Edinburgh 2013: Introduction to Korean Showcase

Part of Connor McMorran's coverage for MKC of the Edinburgh International Film Festival (June 19-30, 2013).

Following last year’s retrospective of the works of the long overlooked Japanese director Shinji Somai, Edinburgh International Film Festival’s artistic director Chris Fujiwara now brings focus onto two likewise overlooked aspects of global cinema: the films of Sweden and Korea. Film festivals are an interesting concept as they bring films from all over the world to one particular town or city, allowing local cineastes to explore and discover a wide variety of directors and works. Yet, unfortunately, their main flaw is often their attempt to house such a diverse range of cinematic voices over the relatively short space of one or two weeks.

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Korean Box Office: Man of Steel Not Quite Great Enough for Secretly (06/14-06/16, 2013)

Business was up again this past weekend as just over 2.5 million tickets were sold, though this was largely a result of two blockbusters ducking it out for the top spot. Each scored over one million, a achievement in itself though not the first time it's happened. Meanwhile, the local market share stood at 45%, ecent given the time of year and on par with last year's figure. However, with only two Korean titles in the top 10, one wonders what that figure might look like with a stronger mix of local fare on the marquees.

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New Korean Films: A Short Film Looking Up to the Big Shots (2013 Week 24)

You Are More Than Beautiful

(그녀의 연기)

The father of Cheol-soo, who lives on Jeju Island, is about to die before he seeing his son get married. To fulfill his dream, Cheol-soo calls for the help of a young woman from Seoul, Yeong-hee, who will pretend to be his fiancee. While she is brushing up on the details of their fictional story in the car, Cheol-soo receives a call informing him that his father had been found unconscious. They hurry to get to the hospital and discover the father in a coma. Yeong-hee decides to still act the lie.

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Korean Box Office: Secretly Greatly Not-so-Secret in Great Debut (06/07-06/09, 2013)

The fortunes of the Korean film industry took a dramatic turn this weekend following the release of a major local film which set a slew of new records. Business was booming with almost 3 million admissions recorded over the frame, a significant jump over last year's 2.2 million and almost twice as much as last week. However, the better news was that the local market share lept to 77% (compared with 54% in 2012), following a spell when the domestic industry was having difficulty competing with Hollywood.

	Title	Release Date	Market Share	Weekend	Total	Screens
1	Secretly Greatly	13/06/05	68.90%	2,064,586	3,491,507	1341
2	Star Trek: Into Darkness (us)	13/05/30	11.30%	284,135	1,261,090	412
3	Horror Stories 2	13/06/05	5.60%	172,776	347,311	337
4	Furious 6 (us)	13/05/22	3.40%	97,707	1,708,497	291
5	The Croods (us)	13/05/16	2.60%	82,563	819,621	272
6	Olympus Has Fallen (us)	13/06/05	2.10%	60,573	113,476	283
7	Montage	13/05/16	1.70%	50,518	2,060,999	297
8	After Earth (us)	13/05/30	1.20%	37,122	524,612	270
9	The Great Gatsby (us)	13/05/16	1.00%	28,758	1,391,906	132
10	Nazuma Eleven GO (jp)	13/06/05	0.50%	16,267	30,210	99

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Get Ready for 'Revenge Week' on MKC!

UPDATE: Some unexpected plans have forced me to move REVENGE WEEK on MKC back two weeks. It will now take place July 8-14. Sorry for the delay but this does give everyone more time to contribute! We have already received some great stuff and plenty more is on the way. Please don't be shy and contact us if you would like to take part!

A while back we held a 'Jopok Week' on MKC, focusing on Korea's colorful output of gangster cinema. With reviews, features and guests galore, it was the most fun and engaging week we ever had. It's high time we put on a new event so I'm thrilled to announce that at the end of this month (June 24-30) it'll be 'Revenge Week' here on MKC.

Perhaps more than any other genre, the revenge thriller or drama is ubiquitous with Korean cinema, particularly in the eyes of foreign viewers, many of whom were introduced to the nation's output through classic vengeful fare such Oldboy (2003) and A Bittersweet Life (2005). From Park Chan-wook's highly stylized Vengeance Trilogy and commercial films such as The Man From Nowhere (2010) to independent films such as the austere Bedevilled (2010), there's never been a shortage of revenge-themed films in South Korean cinema.

So why does Korea produce so many revenge narratives? Many theories exist and we hope to explore these during 'Revenge Week' and maybe even throw in a few of our own.

Just like 'Jopok Week' I would like extend an invitation to anyone who would like to contribute a piece on Korean revenge films. Feel free to drop me a line at pierceconran [at] gmail [dot] com.

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 Korean Reviews, which appear weekly on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings (Korean Standard Time).

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.

Jeonju 2013: Experimental Echo of Dragon Explores Myths and Emotion (용문, 2013)

Part of MKC's coverage of the 14th Jeonju International Film Festival.

When it comes to what we expect to see on screen, it’s worth considering sometimes just how strict we can be. Though we demand filmmakers to be creative, our definition of originality is actually quite narrow. As the lights dim and projectors roll, we wait for characters to show up and guide us along through their world and regale, sadden or shock us with their stories. Like many others I often lament the lack of ingenuity that plagues much of modern cinema but stick me in front of a film that does away with all standard forms of narrative (as we know them today) and suddenly I’m at a loss to process what’s unspooling before me.

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New Korean Films: North Korean Spy To Save South Korean Market (2013 Week 23)

Secretly Greatly

(은밀하게 위대하게)

Ryu-hwan is a North Korean elite spy trained to kill. He was sent two years ago as a sleeper agent in Seoul. He lives in a small apartment owned by an old lady, for whom he also works. He knows everyone in the neighborhood but is only seen as that naive young guy with the mind of a child. Suddenly two other spies arrive in the area: Hae-rang pretends to be a rookie guitar player in a rock band, and Hae-jin a regular student. Ryu-hwan helps them to settle and get used to their new life, until they are ordered to commit suicide after a change of power in North Korea.

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MKC Thought Leaders' Corner: North Korea in South Korean Cinema (May 2013)

North Korea has been in the news a lot lately for its latest round of belligerent actions. Many believe that Western media has been exaggerating the danger the communist state poses to South Korea's national security. I can't say that I've noticed any especial alarm among the local populace yet there's no denying that the oppressive regime casts a long shadow over the country. Cinema is just one of the places where this is readily evident, so this month I asked the experts:

Has Korean cinema's representation of North Korea changed over the years?

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Korean Box Office: Star Trek Leads Hollywood Onslaught (05/31-06/02, 2013)

Local fare continues to be overwhelmed at the Korean box office as it scored a meagre 17% market share compared with a much healthier 54% last year. What's more, despite a number of blockbusters on offer, business was also down with only 1.69 million tickets sold overall, down from 2012's 2.04 million during the same weekend.

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New Korean Films: Behold, K-pop Star in Approach! (2013 Week 22)

Rockin' on Heaven's Door 

(뜨거운 안녕)

A K-pop star, Chung-ui, caused a scandal by being involved in a brawl after consuming too much alcohol, and so sees himself condemned to 300 hours of volunteer work in a hospital institute welcoming terminally ill patients. These people do not comply with the regulations, and the institute is threatened with closure. Only Anna still tries to maintain order, and she doesn’t hesitate to yell at Chung-ui as he always tries to do the bare minimum. When he comes upon patients rehearsing in their own band, he decides to personally get invested to help them improve.

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Moving to the City: Urbanization in The Ball Shot by a Midget (난장이가 쏘아올린 작은 공, 1981)

Korean Cinema, especially when at its best, frequently explores pressing themes and social realities to thrilling effect. The deeper I delve into classic Korean cinema, the clearer it becomes that this has always been the case. Throughout Korean film history, the only real difference is that the issues mined by filmmakers have changed over time. One such trait has been encroaching urbanization and among the best examples of its representation on screen is Lee Won-se's The Ball Shot by a Midget (1981).

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Jeonju 2013: Lee Sang-woo's Thrilling EMERGENCY EXIT is a Poetic Gutpunch (비상구, 2013)

Every year, the Jeonju International Film Festival commissions a pair of omnibus features. The longest-running and most famous of these is the Jeonju Digital Project, which has featured a number of star Asian directors over the years. The other is the Short! Short! Short! series, which focuses on young Korean directors helming experimental works. This year’s edition of the latter featured three shorts and four directors tasked with adapting the works of popular local writer Kim Young-ha. Based on Kim’s idiosyncratic stories, the works, each original in their own right, all featured a strong sense of style. Of course, as with many omnibuses, they didn’t all hit the mark. Lee Sang-woo’s opening segment Emergency Exit was my favorite of the bunch and also the best thing I saw at Jeonju this year.

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