pass by and films rack up, it’s only natural to associate directors with certain things. And none more so than Hong Sangsoo, for whom a new release usually guarantees a hit of the old. That the South Korean’s latest strips away some––if not all––of those associations is thus some kind of radical act. Premiering in Berlinale Encounters, In Water follows a director, Seoung-mo (Shin Seok-ho), his cameraman, Sang-guk (Ha Seong-guk), and actress, Nam-hee (Kim Seung-yun), as they scout locations in a seaside town. There is no Kim Min-hee, there is hardly any soju, and for the first time since Woman is the Future of Man, there isn’t a single camera zoom.
Hong’s work has never shied from self-reflection––his cinema is populated by artists and filmmakers––but with In Water he digs a little deeper. As Seoung-mo and crew look for places...
Hong’s work has never shied from self-reflection––his cinema is populated by artists and filmmakers––but with In Water he digs a little deeper. As Seoung-mo and crew look for places...
- 3/16/2023
- by Rory O'Connor
- The Film Stage
2022 was finally the year that the Korean box office, after the pandemic, was defibrillated back to life. Producers and distributors were finally confident that the time was right for big budget, blockbuster projects, that had long been queueing up for a release, to start making their way to the theatres. After having to resort to Ott streaming and generally smaller scale films, the audience too was hungry to see high-value productions, entertainment and their favorite stars on the big screen and thronged to the theatres, lapping up these releases. So much so that 2022 saw four new films make their way into the 100 highest grossing Korean films of all tie at the domestic box-office, with Ma Dong-seok’s “The Roundup” even rolling comfortably into the top 10.
2023 too began strongly, with the long-in-production “The Point Men” starring Hwang Jung-min and Hyun Bin and the Sol Kyung-gu led ensemble spy thriller “Phantom” opening the year strong.
2023 too began strongly, with the long-in-production “The Point Men” starring Hwang Jung-min and Hyun Bin and the Sol Kyung-gu led ensemble spy thriller “Phantom” opening the year strong.
- 2/12/2023
- by Rhythm Zaveri
- AsianMoviePulse
Three things in life are certain: death, taxes and a Hong Sang-soo film screening and, since the last years at least, winning at the Berlin International Film Festival. After taking it easy for a couple years, making only one feature in that timeframe which also screened and won at the Berlinale, Hong Sang-soo returned back to winning ways last year with two releases, “Introduction” and “In Front of Your Face”. The former won him a Silver Bear for Best Screenplay at Berlinale, whereas “In Front of Your Face”, showing a much more pensive side to the 61-year-old director, is generally considered his best work in recent years and one of the best in his oeuvre. This year, he returned to the German festival with “The Novelist’s Film”, winning himself his fourth Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize there.
“The Novelist’s Film“ is screening at San Diego Asian Film...
“The Novelist’s Film“ is screening at San Diego Asian Film...
- 11/7/2022
- by Rhythm Zaveri
- AsianMoviePulse
When filmmakers make movies about filmmaking or the lives of those in the business, there is usually either a sense of self-aggrandizement or self-loathing. Some see the need to bolster their chosen art form to reinforce the notion that the work they do is important, and some feel guilty about living their lives for their own creative, selfish pursuits. Much rarer are the works about artists where making films, writing poetry, or acting is all just a part of their lives. That is the world they know — the world they exist in day after day — and maneuver through the ups and downs of normal life like everyone else.
South Korean auteur Hong Sang-soo has built a career on the lives of such people, crafting small-scale realist portraits of artists often stuck in a rut and wanting to carve out a new path for themselves. His latest picture "The Novelist's Film,...
South Korean auteur Hong Sang-soo has built a career on the lives of such people, crafting small-scale realist portraits of artists often stuck in a rut and wanting to carve out a new path for themselves. His latest picture "The Novelist's Film,...
- 10/28/2022
- by Mike Shutt
- Slash Film
Well, all right: the headline isn’t 100 ironclad. Your mileage may vary on where the best of Hong Sangsoo’s recent work—let’s say the last five films instead of the last five years; the latter encompasses, oh, nine features—but The Novelist’s Film (basically) confirmed my suspicion he’s (more or less) our greatest director. At least it’s 92 minutes as they should be spent: a handful of perfectly measured scenes, an amazingly honest window into the artist’s process, a couple good gags, and as most movies strive for one good ending (only to fail), The Novelist’s Film boasts two perfect finales.
Ahead of an October 28 opening at Lincoln Center, Cinema Guild have released a trailer to note their release. As Rory O’Connor said in his review, “Whichever side one lands on (you shall find no mutiny here), it will always be hard to resist the calm,...
Ahead of an October 28 opening at Lincoln Center, Cinema Guild have released a trailer to note their release. As Rory O’Connor said in his review, “Whichever side one lands on (you shall find no mutiny here), it will always be hard to resist the calm,...
- 10/18/2022
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
Hong Sangsoo’s level of productivity probably hasn’t been matched on the screen since the run of Rainer Werner Fassbinder. “The Novelist’s Film,” his latest gently ambling and self-reflexive drama about the craft of filmmaking, is the South Korean director’s 27th movie. It’s also his second this year alongside “Walk Up.” Exclusively on IndieWire, watch the trailer for “The Novelist’s Film” below. Cinema Guild opens it at Lincoln Center on October 28 before bringing it to select theaters beginning November 4.
Per the official synopsis, Junhee is a novelist who has grown disenchanted with her own writing. On a trip to see an old friend, she runs into a film director who was set to adapt one of her novels before the project fell through. One chance encounter leads to another, and soon she finds herself having lunch with Kilsoo, a well-known actress also questioning her role as an artist.
Per the official synopsis, Junhee is a novelist who has grown disenchanted with her own writing. On a trip to see an old friend, she runs into a film director who was set to adapt one of her novels before the project fell through. One chance encounter leads to another, and soon she finds herself having lunch with Kilsoo, a well-known actress also questioning her role as an artist.
- 10/17/2022
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Indiewire
The movie images that haunt my mind are rarely from places you would expect. For instance, there is a scene in Park Chan-wook's incredible film "The Handmaiden" where Kim Tae-ri's character shares a powerful intimate moment with Kim Min-hee's character by filing her tooth. The intention is clear. One character literally has the other's fingers in her mouth. Their urges coming to the forefront without anything explicitly sexual happening. However, I was horrified by this, as the thought of someone filing my tooth makes me break out into a cold sweat. Park Chan-wook has created plenty of cinematic moments where he wants to unnerve me, but this...
The post Voldemort's Makeup Was A Miserable Experience For Ralph Fiennes appeared first on /Film.
The post Voldemort's Makeup Was A Miserable Experience For Ralph Fiennes appeared first on /Film.
- 6/8/2022
- by Mike Shutt
- Slash Film
Three things in life are certain: death, taxes and a Hong Sang-soo film screening and, since the last years at least, winning at the Berlin International Film Festival. After taking it easy for a couple years, making only one feature in that timeframe which also screened and won at the Berlinale, Hong Sang-soo returned back to winning ways last year with two releases, “Introduction” and “In Front of Your Face”. The former won him a Silver Bear for Best Screenplay at Berlinale, whereas “In Front of Your Face”, showing a much more pensive side to the 61-year-old director, is generally considered his best work in recent years and one of the best in his oeuvre. This year, he returned to the German festival with “The Novelist’s Film”, winning himself his fourth Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize there.
It is by now a moot point to say that a new Hong...
It is by now a moot point to say that a new Hong...
- 6/3/2022
- by Rhythm Zaveri
- AsianMoviePulse
South Korean director Hong Sang-soo has long been associated with quiet dramas, exploring human relationships and interactions through naturalistic dialogue, set in the world of narcissistic arthouse directors, starstruck actresses and lots and lots of alcohol-fueled rants and teary confessions to punctuate the more low-key proceedings. His 2015 film, “Right Now, Wrong Then”, doesn’t do much to stray from this setup but once again, spins his preoccupation with love and fidelity into interesting new directions.
on Amazon
Renowned filmmaker Ham Chun-su (Jung Jae-young) arrives in Suwon a day early for a screening of one of his films. While passing the time he notices a young woman (Kim Min-hee) and is immediately smitten with her beauty. Later, as he’s sitting by a temple, he sees her again and decides to strike up a conversation. The woman, Yoon Hee-jung, knows who he is when he introduces himself and...
on Amazon
Renowned filmmaker Ham Chun-su (Jung Jae-young) arrives in Suwon a day early for a screening of one of his films. While passing the time he notices a young woman (Kim Min-hee) and is immediately smitten with her beauty. Later, as he’s sitting by a temple, he sees her again and decides to strike up a conversation. The woman, Yoon Hee-jung, knows who he is when he introduces himself and...
- 5/10/2022
- by Fred Barrett
- AsianMoviePulse
In Front of Your Face (2021).When it comes to autofiction in contemporary cinema, a few directors are producing works that are as piercingly candid as those of Hong Sang-soo. Curiously though, family life has occupied the outer margins of the purview of Hong’s films. “For some reason, I get the impression that Moon-ho [from Woman is the Future of Man (2004)] fears that he might die if he goes home,” says Kim Hye-ri in a 2005 interview with Hong Sang-soo for Cine21. Observing the absence of the familial in his works, she remarks that Hong’s male characters seem to dread going home. “[Characters] have to leave their homes in order for my stories to begin,” Hong responds. He goes on to share his ethical concern when it comes to writing characters based on people he knows in real life, and that he is not ready to use his own family as a source material in his films just yet.
- 5/8/2022
- MUBI
Released in 2017, “On the Beach at Night Alone” is likely the most personal work both its director, Hong Sang-soo, and its star, Kim Min-hee, have been involved in during their respective decades-long careers. As such, the real-life circumstances which informed the film are impossible to ignore: after working on Hong’s 2015 film “Right Now, Wrong Then”, the married director and Kim began an affair, rumors of which caused controversy in South Korea. At the Seoul premiere of “On the Beach”, Hong finally admitted to the extramarital relationship. As a result, Kim lost endorsement deals and it was alleged that the affair was the reason why her talent agency, Management Soop, decided not to renew her contract. Moreover, the pair were ruthlessly pulled apart in the media of their home country, a nation where adultery was illegal until 2015.
on Amazon
Working through this tumultuous time of his life,...
on Amazon
Working through this tumultuous time of his life,...
- 4/30/2022
- by Fred Barrett
- AsianMoviePulse
Many years before “The Asian Angel” brought Korean and Japanese cast as protagonists in the same before, and even more years before Lee Jung-jae became an international star due to “Squid Game” and Kim Min-hee due to “The Handmaiden” and her collaborations with Hong Sang-soo, there was a film that managed to bring all these elements together, “Asako in Ruby Shoes”.
“Asako in Ruby Shoes” is screening at Florence Korea Film Festival
The story unfolds in two different settings, in S. Korea and Japan. In the first one, E U-in is a rather bored civil servant, who is unfulfilled in both his job and friendless and girlfriendless life. He spends his nights cruising in porn sites, although in 2000, visiting them was an endeavor that demanded money he was not willing to give. His voyeurism does not stop there, however, but extends in his real life, as he frequently peeks on...
“Asako in Ruby Shoes” is screening at Florence Korea Film Festival
The story unfolds in two different settings, in S. Korea and Japan. In the first one, E U-in is a rather bored civil servant, who is unfulfilled in both his job and friendless and girlfriendless life. He spends his nights cruising in porn sites, although in 2000, visiting them was an endeavor that demanded money he was not willing to give. His voyeurism does not stop there, however, but extends in his real life, as he frequently peeks on...
- 4/10/2022
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
There is a small but growing belief among critics that just as Hong Sangsoo inches toward legendary status his bit might finally be going stale. Whichever side one lands on (you shall find no mutiny here), it will always be hard to resist the calm, casual charms of a work like The Novelist’s Film: a story about the creative process, shot in soft black-and-white, and a mid-range addition that won the Grand Jury Silver Bear at the Berlinale—his most prestigious award to date.
Writers, poets, directors, film students, wacky zooms, plenty of booze—all, of course, are present and accounted for here. Anyone wise to Hong’s work will know the cues all too well; what’s sometimes more interesting is finding the breaks from the norm. Like in Right Now, Wrong Then, a film that increasingly looks like his defining masterpiece, spotting the variations is half the game.
Writers, poets, directors, film students, wacky zooms, plenty of booze—all, of course, are present and accounted for here. Anyone wise to Hong’s work will know the cues all too well; what’s sometimes more interesting is finding the breaks from the norm. Like in Right Now, Wrong Then, a film that increasingly looks like his defining masterpiece, spotting the variations is half the game.
- 2/28/2022
- by Rory O'Connor
- The Film Stage
Many of Hong Sang-soo’s films are structured around a woman’s solitary wanderings. The single ladies played by Kim Min-Hee in “On the Beach at Night Alone” or “The Woman Who Ran,” or Lee Hye-Young in “In Front of Your Face,” are free radicals, moving from encounter to encounter and disrupting the equilibrium of the people they meet, as meandering conversations reveal a friend’s dissatisfaction or a couple’s disagreement.
Continue reading ‘The Novelist’s Film’ Review: Hong Sang-Soo’s Latests Is Yet Another Charming, Focused Autofiction [Berlin] at The Playlist.
Continue reading ‘The Novelist’s Film’ Review: Hong Sang-Soo’s Latests Is Yet Another Charming, Focused Autofiction [Berlin] at The Playlist.
- 2/19/2022
- by Mark Asch
- The Playlist
Here’s another walking-and-talking film from festival favorite Hong Sang-soo, encapsulating a sliver of Korean life with his customary elusive delicacy. Shot largely in creamy black and white, Berlin competition entry The Novelist’s Film centers on the meeting between two artists who, for different reasons, have simply stopped working.
They walk through the bare trees of the wintry park, they go to eat ramen, they come up with a plan — despite the impasse each has reached on her own — to work together. By some almost imperceptible process of empathy and intellectual exchange, their creative fortunes have been reversed. At a time when so many people have been isolated, it is a hymn to the galvanizing spark of collaboration.
Director Hong is also his own writer, producer, editor and composer, but it is clear that he too finds an important collaborative connection with his actors. Lee Hye-young plays Junhee, a...
They walk through the bare trees of the wintry park, they go to eat ramen, they come up with a plan — despite the impasse each has reached on her own — to work together. By some almost imperceptible process of empathy and intellectual exchange, their creative fortunes have been reversed. At a time when so many people have been isolated, it is a hymn to the galvanizing spark of collaboration.
Director Hong is also his own writer, producer, editor and composer, but it is clear that he too finds an important collaborative connection with his actors. Lee Hye-young plays Junhee, a...
- 2/16/2022
- by Stephanie Bunbury
- Deadline Film + TV
Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. For daily updates follow us @NotebookMUBI.NEWSAbove: Casting board Polaroids from Heat (1995). (Courtesy of Michael Mann)Michael Mann's debut novel is titled Heat 2, which is both a prequel and sequel to his 1995 classic crime thriller. Co-written with novelist Meg Gardiner, Heat 2 will be published on August 9 through the HarperCollins-based Michael Mann Books imprint. Jonas Mekas 100! is a program dedicated to honoring the influential critic, writer, and filmmaker Jonas Mekas. The events of the program are currently underway and are taking place worldwide, from Sweden to Taiwan, with a focus on "[expanding] global recognition of his work." Bong Joon-ho is moving forward with his next English-language film, an adaptation of Edward Ashton's upcoming science fiction novel Mickey7, with Robert Pattinson set to star. The book is about a "disposable employee" on a space colony base who refuses to be replaced by a clone.
- 1/26/2022
- MUBI
It was mere weeks ago we placed a possible Hong Sang-soo film on our 2022 most-anticipated list. If nothing was announced, anything could be expected—a year without Hong is like a day without air. Little surprise, then, to see a Berlinale premiere for The Novelist’s Film, his 27th feature and first (onscreen) collaboration with Kim Min-hee since 2020’s The Woman Who Ran.
We have a first trailer and synopsis courtesy the festival, who make it sound par for the course: a woman lives the quotidian life, meets a film director, eats, gets drunk, falls asleep. Which means it will probably be one of this year’s most imperceptible and inimitable pleasures.
Find preview and synopsis below:
A female novelist takes a long trip to visit a bookstore run by a younger colleague who has fallen out of touch. Then she goes up a tower on her own and runs...
We have a first trailer and synopsis courtesy the festival, who make it sound par for the course: a woman lives the quotidian life, meets a film director, eats, gets drunk, falls asleep. Which means it will probably be one of this year’s most imperceptible and inimitable pleasures.
Find preview and synopsis below:
A female novelist takes a long trip to visit a bookstore run by a younger colleague who has fallen out of touch. Then she goes up a tower on her own and runs...
- 1/25/2022
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
Films about filmmaking still receive a decent spotlight at the festival circuit. No better place than there, as they keep on scratching the delicate hearts of cinephiles across the world. The reflection of the auteur kneeling down to the misfortune of a creative slump; a possibility to coexist with the dramedy of the world behind the curtain, even if for a brief moment; the jokes and the laughter that come after guessing the right trope, the right title – we know it all. To fit that image and confront the audiences, comes Wei Shujun with his sophomore feature, “Ripples of Life” (premiered at the Directors’ Fortnight Cannes sidebar), a three-tale story about the endeavours of the independent film production on a foray into Chinese small town.
Unfolding his narrative into three novels, Wei encapsulates different nuances of the indie industry. The film crew starts the pre-work at the small-town, where the ‘nothing-ever-happens’ defines the mundane.
Unfolding his narrative into three novels, Wei encapsulates different nuances of the indie industry. The film crew starts the pre-work at the small-town, where the ‘nothing-ever-happens’ defines the mundane.
- 7/25/2021
- by Lukasz Mankowski
- AsianMoviePulse
By evidence, Hong Sangsoo may never make an Oki’s Movie or Hill of Freedom-type work again; our maestro is shooting for bigger emotional game. It’s fascinating to observe how idiosyncratic directors make their way towards the arthouse mainstream. With Hong, arguably, it’s come from two sources: less of a rigid fixation on male vanity, neurosis, and inebriation, coupled with plot summaries you could describe in a brief, eloquent sentence. Oki’s Movie, for instance, approaches a Faulkner-esque writer with its digressive intricacy; The Day He Arrives is like a fractal Groundhog Day. This is well-rehearsed, but there’s something to be said for emotional transparency and an examination of things “as they are,” to paraphrase dialogue from In Front of Your Face’s lead character. Another well-rehearsed question: are we yet again in self-portraiture mode, for someone with a Dorian Gray-like attic full of them?
Meet...
Meet...
- 7/18/2021
- by David Katz
- The Film Stage
Park Chan-wook’s return to S. Korea from Hollywood, where he directed “Stoker”, also signaled his return to masterpieces, with “The Handmaiden” reaching the standards of his best films, like “Oldboy”. His passage from Hollywood did not have the same success his previous works had; however, Park seems to have implemented the aesthetics usually associated with American films in “The Handmaiden.” In the process, he has created a completely new amalgam, which seems to have taken the best from his unique style and Hollywood aesthetics, particularly regarding maximalism in terms of image and dialogue. The outcome is magnificent, a truly impressive film in all aspects. The awards it has already received from festivals and competitions all around the world is a testament to the fact.
Please take caution, before reading, because the list contains many spoilers.
The script is based on the novel “Fingersmith” by Sarah Waters...
Please take caution, before reading, because the list contains many spoilers.
The script is based on the novel “Fingersmith” by Sarah Waters...
- 4/5/2021
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
After a career as producer and few short films, independent director Kim Cho-hee brings to light her debut feature, “Lucky Chan-sil”, a charming story of, well … a film producer, dealing with the challenges that life throws at her. Like many of this year’s movies, her work was caught in the COVID19 storm, just in between Festival runs and (cancelled) theatrical releases; therefore, after gaining a rich palmarès in Festivals (Kbs Independent Film Award and the Cgv Arthouse Award at Biff and the Audience Award at the Seoul Independent Film Festival), got stalled abruptly. Hopefully not for long.
“Lucky Chan-sil” is screening in Hong Kong Arts Centre on Saturday 17/4 at 7:30 pm
as part of Women Direct. Korean Indies! – Korean Women Independent Film series, under the signature programme of the Hong Kong Arts Centre, Independently Yours
Offbeat sweet ‘n’ sour comedy “Lucky Chan-sil” follows the titular character, an indie film...
“Lucky Chan-sil” is screening in Hong Kong Arts Centre on Saturday 17/4 at 7:30 pm
as part of Women Direct. Korean Indies! – Korean Women Independent Film series, under the signature programme of the Hong Kong Arts Centre, Independently Yours
Offbeat sweet ‘n’ sour comedy “Lucky Chan-sil” follows the titular character, an indie film...
- 3/29/2021
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. For daily updates follow us @NotebookMUBI.NEWSThe poster for Hong Sang-soo's latest, Introduction, which will compete at this year's Berlinale. The competition slate for the 71st Berlin International Film Festival features a wide range of heavy hitters, from Hong and Radu Jude to Aleksandre Koberidze and Céline Sciamma. The competing titles, as well as the rest of the lineup, can be found here.The lineup for this year's SXSW Film Festival has been announced. The roster includes the directorial debut of House of Psychotic Women author Kier-La Janisse, a documentary on musician William Basinski's The Disintegration Loops, and a restoration of Les Blank's I Went to the Dance. Recommended VIEWINGFrom February 17 to February 23, the National Gallery of Art is screening the series "The Voice and Vision of Billy Woodberry." The series includes Woodberry's Bless Their Little Hearts, a landmark work of the L.
- 2/19/2021
- MUBI
After a career as producer and few short films, independent director Kim Cho-hee brings to light her debut feature, “Lucky Chan-sil”, a charming story of, well … a film producer, dealing with the challenges that life throws at her. Like many of this year’s movies, her work was caught in the COVID19 storm, just in between Festival runs and (cancelled) theatrical releases; therefore, after gaining a rich palmarès in Festivals (Kbs Independent Film Award and the Cgv Arthouse Award at Biff and the Audience Award at the Seoul Independent Film Festival), got stalled abruptly. Hopefully not for long.
“Lucky Chan-sil” is Screening at Black Movie
Offbeat sweet ‘n’ sour comedy “Lucky Chan-sil” follows the titular character, an indie film producer in her forties played by Gang Mal-geum, going through a moment of intense crisis. She has dedicated her work-life and career to the same director, a well-known auteur, and he...
“Lucky Chan-sil” is Screening at Black Movie
Offbeat sweet ‘n’ sour comedy “Lucky Chan-sil” follows the titular character, an indie film producer in her forties played by Gang Mal-geum, going through a moment of intense crisis. She has dedicated her work-life and career to the same director, a well-known auteur, and he...
- 1/26/2021
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
Hong Sang-soo was awarded the Silver Bear for Best Director at the 70th Berlinale Film Festival for his 24rd feature fiction film “The Woman Who Ran”, a story revolving around Gam-hee (Kim Min-hee), a young florist who visits two of her long-time friends at the outskirts of Seoul, and also accidentally meets the third one on her excursion to an arthouse exhibition.
The Woman Who Ran is Screening at Black Movie
It’s in many ways a classical Hong Sang-soo movie built around people immersed in conversations, enjoying drinks, food and beautiful landscapes. So there is plenty of chatter in “The Woman Who Ran” but no traditional soju-drinking, although two people won’t be sober for a long time after downing a bottle of makgeolli. But the true novelty is that Hong Sang-soo has made a very female movie, his first of the kind, and it is a surprisingly effortless...
The Woman Who Ran is Screening at Black Movie
It’s in many ways a classical Hong Sang-soo movie built around people immersed in conversations, enjoying drinks, food and beautiful landscapes. So there is plenty of chatter in “The Woman Who Ran” but no traditional soju-drinking, although two people won’t be sober for a long time after downing a bottle of makgeolli. But the true novelty is that Hong Sang-soo has made a very female movie, his first of the kind, and it is a surprisingly effortless...
- 1/24/2021
- by Marina D. Richter
- AsianMoviePulse
The Korean Film Council (Kofic) is launching an initiative to promote the country’s acting talent on the world stage. It will roll out from March, ahead of the year’s major film festivals.
The Korean Actors 200 campaign, akin to the Shooting Stars operation backed by the European Film Promotion program, is described as a “methodical project” that sees the selection of 100 men and 100 women who represent the present and the future of Korean film.
Kofic says that the selection process takes into consideration the performers’ box office power over the last decade, awards earned at festivals in Korea and abroad, their contribution to independent cinema, and their participation in international projects.
A dedicated website will contain filmographies, new portrait photography, show reels, biographies and a list of particular characteristics and strengths for each. Portrait images will be supplied by two leading photographers Kim Jung-man and Ahn Sung-jin.
“We plan...
The Korean Actors 200 campaign, akin to the Shooting Stars operation backed by the European Film Promotion program, is described as a “methodical project” that sees the selection of 100 men and 100 women who represent the present and the future of Korean film.
Kofic says that the selection process takes into consideration the performers’ box office power over the last decade, awards earned at festivals in Korea and abroad, their contribution to independent cinema, and their participation in international projects.
A dedicated website will contain filmographies, new portrait photography, show reels, biographies and a list of particular characteristics and strengths for each. Portrait images will be supplied by two leading photographers Kim Jung-man and Ahn Sung-jin.
“We plan...
- 1/20/2021
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Kim Min-hee began modeling when she was in middle school, and soon appeared as a cover girl in teen magazines. In 1999, she was cast in the campus drama School 2 as a rebellious high school girl, which launched her to stardom. She became a popular young star at barely 20 years old, appearing in TV dramas and movies. However, a string of poor acting performances brought her negative criticism. Critics and viewers disparagingly called her an “attractive but blank actress,” more famous for being a fashion icon and actor Lee Jung-jae‘s then-girlfriend.
In 2006, after reading the synopsis of TV series “Goodbye Solo”, Kim knew that she wanted the role of Mi-ri more than anything, saying “I was ready to do anything to play her.” She begged renowned screenwriter Noh Hee-kyung to cast her, and though Noh turned her down five times, Kim would not give up, and her determination eventually convinced...
In 2006, after reading the synopsis of TV series “Goodbye Solo”, Kim knew that she wanted the role of Mi-ri more than anything, saying “I was ready to do anything to play her.” She begged renowned screenwriter Noh Hee-kyung to cast her, and though Noh turned her down five times, Kim would not give up, and her determination eventually convinced...
- 12/28/2020
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
If there was one director working today that can be said to have a distinctive style, then it would be Hong Sang-soo. The writer-director has a distinct flare for the drunken conversation, playful looks at alternative endings and non-linear narrative, as well as a drunken love affair, often between a filmmaker and a younger student, and laughing at both truth and lies.
“Claire’s Camera” is streaming on Mubi
With a Special Screening at Cannes, Hong moves the setting away from Korea to 2016 Cannes itself, though the cast remains largely Korean. Man-hee (Kim Min-hee), a film sales agent working at the festival, suddenly finds herself sacked by her boss, Yang-hye (Chang Mi-hee), for she no longer believes Man-hee to be honest. Left somewhat bewildered by this, we later discover that the probable real reason for her dismissal is her love affair with drunken director So (Jung Jin-young), Yang-hye’s lover.
The decision made,...
“Claire’s Camera” is streaming on Mubi
With a Special Screening at Cannes, Hong moves the setting away from Korea to 2016 Cannes itself, though the cast remains largely Korean. Man-hee (Kim Min-hee), a film sales agent working at the festival, suddenly finds herself sacked by her boss, Yang-hye (Chang Mi-hee), for she no longer believes Man-hee to be honest. Left somewhat bewildered by this, we later discover that the probable real reason for her dismissal is her love affair with drunken director So (Jung Jin-young), Yang-hye’s lover.
The decision made,...
- 12/27/2020
- by Andrew Thayne
- AsianMoviePulse
Netflix rarely gives out data regarding the amount of people streaming their original content (and when the do they are not to be trusted), so most of the time deciding whether or not a Netflix original project is a hit comes down to the film’s dominance in generating social media buzz. Before Netflix announced its Sandra Bullock thriller “Birdbox” earned 45 million views in seven days, many had suspected it was a smash hit for the streaming giant given how overwhelming the title’s presence was on social media. Based on this barometer, it appears Netflix has struck viral gold again with “The Perfection.”
Directed by “The Matador” filmmaker Richard Shepard and starring Allison Williams and “Dear White People” breakout Logan Browning, “The Perfection” centers around the increasingly twisted relationship between a troubled music prodigy (Williams) and the new star cellist at her former school (Browning). Netflix dropped the horror-thriller...
Directed by “The Matador” filmmaker Richard Shepard and starring Allison Williams and “Dear White People” breakout Logan Browning, “The Perfection” centers around the increasingly twisted relationship between a troubled music prodigy (Williams) and the new star cellist at her former school (Browning). Netflix dropped the horror-thriller...
- 5/28/2019
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
"Why do you keep lying?" Cinema Guild has released the official Us trailer for one of the latest films from prolific Korean filmmaker Hong Sang-soo, this one titled The Day After. This premiered at the Cannes Film Festival last year. Those who know Hong Sang-soo know he's always making new films. He premiered another one at the Berlin Film Festival earlier this year, titled Grass, and released two others in the last few years including Claire's Camera and On the Beach at Night Alone. The Day After tells the story of a married man struggling with an affair who just left him. His wife suspects something, and attacks his innocent new secretary. It "begins as a darkly hilarious look at a man embroiled in extramarital entanglements but soon shifts - in a way only Hong can manage - into a heartfelt portrayal of a young woman on a quest for spiritual fulfillment.
- 4/24/2018
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
wide
A Wrinkle in Time [IMDb] pictured
Ava DuVernay directs and Jennifer Lee cowrites the tale of a girl (Storm Reid) who travels into space to find her missing father, with the help of three mysterious aliens (Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, and Mindy Kaling).
Strangers: Prey at Night [IMDb]
Christina Hendricks and Bailee Madison costar as members of a family terrorized by psychopaths. (male writers and director)
limited
The Homeless Chorus Speaks [official site]
Documentarian Susan Polis Schutz profiles the members of a San Diego choir of homeless men and women.
Itzhak [IMDb]
Documentarian Alison Chernick profiles a legendary (male) violinist.
Viva Kino! [La Times review]
Filmmaker Lia Beltrami pays documentary tribute to a Jesuit priest who founded missions in the 17th century in what is today the American southwest.
Girls vs Gangsters [IMDb]
Zhenzhen Huang directs and cowrites this comedy about a bachelorette party gone wrong, starring Junning Zhang, Yihan Chen, Kaiqi Xue, and Tiantian Fan.
A Wrinkle in Time [IMDb] pictured
Ava DuVernay directs and Jennifer Lee cowrites the tale of a girl (Storm Reid) who travels into space to find her missing father, with the help of three mysterious aliens (Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, and Mindy Kaling).
Strangers: Prey at Night [IMDb]
Christina Hendricks and Bailee Madison costar as members of a family terrorized by psychopaths. (male writers and director)
limited
The Homeless Chorus Speaks [official site]
Documentarian Susan Polis Schutz profiles the members of a San Diego choir of homeless men and women.
Itzhak [IMDb]
Documentarian Alison Chernick profiles a legendary (male) violinist.
Viva Kino! [La Times review]
Filmmaker Lia Beltrami pays documentary tribute to a Jesuit priest who founded missions in the 17th century in what is today the American southwest.
Girls vs Gangsters [IMDb]
Zhenzhen Huang directs and cowrites this comedy about a bachelorette party gone wrong, starring Junning Zhang, Yihan Chen, Kaiqi Xue, and Tiantian Fan.
- 3/10/2018
- by MaryAnn Johanson
- www.flickfilosopher.com
Showcasing the Best in Independent and World Cinema
Thursday, October 5–15, 2017Acclaimed Festival Films From Around the World And New Offerings from Bay Area Filmmakers Highlight First Slate of Films Announced at 40th Mill Valley Film Festival
The Mill Valley Film Festival (Mvff), presented by the California Film Institute, has announced the first set of films to premiere at the 40th edition of the Festival, returning to Marin County October 5–15, 2017. The Festival will present the Bay Area premiere of many acclaimed films from the 2017 Cannes Film Festival, the 2017 Sundance Film Festival and the 2017 Berlin International Film Festival.
Additionally, Mvff will launch many acclaimed Bay Area filmmakers’ latest films as part of the Festival’s effort to showcase the many established and emerging filmmakers in the Bay Area.
Early Confirmed films from the 2017 Cannes Film Festival at MVFF40:
Ruben Östlund’s Palme d’Or Winner and Swedish Oscar Submission The Square...
Thursday, October 5–15, 2017Acclaimed Festival Films From Around the World And New Offerings from Bay Area Filmmakers Highlight First Slate of Films Announced at 40th Mill Valley Film Festival
The Mill Valley Film Festival (Mvff), presented by the California Film Institute, has announced the first set of films to premiere at the 40th edition of the Festival, returning to Marin County October 5–15, 2017. The Festival will present the Bay Area premiere of many acclaimed films from the 2017 Cannes Film Festival, the 2017 Sundance Film Festival and the 2017 Berlin International Film Festival.
Additionally, Mvff will launch many acclaimed Bay Area filmmakers’ latest films as part of the Festival’s effort to showcase the many established and emerging filmmakers in the Bay Area.
Early Confirmed films from the 2017 Cannes Film Festival at MVFF40:
Ruben Östlund’s Palme d’Or Winner and Swedish Oscar Submission The Square...
- 9/5/2017
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.