KOFFIA 2012: War of the Arrows (최종병기 활, Choi-jong-byeong-gi Hwal) 2011

Part of MKC's coverage of the 3rd Korean Film Festival in Australia (previously published).

It’s about time I threw my hat into the ring and chimed in on War of the Arrows, the top-grossing Korean film of 2011, which has met with positive reactions from all over the globe.  Early in 2011, if you were familiar with the big films that were scheduled to come out throughout the year, you could be forgiven for expecting Sector 7 and The Front Line to dominate the charts during the summer months.  In the end the former was a cataclysmic failure, likely because it was a terrible film, and the latter fell below expectations, it was a decent film but perhaps a little thin to play well given its subject matter.  One film you may not have noticed, I know I didn’t, was War of the Arrows, a straightforward period action film with mid-level stars and no pretense about it.

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NYAFF 2012: War of the Arrows (최종병기 활, Choi-jong-byeong-gi Hwal) 2011

Part of MKC's coverage of the 11th New York Asian Film Festival.

It’s about time I threw my hat into the ring and chimed in on War of the Arrows, the top-grossing Korean film of 2011, which has met with positive reactions from all over the globe.  Early in 2011, if you were familiar with the big films that were scheduled to come out throughout the year, you could be forgiven for expecting Sector 7 and The Front Line to dominate the charts during the summer months.  In the end the former was a cataclysmic failure, likely because it was a terrible film, and the latter fell below expectations, it was a decent film but perhaps a little thin to play well given its subject matter.  One film you may not have noticed, I know I didn’t, was War of the Arrows, a straightforward period action film with mid-level stars and no pretense about it.

Click to read more»

Penny Pinchers (티끌모아 로맨스, Ti-kkeul-mo-a Ro-maen-seu) 2011

Korea’s breathless transformation from an outlying nation into one of the world’s leading economies is nothing short of astonishing.  These days the country is a technology leader and is quickly becoming one of the world’s foremost purveyors of entertainment.  By and large the changes have been good for the country as its citizens have become more prosperous and the standard of living has rising dramatically.  However, there is always a price to pay for progress and one of the offshoots of Korea’s good fortune has been a certain shift in values.  Brand fetishization can be seen as a natural and perhaps necessary ill following the collective increase in disposable income.  Whereas thirty years ago the general Korean public may not have been aware of foreign luxury goods, now they’re omnipresent across the land.

Penny Pinchers is a lighthearted romcom which acts like an antidote to the recent raft of consumerist films that have come out of Korea, such as Little Black Dress (2011).  It’s a quirky film which takes a different approach to the genre compared with Korea’s recent offerings.  Thriftiness is the name of the game and the bulk of the narrative is given other to the sometimes difficult process of survival that many directionless 20-somethings are forced to endure.

Ji-woong is an unemployed 26-year-old who is about to lose his apartment and seems hopelessly lost as he attempts to navigate adulthood in modern day Seoul.  His next door neighbour is Hong-shil, a remarkably clever and frugal girl who goes to great lengths to 'pinch pennies'.  After taking advantange of Ji-woong’s late rent payments, which get him kicked out of his lodgings, she takes pity on him and brings him on as a sort of apprentice in thriftiness.

The film starts off as a comedy and the romantic element of it doesn’t really get going at first as it will take a long time for the pair to realize they like each other, though we surmise it much earlier on.  There’s also not too much in the way of a plot as we mainly witness the various little schemes and tricks they employ in order to save money.  The vague goal is for Ji-woong to have enough money for a new apartment and as we learn later on, Hong-shil's path will be a melodramatic one at the end of which she must reconcile the death of her mother. 

Hong-shil is thrifty (to put it mildly) and her sort-of-foil is an airheaded golddigger, whom Ji-woong chases after, trying to fool her into thinking he’s a prosperous young man.  This minor protagonist is far less characterized than the lead but I wonder whether she is intended as a reflection of the shifting values in modern Korea.  Is the director lamenting it?  If so, why do men get off so easily?

If this is a commentary on the commodification of modern Korean’s interests and desires perhaps the two female characters act as signposts of two different generational paradigms.  On the one hand the lead represents a generation that can’t let go of the past while the floozy is an airhead blithely unaware of anything that falls outside of her instant and selfish gratification, though she does get her comeuppance in the end.  She’s even ready and willing for sex on a first date (ostensiby a reward for designer shoes), a rare thing in Korean cinema, also most likely a slur on her character.

The great charm of Penny Pinchers is its easygoing nature and while it sometimes begins to explore bigger issues it is never less than a well-paced and enjoyable film.  A lot of the film’s affableness can be credited to the film’s endearing leads.  I was  not familiar with Han Ye-seul and Song Joong-ki before the film as they have primarily plied their trade in Kdramas but their humour, charisma and charm really make this one of the best romantic comedies of the last few years.  What’s more, while the film does predictably wind down on a melodramatic note, their warmth as performers shines through and guides us serenely through to the film’s climax.

Korean romcoms frequently suffer with their conclusions which often ring false and malign any good groundwork that has been made earlier on but Penny Pinchers deftly handles the combination of pathos, humour and romance that concludes the narrative.  It left me wanting more, in a good way, and I came away very satisified.  Kim Jeong-hwan, a first time writer/director with ample experience in the industry, proves a light touch behind the lens.  A must for romcom fans but also a great standalone film for those who wouldn’t normally seek out such fare.

★★★★☆

Reviews and features on Korean film appear regularly on Modern Korean Cinema.  For film news, external reviews, and box office analysis, take a look at the Korean Box Office Update, Korean Cinema News and the Weekly Review Round-up, which appear weekly on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings (GMT+1).

To keep up with the best in Korean film you can sign up to our RSS Feed, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter.

Weekly Review Round-up (03/10-03/16, 2012)

Another huge Weekly Review Round-up as the Korean blogathon came to an end.  A great wealth of films covered stretching across every time, genre and style you could imagine.

Enjoy!

CURRENT KOREAN RELEASES

Dancing Queen

(The One One Four, March 14, 2012)

Eighteen, Nineteen

(Scene in Korea, March 9, 2012)

Jesus Hospital

(hancinema.net, March 10, 2012)

Stateless Things

(Scene in Korea, March 10, 2012)

RECENT RELEASES

A Little Pond

(Unseen Films, March 10, 2012)

Blind

(Far East Films, March 11, 2012)

(VCinema, March 9, 2012)

Cyrano Agency

(We Eat Lemon, March 10, 2012)

Ghastly

(Film in Asian, March 12, 2012)

Invasion of Alien Bikini

(cineAWESOME!, March 11, 2012)

Metamorpheses

(VCinema, March 9, 2012)

Oki's Movie

(Unseen Films, March 11, 2012)

Penny Pinchers

(Far East Films, March 11, 2012)

Poetry

(KOFFIA Blog, March 11, 2012)

Punch

(Hanguk Yeonghwa, March 13, 2012)

Quick

(Unseen Films, March 10, 2012)

Silenced

(Hangul Celluloid, March 10, 2012)

Sunny

(YAM Magazine, March 11, 2012)

The Day He Arrives

(The Montreal Gazette, March 8, 2012)

The Last Blossom

(Init_Scenes, March 13, 2012)

The Yellow Sea

(KOFFIA Blog, March 10, 2012)

(Varied Celluloid, March 9, 2012)

War of the Arrows

(Asian Movie Pulse, March 10, 2012)

(Modern Korean Cinema, March 11, 2012)

(Korean Grindhouse, March 11, 2012)

PAST FILMS

200 Pounds Beauty, 2006

(YAM Magazine, March 11, 2012)

A Bittersweet Life, 2005

(John Kreng, March 9, 2012)

(VCinema, March 11, 2012)

Ad Lib Night, 2006

(Flying Guillotine, March 8, 2012)

Another Public Enemy, 2005

(Rainy Day Movies 9, 2012)

Bad Guy, 2001

(Next Projection, March 12, 2012)

Christmas in August, 1998

(We Eat Lemon, March 10, 2012)

Dream, 2008

(Next Projection, March 13, 2012)

Duelist, 2005

(Rainy Day Movies 7, 2012)

Epitaph, 2007

(VCinema, March 8, 2012)

Haeundae, 2009

(Hong Kong Rewind, March 9, 2012)

Hansel and Gretel, 2007

(Orion's Ramblings, March 11, 2012)

In Between Days, 2006

(Podcasts Without Honor and Humanity, March 9, 2012)

Life Is Cool, 2008

(Unseen Films, March 9, 2012)

M, 2007

(Rainy Day Movies 7, 2012)

Marathon, 2005

(Init_Scenes, March 9, 2012)

(Podcasts Without Honor and Humanity, March 7, 2012)

Mother, 2009

(At the Cinema, March 11, 2012)

My Dear Enemy, 2008

(Unseens Films, March 11, 2012)

My Heart Beats, 2009

(Korean Grindhouse, March 5, 2012)

Nowhere to Hide, 1999

(Rainy Day Movies 7, 2012)

Oasis, 2002

(Rainy Day Movies 8, 2012)

Oishii Man, 2008

(Podcasts Without Honor and Humanity, March 6, 2012)

Peppermint Candy, 1999

(Rainy Day Movies 8, 2012)

Public Enemy, 2002

(Rainy Day Movies 9, 2012)

Public Enemy Returns, 2008

(Rainy Day Movies 9, 2012)

Rikidozan, 2004

(VCinema, March 11, 2012)

Sky Blue, 2003

(VCinema, March 9, 2012)

The Good, the Bad and the Weird, 2008

(Greetings From Movie City, March 8, 2012)

The Power of Kangwon Province, 1998

(Oriental Film House, March 10, 2012)

Tigresses, 1977

(Planet Choco Zine, March 9, 2012)

Time, 2006

(Next Projection, March 11, 2012)

Truck, 2007

(Unseen Films, March 9, 2012)

The Weekly Review Round-up is a weekly feature which brings together all available reviews of Korean films in the English language (and sometimes French) that have recently appeared on the internet. It is by no means a comprehensive feature and additions are welcome (email pierceconran [at] gmail [dot] com). It appears every Friday morning (GMT+1) on Modern Korean Cinema. For other weekly features, take a look at Korean Cinema News, and the Korean Box Office Update. Reviews and features on Korean film also appear regularly on the site. 

To keep up with the best in Korean film you can sign up to our RSS Feed, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter.

Korean Cinema News (03/08-03/14, 2012)

Lots of interesting news this week, including reports of a Korean director being fired from a Chinese produciton, numerous great interviews, a new Lee Hae-jun (Castaway on the Moon) film, and the great fortunes of the Korean box office.  Loads more trailers, posters and other tidbits to boot.

But first, the final round-up of the Korean Cinema Blogathon which was an enormous success and accumulated almost 200 posts.  A treasure trove of Korean cinema content!

2012 KOREAN CINEMA BLOGATHON

KOREAN CINEMA NEWS

Mixed Reaction for Fox’s Foray Into Local Market
Following Fox International Productions’ announcement of its foray into the Korean film market as a distributor and investor last month, there are mixed reactions here to the possible changes to be brought to the scene.  An international production umbrella unit of America’s major film production house Fox Filmed Entertainment, FIP produces and distributes local language films around the globe.  (The Korea Herald, March 6, 2012)

Kanryu Currents in Japan, Past and Present
Tokyo-based journalist, translator and filmmaker Jason Gray examines the ebb and flow of the Korean Wave (Kanryu in Japanese) in Japan over the past ten years, pinpointing the highs and lows.  (Korean Cinema Today, March 6, 2012)

Why Can't Korean Films Ever Break Into the Academy Awards?
On February 27, The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film went to an Iranian film, A Separation.  The Academy Awards started giving out Best Foreign Language Film awards in 1956.  South Korea has been submitting films for nomination every year since 1963.  Korea's first submission was Mother and the Houseguest by director Shin Sang Ok.  However, Korea has been unlucky all those years as no Korean films have ever been a final nominee for the Academy awards.  (soompi.com, March 7, 2012)

Cha Tae-hyeon Attempts at Historical Gone With the Wind
Cha Tae-hyeon has completed 5 months or so of making the movie The Grand Heist, the film will be released within the year.  The Grand Heist is the story of thieves who get together to plot and break into an ice storeroom in the Chosun times.  The cast of this movie includes: Cheon Bo-geun, Kim Hyang-ki, Min Hyo-rin, Lee Chae-yeong, Oh Ji-ho, Seong Dong-il, Ko Chang-seok and more.  (hancinema.com/daum.net, March 8, 2012)

New Lee Hae-jun, Jeon Soo-il and Kim Baek-jun projects get Financing in Hong Kong
Carrying on a tradition that includes directors such as Bong Joon-ho, Park Chan-wook and Im Sang-soo, this year three Korean projects will be participating in the 10th Hong Kong - Asia Film Financing Forum (HAF).  The three Korean projects - Jeon Soo-il’s Another Country, Kim Baek-jun’s Monsters and Lee Hae-jun’s My Dictator, will be at HAF looking for co-producers, financiers, sales agents and pre-sales.  (Korean Cinema Today, March 8, 2012)

Kwak Jae-yong Fired From Yang Gui Fei
The film production team of Yang Gui Fei has fired South Korean director Kwak Jae-yong (My Sassy Girl, 2001), confirming earlier media speculation about his departure during the filming of the historical drama, Sina Entertainment reports.  (china.org.cn, March 9, 2012)

Korean Film The Man From Nowhere To Get American Remake
Remaking foreign films for the American market is no new dance, and it continues with the announcement by Dimension Films that they will be remaking the South Korean hit The Man From Nowhere (2010).  The movie tells the story of a quiet, reclusive pawn shop owner with a dark, painful past.  (Geeks of Doom, March 10, 2012)

Korean Indie Films Beckon Fans
Local independent cinema has not seen many blockbuster hits like 2009’s Old Partner lately but smaller films have slowly yet surely been receiving wider exposure.  This month sees a particularly strong lineup of low-budget movies in theaters across the country, including international film fest-verified pictures.  Indie flick enthusiasts and moviegoers looking for alternatives to mainstream fare can appreciate this genre, not only in local arthouses, but also at larger venues.  (The Korea Times, March 12, 2012)

Out of Jail, Ex-Professor and His Crossbow Fight South Korea’s Judiciary
On Monday, Kim Myung-ho, holding his book, revisited the scene of the 2007 crossbow shooting that landed him in prison: the judge’s apartment building.  Judge Park Hong-woo emerged from the elevator, and the two shared eye contact for a second.  Mr. Kim’s outrage has resonated with South Koreans, with a movie about his dispute with the South Korean judicial system selling more than 3.5 million tickets since it was released in January.  (The New York Times, March 12, 2012)

Silent Film Narrator Returns to Modern Stage
What would it have been like to watch a silent film with live narration and music?  Today’s moviegoers were given an opportunity to watch Korea’s oldest surviving silent film, Crossroads of Youth, last week, accompanied by live music and narration – all in the 1930s style.  Just like the “silent era” in the 20s and 30s, they saw and heard a “byeonsa” – Korean term for silent-film narrator – “performing” each and every action of the histrionic piece first released in 1934.  (The Korea Herald, March 12, 2012)

Emma Watson Picks a Korean Film Among Her Favorites
Harry Potter actress Emma Watson recently named a 2008 Korean film as one of her favorite movies.  According to reports from local news agencies, the actress best known for playing Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter films picked Breathless as one of her favorites in an interview with Vogue Magazine.  (soompi.com, March 13, 2012)

Tribeca Film Festival Takes Planet of Snail
The 8th Tribeca Film Festival has announced its upcoming selection to include South Korean director Yi Seung-jun’s Planet of Snail, a documentary about a deaf and blind man, his wife with a spinal disability, and their unique story.  Planet of Snail has been selected to Tribeca’s World Documentary Feature Competition.  The film will be making its North American premiere there.  The festival will be held in New York City, April 18 – 29, 2012.  (KoBiZ, March 14, 2012)

Finecut Dials Up Love 911
Seoul-based sales company Finecut has announced it will be selling the upcoming film Love 911 starting at the Hong Kong Filmart next week.  Starring Ko Soo and Han Hyo-joo, the film is about an unlikely romance between a dedicated firefighter with a painful past and a cold-hearted emergency room (ER) doctor who is solely focused on her career.  (KoBiZ, March 14, 2012)

Kang Woo-suk Returns with Legend Punch
Director Kang Woo-suk is prepping a new film, his first since last year's GLove.   Legend Punch is based on a webcomic and follows a man who enters a reality fighting show. Him and other conttestants vie for the 20 million won prize.  Filming is scheduled to commence in July and this likely means that the next installment in the Public Enemy franchise will be delayed until 2014 unless Kang hands the reigns of the franchise to someone else.  In any case Sol Kyeong-gu is busy shooting Lee Myung-se's new film Mister K. (Asian Wiki, March 2012)

INTERVIEWS

Planet of Snail Director Yi Seung-jun
Top prize winner at the 24th International Documentary Festival Amsterdam (IDFA), director Yi Seung-jun’s Planet of Snail is a documentary about deaf and blind husband Cho Young-chan and his wife Kim Soon-ho, who has a spinal impediment.  The film will soon be screened at the Tribeca Film Festival and head of its March 22 release in Korea, Kim Seong-hoon met with Yi to talk about Planet of Snail for Korean Cinema Today (KCT).  (Korean Cinema Today, March 7, 2012)

HAF Feature Interview with Lee Hae-jun, My Dictator
Set to participate in the 10th Hong Kong – Asian Film Financing Forum (HAF), director Lee Hae-jun’s My Dictator is about three dictators.  One is Park Chung-hee in the South and the other is Kim Il-sung in the North – the two dictators who ruled the split Korean peninsula in the 1970s; the other dictator is a father and the main character of this film.  Lee's previous film was Castaway on the Moon (2009).  (Korean Cinema Today, March 8, 2012)

HAF Feature Interview with Jeon Soo-il, Another Country
Director Jeon Soo-il is due to participate in the upcoming Hong Kong – Asia Film Financing Forum (HAF) with the project Another Country.  At the time of writing, he was shooting his latest film El Condor Pasa in Busan and Peru.  Another Country will be his next film after El Condor Pasa.  Produced by Dongnyuk Film, Jeon’s Another Country has a budget of KW1 billion (US$889,000), with plans for half of that to come from Korea and half from a foreign partner.  (Korean Cinema Today, March 8, 2012)

HAF Feature Interview with Kim Baek-jun, Monsters
Director Kim Baek-jun (born in 1970) is preparing his third film Monsters with production company JK Film (Haeundae).  The project’s budget is set at about KW 800 million (US$711,000).  He made his directorial debut with My Dear Diary, which was invited to the Jeonju International Film Festival (JIFF) competition.  Monsters will be taking part in the 10th Hong Kong - Asia Film Financing Forum (HAF) this month.  (Korean Cinema Today, March 8, 2012)

TRAILERS

Home Sweet Home


My Way


The Scent

POSTERS

As One

Home Sweet Home

My Way

The Grand Heist

The Scent

BOX OFFICE

Helpless Continues Korean Hot Streak With First Place Finish

(Modern Korean Cinema, March 11, 2012)

Domestic Films Dominate Box Office in February

Domestic movies dominated the South Korean box office last month.  The Korean Film Council said domestically produced films captured a 75-point-nine percent market share in February, up 26-point-four percentage points from 49-point-five percent in January.  (KBS, March 7, 2012)

Korean Cinema News is a weekly feature which provides wide-ranging news coverage on Korean cinema, including but not limited to: features; festival news; interviews; industry news; trailers; posters; and box office. It appears every Wednesday morning (GMT+1) on Modern Korean Cinema. For other weekly features, take a look at the Korean Box Office Update and the Weekly Review Round-up. Reviews and features on Korean film also appear regularly on the site. 

To keep up with the best in Korean film you can sign up to our RSS Feed, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter.

2012 Korean Cinema Blogathon

Modern Korean Cinema is very proud to be involved with this year's Korean Cinema Blogathon.  All of the event's links will be mirrored here throughout the week.

This post will remained stickied to the top during the week and can also be found as a tab in the above menu.

Hope you all enjoy this great event and please submit your own content!

This year's Blogathon is run by Rufus over at cineAWESOME! and all of the event's links can also be found at at KOFFIA, VCinema, Hangul Celluloid, New Korean Cinema, HanCinema and Far East Films.

Link Submissions Rules (from host cineAWESOME!):
-Please submit links with the author of the article, the title/topic of the article and the link to that article.  If in another language please indicate that in the submission as well!
-Submit links to [email protected], or on our Facebook page.

March 5, 2012

Richard Gray writes “Korean First: Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance” over at KOFFIA!

Cho Seongyong reconsiders The Yellow Sea over at his blog!

Amy watches Spring Bears Love (with cineAWESOME! favorite Bae Doona) over at YAM Magazine.

Paul Bramhall writes about his first experiences with Korean cinema in the article Hammer & Tooth: My First Encounter with Korean Cinema over at KOFFIA.

Our very own Jeff Wildman takes on one of the strangest romantic comedies in years: I’m A Cyborg, But That’s Okay.

Sarah Ward writes about one of the best actors in the industry today with her article Song Kang-ho: An adaptable icon over at KOFFIA

Giacomo Lee reviews highschool indie drama Bleak Night and our first tumblr entry!

DBBorroughs watches the war film 71-Into the Fire over at Unseen Films.

Martin Cleary starts a great list with Film Recommendations – Fifteen Films of the New Korean Cinema (Part One) over at New Korean Cinema.

Pierce Conran gives us the skinny on Korean ticket sales with Korean Box Office Update (03/2-03/4, 2012) over at Modern Korean Cinema.

Wildgrounds takes us on a tour of Korea with South Korean Film Locations.

Milo writes Mighty South Korean Thrillers: The Yellow Sea and The Chaser over at Blog of the Northstar

Connor McMorran contributes three! Hong Sang-soo articles Woman is the Future of Man HaHaHa and The Day He Arrivesover at Rainy Day Movies.

Pierce Conran reviews Song Il-gon’s latest film Always over at Modern Korean Cinema.

Ghost writes KOREAN FILMS: WE AREN’T ALL ABOUT VENGEANCE over at Yam Magazine! (So true)

Orion looks at sci-fi omnibus film Doomsday Book in Doomsday Book-Where is your Sci-fi Korea? over at Orion’s Ramblings.

Alua writes Korean Cinema…Outside of London over on the blog Otherwhere.

Dini R. takes a look at Bleak Night over at We Eat Lemon.

James Schergen reviews Come Rain, Come Shine over at Flying Guillotine.

Ki Mun reviews Helpless over at Scene in Korea.

Kenneth Brorsson, Rufus de Rham, Paul Quinn begin What’s Korean Cinema Season 2 with Castaway on the Moon over at the Podcast on Fire network.

Kenneth Brorsson reviews Oasis at Podcast on Fire Network.

Adam D. looks at the classic North/South feud in the form of kaiju films YONGARY and PULGASARI over at VCinema Show.

Pierce Conran reviews Countdown for the fine folks at VCinema.

Christopher Wheeler takes a look at Xtreme Korea with The Man From Nowhere over at KOFFIA.

Colleen Wanglund looks back at A TALE OF TWO SISTERS over at VCinema.

James Brown looks at his own experience with Korean cinema with Audacious and Refreshing: Discovering Korean Cinemaover at KOFFIA.

Julyssa continues from last year with MY LOVE FOR KOREAN CINEMA PART. 2 – SUNNY SIDE UP over at Yam Magazine.

Jimi reviews Kim Ki-duk classic The Isle over at Oriental Film House

Anna reviews Drifting Away over at Korean Indie (one of my favorite Korean music blogs)

Jacob Feltner reviews Bleak Night in an episode of Podcast Without Honor and Humanity.

Brad Gullickson watches The Good, The Bad and The Weird right here on cineAWESOME!

Wasim Hossain writes four! reviews: I’m a Cyborg, But That’s Okay, Poetry, Feather, and A Dirty Carnival.

Rufus talks about how he got started in the Korean film scene with The Beginnings: or how a joke changed Rufus’ life right here on cineAWESOME!

"The Emergence and Growth of Sexual Content in Korean Cinema" essay/paper that formed the basis for Hangulcelluloid's talk at the 'East Winds' symposium (Coventry university) in March 2012.

"Love, Loss and Laughter" essay/paper that formed the basis of Hangul Celluloid's talk at the 'Asian Exposure' symposium at CUEAFS last year.

March 6, 2012

Lynn Shipp reviews Bichunmoo over at Wolves In Winter.

Mark talks about The Problem of Movie Soundtracks over at Korean Indie!

Sung Moon reviews Take Care of My Cat for Yam Magazine.

Julian Buckeridge takes a look at Director Ryoo Seung-wan’s career with More Than Just an Action Kid over at KOFFIA.

Hieu Chau finds Korean film in Cinema with a Vengeance at KOFFIA.

Paul Bramhall writes Going International: A Look at ‘Ninja Assassin’ & ‘The Warrior’s Way’ for KOFFIA.

Martin Cleary continues his Film Recommendations – Fifteen Films of the New Korean Cinema (Part Two) over at New Korean Cinema.

DB Borroughs reviews Showdown over at Unseen Films.

Pierce Conran gives us his Top 10 Korean Films of 2010 over at Modern Korean Cinema.

Andrew Saroch reviews War of The Arrows for Far East Films.

Phil Mills reviews Death Bell for Far East Films.

Andrew Skeates reviews The Front Line for Far East Films.

Dini R. reviews 2011′s smash hit Sunny over at We Eat Lemons.

Orion writes Hollywood Invasion: the End of Korean Cinema? over at Orion’s Ramblings.

Mr. C reviews Miss, Please Be Patient (1981) over at Planet Chocko.

Marc Raymond gives us a “A Hong Sang-soo Primer” over at Cinephile Foreigner in Korea.

Rebo Luistro reviews Hello Ghost over at Rebzombie Reviews.

Marc Saint-Cyr reviews Lee Chang-dong’s Green Fish at VCinema.

Kimchi Soul talks about DVD Bang Experience over at, well, her blog Kimchi Soul.

Connor McMorran graces us with three reviews of Ryu Seung-wan films: No Blood, No Tears, Crying Fist, and The City of Violence over at Rainy Day Movies.

Pierce Conran reviews Champ at VCinema.

Dr. Stan Glick highlights the Hong Sang-soo retrospective at MoMI, and points to older reviews of Secret Reunion, Aachi and Ssipak, Poetry, and Secret Sunshine. As well as linking to an interview with Lee Chang-dong, and highlighting a very special issue of Asian Cult Cinema.

Alua reviews Crossroads of Youth over at Otherwhere.

Colleen Wanglund reviews Phone for VCinema.

Samson Kwok writes A Special Film: Bong Joon-ho’s Mother for KOFFIA.

Richard Grey talks Violence Meets Violence: I Saw The Devil over at KOFFIA.

Raelene L. talks about Discovering Korean Cinema: Redefining Storytelling and Kim Ki-duk’s 3-Iron for KOFFIA.

Mini Mini Movie Review posts a piece on an E J-Yong interview.

March 7, 2012

Dini R. Starts the day with a review of indie coming of age story Eighteen on We Eat Lemons.

Matthew J. Constantine returns to review the Blade Runner rip-off Natural City right here on cineAWESOME!

DB Borroughs reviews Children at Unseen Films.

Pierce Conran gives us the Korean Cinema News from 3/1-3/7 over at Modern Korean Cinema.

Paul Quinn posts two of his essays on Korean film done for the East Winds Symposiums over at Hangul Celluloid.

Amy writes about her love for Bae Doona (we love her too) over at Yam Magazine.

Paul Bramhall writes Hollywood Bound: Korea’s Trio of Talent Head West for KOFFIA.

Orion reviews Jeon Woochi over at Orion’s Ramblings.

Kimchi Soul reviews Crossroads of Youth and Handphone over at Kimchi Soul.

Ki Mun gives an overview of Korean cinema for March 2012 over at Scene in Korea.

Mr. C. reviews Armless Swordsman over at Planet Chocko. (I keep wondering where he gets all these great classic films!)

FilmPuff reviews Haunted Village aka Arang over at Not A Film Critic (in Portuguese but you should all be using Google Chrome which will translate)

Christopher Bourne reviews Tale of Cinema (part of the Love Will Tear Us Apart series at Japan Society NYC) over at The Bourne Cinema Conspiracy.

Pierce Conran reviews one of my favorite films Chilsu and Mansu over at Modern Korean Cinema.

DB Borroughs reviews The Man Who Was Superman over at Unseen Films.

Our own Jeff Wildman reviews Oasis and The Chaser right here on cineAWESOME!

Alua reviews Treeless Mountain at Otherwhere.

John Berra covers Dream for VCinema.

Rebo Luistro reviews Black Dress over at Rebzombie Reviews.

VCinema drops Episode 40 covering Saving My Hubby over at VCinema.

James Brown takes a Time Out: An appreciative stroll through Promenade over at KOFFIA.

Tim Milfull talks about How Oldboy Changed the Way I view Asian Cinema for KOFFIA.

March 8, 2012

Pierce Conran comes back strong with a review of 2011′s Penny Pinchers over at Modern Korean Cinema.

Over at Unseen Films, DB Borroughs reviews the funny Hi Dharma 2.

Dini R. is back from We Eat Lemon, this time with a look at the ‘sugar, spice and everything nice’ Antique.

Richard Gray over at KOFFIA gives us a look at Lee Young-ae’s career.

Peter Nellhaus gives us a review of Blood Rain at Coffee Coffee and More Coffee.

At Laxante Cultural, Pedro Alfonso takes a look at Chan-wook Park’s controversial Thirst. (In Portuguese)

Over at Robot x Robot, Lynn Shipp compares the good, the bad and the ugly of Korean Comedies in My Sassy Girlfriend Vs. Crazy First Love.

The one and only Dr. Stan Glick writes about Tale of Cinema over at AsianCineFest.

Guest contributor Adam Hartzell writes about two of Martin Scorsese’s favorite films, Park Ki-young’s Camels and Park Chan-ok’s Jealousy Is My Middle Name over at VCinema.

Over at Genkina hito’s J-Film Review, Jason Maher takes a look at Kim Jee-woon’s directorial debut The Quiet Family.

Yogi reviews Joong-Hyun Kim’s Choked over at Yogi’s Movie Consumption Blog.

Pierce Conran reviews Jo Beom-goo’s Quick over at VCinema.

Orion gives us The Promotional Weaknesses of Korean Films (Abroad) over at Orion’s Ramblings.

DB Borroughs of Unseen Films has written a review for the film Cyrano Agency. (If you live in NYC, this coming Tuesday to see it for free)

Over at Life As Fiction, Rahat Ahmed reviews Lee Han’s Punch.

Kim Ki-duk’s 3-Iron is reviewed by L over at La Troisième Chambre. (In French, but you can translate it with Google Chrome)

Christopher Wheeler discusses Revenge: Korean Style over at KOFFIA.

Charles Heidel reviews Kim Jee-woon’s The Good, The Bad, The Weird over at Greetings From Movie City USA.

Jacob Feltner from the fantastic Podcast Without Honor and Humanity has recorded three more episodes, Oishii Man,Marathon and In Between Days.

Colleen Wanglund writes about Epitaph over at VCinema.

Over at our friends at KOFFIA, Sarah Ward is Delving Into the Darkness of Park Chan-wook.

March 9, 2012

Jaime Grijalba reviews I’m A Cyborg, But That’s Okay over at Exodus 8:2 in Spanish.

Paul Bramhall writes yet another great piece for KOFFIA, titled Hwang Jang-lee: King of the Leg Fighters, Hwang Jang-lee is generally awesome so you guys should really read this one.

Michel Boléchala reviews The Cat for our first French entry over at SHINE.

Samson Kwok talks about how he discovered Korean cinema in Original and Incredibly Fun: Discovering Korean Cinema over at KOFFIA.

Pierce Conran gives us the Weekly Review Roundup for 3/5-3/9 over at Modern Korean Cinema.

Ki Mun reviews Eighteen, Nineteen over at Scene in Korea.

DB Borroughs reviews Truck over at Unseen Films.

Antoniya Petkova reviews the DVD of Front Line at Cine Vue and Midnight FM and The Man from Nowhere over at iCov both from Coventry University East Asian Film Society.

Coventry University East Asian Film Society also gives us Spencer Murphy’s interview with Lee Jeong-beom, Sabina Pasaniuc’s review of Bedevilled, and Mihnea Gheorghita’s review of Yellow Sea all at Cine Vue.

Josh Samford reviews Yellow Sea over at Varied Celluloid.

Israel Serralvo writes about Il Asian Cinema Awards in Spanish over at Hola Corea.

Tom Kent-Williams over at VCinema writes about the Korean animation Sky Blue.

Pierce Conran, again from our friends at VCinema, gives us a ‘look’ at the Korean thriller Blind.

March 10, 2012

Jon Jung, head honcho of VCinema, reviews Metamorphosis.

Jimi reviews Power of Kangwon Province over at Oriental Film House.

Dini R. reviews both Christmas in August and Cyrano Agency over at We Eat Lemon.

DB Borroughs reviews Life is Cool and Little Pond over at Unseen Film.

Gail Kavanagh gives us 10 Reasons to Become A Korean Cinema Addict over at Asian Cinema Cafe.

Kimchi Soul reviews The Day He Arrives at Kimchi Soul.

Refresh Daemon reviews Marathon over at Init_Scenes.

James Schergen reviews Ad-Lib Night over at Flying Guillotine.

Mr. C reviews Tigresses over at Planet Chocko.

Paul Bramhall takes a walk In the Footsteps of the Stars: My Trip to the KOFIC Namyangju Studios over at KOFFIA.

Kieran Tully writes about Korean film down under: accessibility for Australian audiences over at KOFFIA

Joseph Sampson gives us 3 Korean Movies for all Seasons at KOFFIA.

Sarah Ward gives us Complex and Compelling: The Yellow Sea over at KOFFIA.

Orion gives us Promotional Weaknesses of Korean Movies (Domestic) over at Orion’s Ramblings.

Ki Mun reviews Stateless Things over at Scene in Korea.

March 11, 2012

Elwood Jones writes An Introduction To Korean Cinema over at From the Depths of DVD Hell.

Kimchi Soul gives us the Top 5 Korean Cinema Events in London over at Kimchi Soul.

Bruno Zunino reviews Il Mare over at Asiaphile (in French).

Marc Saint-Cyr reviews A Bittersweet Life for VCinema.

Refresh Deamon writes Commentary: My Korean Cinema Story about his own personal experience with Korean film over at Init_Scenes.

DB Borroughs reviews Quick and Oki’s Movie over at Unseen Films.

Paul Quinn reviews The Crucible (aka Silenced) over at Hangul Celluloid.

FilmPuff reviews Doll Master over at Not A Film Critic in Portuguese.

Pierce Conran reviews War of the Arrows over at Modern Korean Cinema.

Dini R. writes Impressionable and Recommendable Korean Movies over at We Eat Lemon.

Mondocurry reviews Quick at Unseen Films.

Andrew Saroch reviews Penny Pinchers and Blind over at Far East Films.

Orion reviews Hansel and Gretel over at Orion’s Ramblings.

James McCormick reviews Invasion of Alien Bikini right here on cineAWESOME!

Kieran Tully writes Busan Film Festival 2011: The Reviews over at Tully’s Recall. (can also be found on KOFFIA)

THE BIG KOFFIA CATCH UP UPDATE:

Paul Bramhall writes Kim Ji-woon: International or Korean?…Take Your Pick.

Raelene Loong writes Discovering Korean Cinema: J.S.A. Joint Security Area.

Hugo Ozman write about The Won and Only Won Bin.

Christopher Wheeler muses on Poetry: Discover how film can truly be a beautiful creature.

Paul Bramhall wrote Lights, Camera, ACTION! – My visit to the Seoul Action School (posted on the 8th and I missed it!)

Kieran Tully writes So you want to run a Korean Film Festival: The KOFFIA Story. (also posted on the 8th).

Pierce goes over the fortunes of Korean box office in this week's Korean Box Office Update at Modern Korean Cinema.

Brad takes Gullickson a look at The Warrior’s Way for cineAWESOME!.

Refresh Daemon reviews A Moment to Remember and gives us Commentary: Memorable Music Moments in Korean Film over at his blogs init_scenes and init_music.

mondocurry reviews My Dear Enemy for Unseen Films.

Pierce Conran looks at Upcoming Releases over at Modern Korean Cinema!

John Kreng reviews A Bittersweet Life for his self named blog!

Jenna reviews 200 Pound Beauty for Yam Magazine.

Amy and Julyssa LOVE Sunny over at Yam Magazine…seriously. They really love this film.

Colleen Wanglund gives us her 10 Favorite Korean Horror films over at VCinema.

Josh Samford grapples with the biopic RIKIDOZAN: A HERO EXTRAORDINAIRE at VCinema.

Reviews and features on Korean film appear regularly on Modern Korean Cinema.  For film news, external reviews, and box office analysis, take a look at the Korean Box Office Update, Korean Cinema News and the Weekly Review Round-up, which appear weekly on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings (GMT+1).

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