Essential Korean Cinema (according to one person, which is me)
Films that Haeni considers to be significant to Korean cinema.
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- DirectorKim Ki-youngStarsKim Jin-kyuJeung-nyeo JuEun-shim LeeA composer and his wife are thrown into turmoil when a housemaid becomes more than they bargained for.
- DirectorYu Hyun-mokStarsMu-ryong ChoiKim Jin-kyuJeong-suk MoonA pressured accountant, his war veteran brother and their dysfunctional family struggle with integrating into post-War Korean society.
- DirectorShin Sang-okStarsChoi Eun-hieKim Jin-kyuKum-Bong DoChun-hyang, the only daughter of an old gisaeng named Wolmae, falls in love with Lee Mong-nyong and promises to marry him. But Lee leaves for Seoul with his father who's an aristocrat, and the new governor, Byeon Hakdo, covets Chun-hyang because she is the most beautiful girl in town. When Chun-hyang rejects his order to serve him at night, Governor Byeon sends her to jail. In the mean time, Lee passes the state exam and becomes a special undercover agent of the king. He comes back to where Chun-hyang lives to save her and punishes Governor Byeon.The introduction of technicolour in Korea. Classic Korean folk tale on the big screen.
- DirectorShin Sang-okStarsChoi Eun-hieYeong-gyun ShinYeong-seon JeonOk-hui lives with her grandmother, her mother and the maid. People refer to their house as the "Widow House" because all three adult women who live there are widows. One day, a teacher named Mr. Han moves into the house as a lodger.Great second-person point of view narrative.
- DirectorLee Man-heeStarsDong-hwi JangWon NamkungAm ParkInfighting breaks out between factions of the Communist Party over whether to back the U.N. Trusteeship under which the Korean Peninsula is to be divided between U.S. and Soviet control. One faction hires a hit man to kill the leader of the opposing faction. The hit man is known as the best in his field, yet is also known for having a heart.The fear of the communists, akin to the Red Menace.
This film has actually been restored and uploaded on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mHFsRElnHY - DirectorLee Man-heeStarsBaek Il-seobKim Jin-kyuSuk MunGoing through a jail and a site of construction, a young laborer Young-Dal meets middle aged Mr. Jeong on his way to his hometown Sampo after ten years' absence. They become to know a waitress Baek-Hwa who runs away from a restaurant and then, they travel together. Arriving at the destination Kangcheon Station, Mr. Jeong is disappointed at the changes of the old village by building a hotel. Young-Datl and Mr. Jeong stay at Sampo not as the hometown but as the site of living. Baek-Hwa leaves Sampo with a ticket Young-Dal buys her with his last money.
- DirectorHa Gil-jongStarsNam-hyeon ChoiKim Hee-raHa Jae-YoungThe story is set in the 1970s during the period of military dictatorship. Schools were frequently closed down and society seemed to face bleak prospects on all fronts. Nonetheless, Byung Tae, a college student, enjoys pursuing romance at group "meetings" or blins dates. It is during one of these ventures that he meets Young-ja, a French Literature student.
- DirectorLee Jang-hoStarsAhn Sung-kiSeong-chan KimYeong-ho LeeThis is a film about the coming of age of three men.A coming of age tale that is reflective of the rising capitalist values in Korea.
- DirectorHyeok-su LeeStarsKi-jong KimIn-su SeokLee Gye-inA vengeful spirit passes herself of as human and gains a family's trust, only to murder them one-by-one.A great horror about the very Korean concept of 'han'.
- DirectorIm Kwon-taekStarsPark Sang-minShin Hyeon-junIl-jae LeeThe first chapter of the the General's Son trilogy follows Kim Du-Han's childhood, from the loss of his mother at age 8, to his rise as a gang leader who protects local vendors from expanding Yakuza forces in Japanese occupied Korea.
- DirectorHun-Su ParkStarsKo So-youngJung Woo-sungBang Eun-heeA half-human/half-fox girl falls in love with an honest young man while trying to become a human-being.
- DirectorHong-joon KimStarsChoi Myeong-gilChoi Jae-sungCha Kwang-sooA comic book store in Garibong-dong is run by a beautiful woman (Choi Myoung-gil) better known as Madam. This store stays open late into the night, thus attracting varied types of people such as gangsters and hustlers.
- DirectorPark Chul-SooCheol-su ParkStarsPang Eun-jinHwang Sin-hyeChu-Ryun KimTwo women, a chef and an anorexic writer, are neighbors in an apartment building. The chef.Korean 'weird' wave. Experimental.
- DirectorLee Myung-seStarsAhn Sung-kiPark Sang-minKim Hye-suA group of people whose lives suffer from stagnation, are working together in the same company and their lives are scutinized by those who see them. There is the development manager whose last new idea was five years earlier; a procrastinating office clerk with a crush on a co-worker that he is too shy to reveal; and a senior manager who believes his wife is having an affair causing him to take out his frustration on all his employeesPressures of being a 'man' & toxic masculinity in the context of Korea.
- DirectorJung Jin-wooStarsJeong Bo-seokHwang Sin-hyeJin-su Jeong
- DirectorKim Sung-suStarsJung Woo-sungKo So-youngChang Jung LimThis movie follows the story of three friends in Korea, all three of whom drop out of school. The main character is Min, a tough guy whose widowed mother is a drunk. The story traces his journey from high school to the underworld as one of his friends introduces him to life in the mob. Complicating Min's life further is his romance with Romi, a girl from an upper-class family with dreams of going to a prestigious college.
- DirectorKyung Won LimAn iceberg travels from Antartica to Han River, Korea. When it thaws, Doolie the baby dinosaur emerges. Having nowhere to go, he decides to stay with Gil-dong, a typical Korean middle-aged man.
- DirectorKang Je-kyuStarsHan Suk-kyuChoi Min-sikYunjin KimSouth Korean agents Ryu and Lee are tracking a female assassin from North Korea who has mysteriously disappeared. With new killings and the theft of a deadly bomb, time is running out to catch her.Rise of Korean cinema. Korean films start gaining more attention in domestic market over foreign (mainly Hollywood) films.
- DirectorSang-Jin KimStarsLee Sung-jaeYu Oh-seongKang Seong-jinFour disaffected youths rob a gas station but find their plans complicated and sidetracked before the night is through.Fine portrayal of Korean youths rebelling against the constraints of traditional values. Reflective of its time.
- DirectorDong-bin KimStarsShin Eun-kyungSeung-Hyun LeeJung Jin-youngAfter the mysterious death of her niece and other three teenagers on the same hour and with the symptoms of heart attack, the journalist Sun-ju decides to investigate their last moments. She discloses that the four friends had just watched a videotape exactly one week before their death in a resort. She travels to the place and finds the deadly video and after watching the weird footage, her telephone rings. When she takes a picture of herself, she sees her image blurred the same way that happened with the teenagers. She makes a copy of the cursed tape to her acquaintance, the skeptical coroner Choi Yeol. Together they seek for a hint, and find that it was taped thorough telekinesis by Eun-suh, a psychic girl that had disappeared years ago. When Sun-ju's little daughter watches the movie, Sun-ju has a stronger reason to unravel the mystery to save her daughter and her own lives.
- DirectorLee Chang-dongStarsSol Kyung-guKim Yeo-jinMoon So-riFollowing a man's suicide, time traverses back to reveal six chapters of his life on why he committed suicide.If you are studying contemporary Korean topics like IMF (Asian financial crisis) and the democratisation movement, this is the only movie you have to watch to get the entire picture.
- DirectorJae-young KwakStarsCha Tae-hyunJun Ji-hyunIn-mun KimA young man sees a drunk, cute woman standing too close to the tracks at a metro station in Seoul and pulls her back. She ends up getting him into trouble repeatedly after that, starting on the train.Essential Korean romantic comedy.
- DirectorKyung-taek KwakStarsYu Oh-seongJang Dong-gunSeo Tae-hwaFour childhood friends go their separate ways, two go off to college while the others become rival gangsters.Pop culture phenomenon.
- DirectorJae-eun JeongStarsBae DoonaLee Yo-wonOk Ji-youngIn the port city of Icheon, five female friends struggle to stay close while forging a life for themselves after high school. When one of the group, upwardly-mobile Hae-ju, moves to Seoul, the other girls deal with the loss in different ways. Feeling most rejected, shy Ji-yeong finds comfort in her new friendship with rebel Tae-hee.
- DirectorHae-sung SongStarsChoi Min-sikCecilia CheungSon Byung-hoA marriage of convenience between a petty gangster and an illegal immigrant he has never met has unforeseen consequences for them both.
- DirectorHur Jin-hoStarsLee Yeong-aeYoo Ji-taeSang-hui BaekA sound engineer falls in love with a radio show host after they work together on a project capturing natural sounds.
- DirectorJang Sun-wooStarsEun-kyeong LimHyun-sung KimJin-pyo KimTo Chinese restaurant delivery boy 'Ju', the only joy in life is spending time at the electronic game room. One day, 'Ju' who was engrossed in an electronic game as usual, is advised to log-on to a game called RESURRECTION OF THE LITTLE MATCH GIRL. The match selling girl of Andersen's fairytale is revived through the game, and 'Ju' is drawn into the little girl's virtual reality. As reality and cyberspace interchange, 'Ju', like in the famous fairytale, is given the mission to save the little girl from danger and lead her to a peaceful death. However, the two are not only confronted by a gigantic force called the System, that attempts to stop them, but other obstacles that place their lives in danger...If you thought I'm only including good movies, you're wrong. The 'so bad it's good' of Korean cinema.
- DirectorBong Joon HoStarsSong Kang-hoKim Sang-kyungKim Roe-haIn a small Korean province in 1986, two detectives struggle with the case of multiple young women being found raped and murdered by an unknown culprit.
- DirectorJee-woon KimStarsLim Soo-jungYum Jung-ahKim Kap-suAfter being institutionalized in a mental hospital, Su-mi reunites with her sister, Su-yeon, and they return to live at their country home. But strange events plague the house, leading to surprising revelations and a shocking conclusion.
- DirectorKim Ki-dukStarsKim Ki-dukOh Yeong-suJong-ho KimA boy is raised by a Buddhist monk in an isolated floating temple where the years pass like the seasons.
- DirectorPark Chan-wookStarsChoi Min-sikYoo Ji-taeKang Hye-jeongAfter being kidnapped and imprisoned for fifteen years, Oh Dae-Su is released, only to find that he must track down his captor in five days.
- DirectorKang Je-kyuStarsJang Dong-gunWon BinEun-ju LeeWhen two brothers are forced to fight in the Korean War, the elder decides to take the riskiest missions if it will help shield the younger from battle.
- DirectorJong-kwan KwonStarsJung Woo-sungLim Soo-jungCha Tae-hyunThis film follows the lives of four very different couples as they deal with love, loss and life in these romantic, loosely interconnected tales.
- DirectorDong-hoon ChoiStarsCho Seung-wooBaek Yun-shikKim Hye-suA guy with a talent for cards makes his way into the dangerous world of underground gambling in this crime thriller from South Korea. Go-ni (Jo Seung-woo) is a small-town guy with a big appetite for gambling. Convinced he?s on a hot streak one evening during a card game, Go-ni bets his life savings on a hand of hwatu, only to lose to a crooked cardsharp. Determined to get revenge, Go-ni sets out to find the guy who cheated him and win back his money. But nothing is as it seems down the road.
- DirectorLee HanStarsJeong Gyu-suKim Ha-neulMi-ne JangJi-hwan is a taekwondo student with a part time job as a stunt man, who dreams of becoming Korea's answer to Jackie Chan. Dal-rae is a drama student and aspiring actress, but tends to fail auditions because of her timid personality.
- DirectorIm Kwon-taekStarsChoon-ha HwangJo Hyeon-jaeCho Jae-hyunA drama centered on brother-and-sister musicians trained to perform the epic Korean poems known as pansori.A film made to preserve the traditional art of pansori. Captures the modernisation, to a certain extent, the 'Westernisation', of Korea.
- DirectorChung-ryoul LeeStarsWon-gyoon ChoiSam-soon LeeAn elderly farmer lives out his final days with his wife and a loyal ox in the Korean countryside.Korean 'hyperrealism'. Slower, 'healing' films rise to prominence in the hustle and bustle of 21st century.
- DirectorLee Jeong-beomStarsWon BinKim Sae-ronKim Tae-hoonA quiet pawnshop keeper with a violent past takes on a drug-and-organ trafficking ring in hope of saving the child who is his only friend.Essential Korean action-crime genre.
- DirectorJee-woon KimStarsLee Byung-hunChoi Min-sikJeon Gook-hwanA secret agent exacts revenge on a serial killer through a series of captures and releases.Mainstream audiences start seeing provocative and violent in Korean cinema. A rebellion against censorship.
- DirectorLee Chang-dongStarsYun Jeong-hieLee Da-witKim Hee-raA sixty-something woman, faced with the discovery of a heinous family crime and in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease, finds strength and purpose when she enrolls in a poetry class.
- DirectorKang Hyeong-cheolStarsYoo Ho-jeongShim Eun-kyungJin Hee-kyungSeven girls become good friends in high school, then events pull them apart for 25 years. When one of the friends lies dying in a hospital, she wishes to see each of them one last time.
- DirectorYeon Sang-hoStarsYang Ik-joonOh Jung-seKim Hye-naJong-suk and Kyung-min meet up to talk about their high school past, it's been 15 years since they last talked. It brings up all kinds of memories.
- DirectorYeon Sang-hoStarsGong YooJung Yu-miMa Dong-seokWhile a zombie virus breaks out in South Korea, passengers struggle to survive on the train from Seoul to Busan.
- DirectorPark Chan-wookStarsKim Min-heeHa Jung-wooCho Jin-woongA woman is hired as a handmaiden to a Japanese heiress, but secretly she is involved in a plot to defraud her.
- DirectorBora KimStarsPark Ji-huKim Sae-byeokJeong In-giSeoul 1994, in the year the Seongsu Bridge collapsed, 14-year-old Eunhee wanders the city searching for love.
- DirectorJae-Hwan KimStarsDoo-jo KwakGeum-boon ParkThe grannies from Chilgok memorized the multiplication table in Japanese and lived their entire lives illiterate in Korean. This was because in 1937, the Japanese Governor-General of Korea banned the usage and education of the Korean language in all schools. These grannies from Chilgok had given everything for their children's education despite the backbreaking burden and workload. Then one day a Korean school opened in their village and sparked a fire in their hearts. As they learned the Korean alphabet, they became literary ladies who see poetry in everything in the world. "Poems here. Poems there. Poems are all over the place."
- DirectorBong Joon HoStarsSong Kang-hoLee Sun-kyunCho Yeo-jeongGreed and class discrimination threaten the newly-formed symbiotic relationship between the wealthy Park family and the destitute Kim clan.If you haven't seen this movie, maybe you should start with this one. 100 years of Korean cinema marked with a big fat Palme d'Or.