Showing posts with label war of the arrows. Show all posts
Showing posts with label war of the arrows. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

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.

Friday, June 29, 2012

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.

Friday, June 8, 2012

Weekly Review Round-up (06/02-06/08, 2012)

First Weekly Review Round-up live from Seoul!  A few write-ups on As One and Kim Ki-duk's Arirang this week as they are release in Australia and the UK respectively.


CURRENT FILMS


As One

Friday, May 18, 2012

Weekly Review Round-up (05/12-05/18, 2012)

A lot of reviews this week and many of them for a trio of action/war film which are currently making the rounds in North America, either in theatres or on the home video market.  I'm thrilled to see such interest in these titles but the fact that they all stem from the same genre doesn't really give me high hopes for expanding English-language consumers interest in the broader Korean film industry.  THese titles just confirm that Korean cinema, at present, is still viewed as a niche genre industry abroad, which couldn't be further from the truth.  Sigh...

Also from now on you may notice a few more Twitch reviews as I have been taken on as their Korean correspondent.

Enjoy!

FUTURE FILMS


(Twitch, May 12, 2012)

Friday, May 11, 2012

Weekly Review Round-up (05/05-05/11, 2012)

Many reviews for a wide variety of films this week and I've rejigged the subsections to reflect films that have already been released in Korea and those that have played at international festivals but have, as of yet, not secured a Korean release date.

Over on the VCinema Show website, which I am a contributor for, Adam Hartzell has embarked on a week-long consideration of Hong Sang-soo's The Day He Arrives as he posts his thoughts after seeing it every day during its week long engagement in San Francisco.  Below are the links to his special feature with only the final day outstanding, which will likely be posted this evening:


Friday, March 16, 2012

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


(The One One Four, March 14, 2012)

(Scene in Korea, March 9, 2012)

(hancinema.net, March 10, 2012)

(Scene in Korea, March 10, 2012)


RECENT RELEASES


(Unseen Films, March 10, 2012)

Blind

(We Eat Lemon, March 10, 2012)

(Film in Asian, March 12, 2012)

(cineAWESOME!, March 11, 2012)

(VCinema, March 9, 2012)

(Unseen Films, March 11, 2012)

(Far East Films, March 11, 2012)

(KOFFIA Blog, March 11, 2012)

(Hanguk Yeonghwa, March 13, 2012)

(Unseen Films, March 10, 2012)

(Hangul Celluloid, March 10, 2012)

(YAM Magazine, March 11, 2012)

(The Montreal Gazette, March 8, 2012)

(Init_Scenes, March 13, 2012)

The Yellow Sea

War of the Arrows


PAST FILMS


(YAM Magazine, March 11, 2012)

A Bittersweet Life, 2005

(Flying Guillotine, March 8, 2012)

(Rainy Day Movies 9, 2012)

Bad Guy, 2001
(Next Projection, March 12, 2012)

(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)

(Orion's Ramblings, March 11, 2012)

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

(Unseen Films, March 9, 2012)

M, 2007
(Rainy Day Movies 7, 2012)

Marathon, 2005

Mother, 2009
(At the Cinema, March 11, 2012)

(Unseens Films, March 11, 2012)

(Korean Grindhouse, March 5, 2012)

(Rainy Day Movies 7, 2012)

Oasis, 2002
(Rainy Day Movies 8, 2012)

Oishii Man, 2008
(Podcasts Without Honor and Humanity, March 6, 2012)

(Rainy Day Movies 8, 2012)

(Rainy Day Movies 9, 2012)

(Rainy Day Movies 9, 2012)

Rikidozan, 2004
(VCinema, March 11, 2012)

Sky Blue, 2003
(VCinema, March 9, 2012)

(Greetings From Movie City, March 8, 2012)

(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 UpdateReviews 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.

Sunday, March 4, 2012

Weekly Review Round-up (02/25-03/04, 2011)

Terribly for the two-day delay for this week's update, I'm currently in Coventry attending the East Winds Symposium + Film Festival and haven't been able tear myself away!  In any case lots of great pieces this week including many for The Front Line which saw its home market release in the UK this past Monday.

Don't forget this year's Korean Blogathon starts tomorrow and will be mirrored on Modern Korean Cinema here.


CURRENT KOREAN RELEASES


(FilmBiz Asia, March 2, 2012)


RECENT RELEASES


(Flixist, February 25, 2012)

(hancinema.net, March 3, 2012)

(CriterionCast, February 25, 2012)

(Flixist, February 24, 2012)

(hancinema.net, February 25, 2012)

(Init_Scenes, February 29, 2012)

(Korean Grindhouse, February 26, 2012)

(The One One Four, February 25, 2012)

(Flixist, February 24, 2012)

The Front Line

(filmnotion.com, February 24, 2012)

(Init_Scenes, March 3, 2012)

(Seongyong's Private Place, March 2, 2012)

(Seen in Jeonju, March 2, 2012)

War of the Arrows


PAST FILMS


Champion, 2002
(ROK Drop, February 27, 2012)

Mist, 1967
(Seen in Jeonju, February 25, 2012)

(Korean Grindhouse, March 3, 2012)

The Actresses, 2009


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 UpdateReviews 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.

Friday, February 24, 2012

Weekly Review Round-up (02/18-02/24, 2012)

A boatload of reviews for War of the Arrows, which was recently released on DVD/Blu-ray in the US, and The Front Line, which is getting its homevideo release in the UK on Monday.  Plenty more, including an early review for March thriller Helpless.


CURRENT KOREAN RELEASES


(SBS, February 22, 2012)

(Yonhap News Agency, February 24, 2012)


RECENT RELEASES


(Init_Scenes, February 20, 2012)

(Init_Scenes, February 17, 2012)

(Korean Grindhouse, February 20, 2012)

(Gwangju Blog, February 15, 2012)

(TV Bomb, February 23, 2012)

The Front Line

The Unjust

(The Movie Blog, February 24, 2012)

War of the Arrows


PAST FILMS


(Init_Scenes, February 19, 2012)

Bad Buy, 2001
(Hanguk Yeonghwa, February 17, 2012)

(Korean Candy, February 20, 2012)

Humming, 2007
(Hanguk Yeonghwa, February 18, 2012)

Save the Green Planet, 2003
(Modern Korean Cinema, February 20, 2012)

(Rainy Day Movies, February 20, 2012)

(Hanguk Yeonghwa, February 19, 2012)

(Hangul Celluloid, February 19, 2012)

(Hanguk Yeonghwa, February 22, 2012)

Windstruck, 2004
(The Asian Flicks, February 22, 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 UpdateReviews 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.

Friday, February 17, 2012

Weekly Review Round-up (02/11-02/17, 2012)

Lots of big reviews for My Way this week as it played at the Berlin Film Festival and also a number of reviews for romance films coinciding with Valentine's Day this past Tuesday, including a series for Hanguk Yeonghwa.


RECENT RELEASES


(asianmovieweb.com, February 14, 2012)

(Beyond Hollywood, February 15, 2012)

Couples

(Beyond Hollywood, February 13, 2012)

(Beyond Hollywood, February 10, 2012)

My Way

(Modern Korean Cinema, February 16, 2012)

(Init_Scenes, February 15, 2012)

(Hanguk Yeonghwa, February 11, 2012)

(Korean Grindhouse, February 11, 2012)

(koreanfilm.org, February 2012)

(Twitch, February 12, 2012)

(Drama Beans, February 12, 2012)


PAST FILMS


(Hanguk Yeonghwa, February 15, 2012)

(Hanguk Yeonghwa, February 13, 2012)

(Otherwhere, February 13, 2012)

Gagman, 1989
(Mini Mini Movie, February 15, 2012)

(Korean Candy, February 17, 2012)

(Seen in Jeonju, February 12, 2012)

(Hanguk Yeonghwa, February 14, 2012)

Musa, 2001
(Subtitled Online, February 12, 2012)

(Hanguk Yeonghwa, February 16, 2012)

(Init_Scenes, February 10, 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 UpdateReviews 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.

Friday, February 10, 2012

Weekly Review Round-up (02/02-0210, 2012)

A pair of reviews for the hotly anticipated thriller Howling this week which will be opening on the 16th in Korea.  Many more reviews of past and current films also on offer from a wide range of sources.


CURRENT KOREAN RELEASES


Howling

(Seonyeong's Private Place, February 4, 2012)


RECENT FILMS


(Hanguk Yeonghwa, February 7, 2012)

(YAM Mag, February 9, 2012)

(Beyond Hollywood, February 6, 2012)

(Init_Scenes, February 3, 2012)

(Init_Scenes, February 5, 2012)

(Seen in Jeonju, February 3, 2012)

Pain

Quick

Silenced

(Hanguk Yeonghwa, February 9, 2012)

The Client

The Front Line

(The One One Four, February 8, 2012)


PAST FILMS


(Hanguk Yeonghwa, February 5, 2012)

D-Wars, 2007
(Korean Grindhouse, February 4, 2012)

(New Korean Cinema, February 9, 2012)

(Hangul Celluloid, February 8, 2012)

The Chaser, 2008
(Initi_Scenes, February 7, 2012)

Thirst, 2009
(The Daily Athanaeum, February 7, 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 UpdateReviews 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.

Friday, February 3, 2012

Weekly Review Round-up (01/28-02/03, 2012)

A couple of reviews of current films, including the hotly anticipated Nameless Gangster and lots of reviews for past films this week, including a trio concerning Lee Myeong-se's gorgeous Duelist (2005), which was screened in London with a Q&A from Lee himself as part of the KCCUK's 12 Korean Directors program of 2012.


CURRENT KOREAN RELEASES


(hancinema.net, January 28, 2012)

(enewsworld.com, January 27, 2012)


RECENT FILMS


(Korean Candy, February 1, 2012)

(Hanguk Yeonghwa, January 28, 2012)

(Twitch, February 2, 2012)

(Hanguk Yeonghwa, February 2, 2012)

(Modern Korean Cinema, January 30, 2012)

(Hanguk Yeonghwa, February 1, 2012)

(Film Business Asia, February 2, 2012)

(Film School Rejects, January 27, 2012)

The Front Line

(Musings From a Twinkie, January 30, 2012)

(Init_Scenes, February 1, 2012)

(Tai's Film Duet, January 28, 2012)

(Otherwhere, February 2, 2012)


PAST FILMS


DMZ, 1965
(Rainy Day Movies, February 1, 2012)

Duelist, 2005

I'm a Cyborg But That's Okay, 2006

(Drama Beans, January 28, 2012)

(Korean Candy, January 27, 2012)

(Hanguk Yeonghwa, January 30, 2012)

(Korean Candy, February 1, 2012)

Volunteer, 1941
(Seen in Jeonju, January 25, 2012)

(Seen in Jeonju, January 19, 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 UpdateReviews 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.

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Top 10 Korean Films of 2011


All in all 2011 was a bit of a disappointing year for Korean cinema, at least as far as commercial cinema was concerned.  On the other hand, independent films continued to build on their success of the last few years.  However, I'm not overly worried about the state of the industry because at the end of the day it doesn't produce a huge amount of films and is more susceptible to the ebbs and flows of projects than a larger filmmaking centre like Hollywood.  In any case, 2012 looks to be a much stronger year for Korean film.

For a while I was getting very worried about what my top 10 for the year would like, a month ago I'd only seen four of the films listed here.  Thankfully a number of more recent releases became available and things suddenly started to look a lot better.  That being said, I've seen about 45 films from last year but there's a lot that I haven't had a chance to see yet so this list will likely look quite different six month down the line, and if I feel so inclined perhaps I'll change it!

In the below links are my top 10 Korean films for 2011, followed by honourable mentions and my bottom 5.  The only criteria I go by to consider a film from 2011 is if it was released in Korea during that calendar year.

Korean Cinema News (01/26-02/01, 2012)

NY's Korean Film Festival is back and the KCCUK is holding 12 mini director's retrospectives through 2012 in London, so it's a good time to be a Korean film fan (at least if you live in a major metropolis).  Lots of interviews, including three for Lee Myeung-se, trailers, posters, and box office news this week.  

Don't miss MKC's own feature on How Korean Cinema Fared on 2011's Year-end Lists.


KOREAN CINEMA NEWS



“Should I put the word ‘arrowhead’ in a movie title?” joked a film producer during a recent meeting with the Hankyoreh.  The producer’s company certainly hit their target at the box office.  The follow-up to last year’s hit War of the Arrows, which drew 7.4 million viewers, Unbowed (the Korean title of which translates as Broken Arrow), passed the one million viewer mark just over a week after its debut early this year.  (The Hankyoreh, January 27, 2012)

Kwon Sang-woo Finishes Work on New Action Film with Jackie Chan
Hallyu star Kwon Sang-woo has finished work on the movie 12 Chinese Zodiac Heads with Jackie Chan.  The announcement was made yesterday by the actor’s agency, which also reported that Kwon had returned to Korea just before Lunar New Year.  “Currently, Kwon is taking a well-deserved break and is looking over some movie proposals from China, the United States and other countries,” said a representative from the agency.  (Joong Ang Daily, January 28, 2012)

NYC Happenings: NY Korean Film Festival 2012
Whether it's a full-on retrospective at Japan Society, a centennial celebration of studio giant Nikkatsu, or the annual wackiness of NYAFF, New York is a city never short on cinematic offerings from across East Asia, and that has always included a healthy helping of Korean cinema.  From February 24th - 26th, BAMcinématek and the Korean Society, along with Korean movie giant CJ Entertainment, will be presenting 7 contemporary features, big and small in the 10th edition of the New York Korean Film Festival.  (Twitch, January 30, 2012)

Unbowed, a low-budget South Korean film based on the true story of the so-called “crossbow terror” incident of a college professor, is heating up the local box office, drawing renewed public debate over the 2006 incident.  The movie claimed the No. 2 spot by bringing in more than 1 million viewers at local cinemas as of Wednesday, a week after making a robust debut, the Korean Film Council, a government agency in charge of promoting domestic films, said on Thursday.  (The Korea Herald, January 26, 2012)

Controversial Film on Gangjeong Village Finally Hits Theatres
An independent documentary film titled Jam Docu Gangjeong is finally showing in independent movie theaters 40 days after having been banned by the Korean Film Commission. Pressure from the film industry resulted in the film’s eventual release.  The film was reportedly delayed due to its controversial subject matter and the independent film industry is now calling for a policy reform to prevent the Korean Film Commission from banning films it finds politically objectionable.  (The Hankyoreh, January 26, 2012)

Korean movie and K-Pop stars united together for a new effort against piracy being led by Gaon Chartcalled the '2012 Good Downloader Campaign'.  Actors Ahn Sung Gi, Park Joong Hoon, Lee Min Jung, Jang Hyuk, and music stars Yoon Do Hyun (YB), Kim Yuna (Jaurim), Yunho (TVXQ), Nickhun (2PM), Sohee (Wonder Girls), as well as Sulli (f(x)) banded together for the campaign during a shoot yesterday, sending the message that pirating movies and music is illegal and wrong.  (allkpop, January 30, 2012)

Film of the Year Awards (Korea Film Reporters Association)

The Korea Film Reporters Association feted Korean cinema in its 3rd Film of the Year Awards last night.  Silenced picked up best film, with the director prize going to Kang Hyung-chul for Sunny.  Meanwhile Kim Yun-seok and Tang Wei were best actor and actress for their respective roles in Punch and Late Autumn.   (AsianMediaWiki, January 31, 2012)

Over on the Otherwhere blog, Alua has kindly transcribed the full 2012 programme for the Korean Film Nights at the KCCUK.  12 Korean directors will be featured with 4 films and a Q&A each month.  It's hard not to be incredibly jealous of anyone living in London right now.  (Otherwhere, January 27, 2012)


INTERVIEWS

In one excruciating scene of Kang Je-kyu’s new movie My Way, Soviet soldiers order two war prisoners of different nationalities to fight to the death, but the Korean one refuses to kill his fellow Japanese captive, who he had known as a rival in sports.  Instead, an unlikely alliance begins to form.  The movie is the most expensive ever made in South Korea, a fictionalized account of the real-life story of how a Korean man ended up fighting for the Germans in World War II and being found by American soldiers at the invasion of Normandy.  (The Wall Street Journal, January 26, 2012)

Thanks to her previous films In Between Days and Treeless Mountain, and a none-more-indie cast featuringPaul Dano and Jena Malone, So Yong Kim's latest For Ellen had to be one of the most anticipated films of the Sundance Film Festival. Forming one half of a power couple of indie cinema (with Bradley Rust Gray, director of The Exploding Girl and the upcoming Jack and Diane), it marks her first time working with more established names and proves to be her most accessible project to date.  (indieWire, January 25, 2012)

To the present day, Lee Myung-se is probably best known for his 1999 film Nowhere To Hide which was the first ever Korean film to be released on DVD in the UK.  Born on August 20th, 1957, his first directorial feature film was Gagman in 1989, and in 1991 he won the Best New Director award at the Asia-Pacific Film Festival for My Love My Bride.  Since then, he has gone on to make a number of iconic films, including Duelist (2005) and M (2007) - as visually stunning as they are narratively interesting.  (Hangul Celluloid, January 26, 2012)

For January’s edition the director in question was Lee Myeong-se in conjunction with his 2005 film Duelist.  Presiding over the event was Dr. Daniel Martin who introduced both the film and the director, giving the history and context to Lee Myeong-se’s illustrious career and auteuristic sensibilities.  (Hanguk Yeonghwa, January 27, 2012)

Taekwondo at the Apollo: Lee Myung-se and the Great Safety vs. Cinema Debate
The ‘Year of the 12 Directors’ idea is a wonderful one—what began as a series of film screenings in the Korean Cultural Centre has become, for 2012, a celebratory mini-series of director retrospectives which promises to roll on from now until December.  On Thursday night, we spent three engaging hours in the pleasant company of director Lee Myung-se, whose 1999 action/police procedural Nowhere to Hide officially opened the 12 Directors programme over three weeks ago.  (New Korean Cinema, January 30, 2012)


TRAILERS

2 Lines

Russian Coffee

Train



POSTERS

Doomsday Book







BOX OFFICE

(Modern Korean Cinema, January 30, 2012)

South Korean films enjoyed a 22% growth in revenue last year, according to new data from the Korean Film Council (KOFIC).  Nationwide, admissions grew by 8% to 158 million, while box office revenues grew in local currency terms by 7% to ₩1.23 trillion ($1.10 billion).  (Film Business Asia, January 30, 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-upReviews 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.