Review: ODE TO MY FATHER Puts Blockbuster Spin On Melodrama

By Pierce Conran

Family takes centre stage in Ode to My Father, a new Korean melodrama that is every bit as bombastic as this year's naval battle hit Roaring Currents. Directed by JK Youn (Youn Je-kyun), whose last film Haeundae sauntered over the 10 million admissions barrier in 2009, this new epic drama proves to be an expert balance of scale and intimacy that will surely find a huge audience at home.

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Top 10 Korean Films of 2014

2014 was an interesting year for Korean cinema. From a financial standpoint, the industry remained strong and produced its most successful film of all time (Roaring Currents), even if sales weren't quite able to reach the peaks of the preceding two years. However, from a qualitative angle, the picture was far less rosy. Early in the year, studio slates looked promising but many of the finished products, while undeniably polished, felt overworked and lacked originality. This speaks to growing concerns over corporate influence in the industry's current creative streak. Some feel that talented and especially younger filmmakers aren't being afforded the freedom they used to.

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Hong Sangsoo Taps Jung Jae-young, Kim Min-hee and More for 17th Film

Prolific auteur Hong Sangsoo is getting ready to shoot his 17th (as yet untitled) film this month after fixing his leading cast. Previous collaborators Jung Jae-young (Our Sunhi, 2013) and Yu Jun-sang (The Day He Arrives, 2011) will be joined by Hong first timers Kim Min-hee (Helpless, 2012) and Ko Ah-sung (Snowpiercer).

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Review: Mail-Order Bride Mystery-Drama THUY Driven by Strong Lead

By Hieu Chau

The notion of ordering a bride is largely written off as a joke in various parts of the world but the reality of the scenario is certainly no laughing matter. Particularly in South Korea, where cases of domestic violence (and in some extreme cases, murder and suicide) towards bought brides is reported to be startlingly frequent. It’s this harrowing facet of Korean society that attracted the attention of filmmaker Kim Jae-han, who felt an urge to create a film that reflected a part of Korean society that hasn't been discussed all too much in Korean films.

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EXCLUSIVE: Watch Lee Myung-se's M for Free on MKC

MKC is once again delighted to present a Korean film to view directly here on the site. We recently teamed up with streaming service DramaFever to bring you the best in Korean films, and part of that involves co-premiering some movies and this week's film is M, Lee Myung-se's 2007 mystery/romance that is quickly becoming a classic of Korean cinema.

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EXCLUSIVE PREMIERE: Watch THE FATAL ENCOUNTER for Free on MKC

MKC is delighted to present, for the very first time, a Korean film to view directly here on the site. We recently teamed up with streaming service DramaFever to bring you the best in, what else, modern Korean cinema, and part of that involves co-premiering some brand new Korean films and first among those is The Fatal Encounter, one of this years' biggest Korean releases.

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Busan 2014 Review: THE TRUTH SHALL NOT SINK WITH SEWOL Invokes Tears And Outrage

Part of MKC's coverage of the 19th Busan International Film Festival

By Pierce Conran

The Sewol Disaster, the most significant event to rock South Korea since the IMF Crisis in 1997, gets its first big screen treatment with The Truth Shall Not Sink With Sewol, the first of what are sure to be many documentaries exploring the subject. Rather than offer an overview of the event and the many issues plaguing Korean society it uncovered, this film from Lee Sang-ho and Ahn Hae-ryong wisely examines only a small portion of the incident. Yet even the narrow avenue it walks uncovers a mountain of upsetting truths concerning the conduct of government and the press during the immediate aftermath of the sinking.

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Busan 2014 Review: PARALLEL Means Well But Lacks Drive

Part of MKC's coverage of the 19th Busan International Film Festival

By Pierce Conran

The heart-warming story of a disabled ice hockey team's journey to the World Championships, Korean documentary Parallel is a testament to perseverance and passion in the face of adversity. However, at 70 minutes and with an all too easy to digest narrative structure, the doc is a well-meaning one that lacks both filmmaking pizazz and a deeper core.

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Busan 2014 Review: FACTORY COMPLEX, An Artful Look At Korea's Beleaguered Workforce

Part of MKC's coverage of the 19th Busan International Film Festival

By Pierce Conran

It's no secret that workers are subjected to punishing conditions and constant humiliation in Korea, a country that has made the news recently for having the longest work hours and yet the least productivity among all OECD nations. New documentary Factory Complex, through a mixture of earnest interviews and juxtaposed, mood-setting shots, offers an involving perspective on the issue, which subtlety invokes the larger issues at play, such as how people treat each other in a highly hierarchical and patriarchal society.

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Busan 2014 Review: VENUS TALK Drowns Out Despite Strong Female Stars

Part of MKC's coverage of the 19th Busan International Film Festival

By Pierce Conran

As a fan of Moon So-ri and production company Myung Films, I felt that I should be excited about Venus Talk, their first collaboration since Im Sang-soo’s excellent A Good Lawyer’s Wife (2003). But on the other hand, with its middle-aged female cast and heavy Sex and the City parallels, I was never this film’s intended audience. Given the lack of strong female roles in today’s Korean film industry, I’m glad to see a major film like this come along but that still doesn’t mean this particular offering held much appeal for me.

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Busan 2014 Review: Action Thriller THE TARGET Misses the Mark

Part of MKC's coverage of the 19th Busan International Film Festival

By Pierce Conran

Normally we read about which new Korean thriller has had its remake rights snatched up by a Hollywood studio (news which invariably leads to a fervent chorus of opposition among Korean film fans) but these days we're starting to see an increasing amount of major Korean releases based on overseas properties. If we discount Japan, recent Korean films based upon foreign films include the 2012 romcom All About My Wife (based on the 2008 Argentine film Un novio para mi mujer) and last summer's surveillance thriller Cold Eyes (based on the Johnny To-producer HK feature Eye in the Sky from 2007). Following in their footsteps is the action-thriller The Target, this time based on 2010's Point Blank from France.

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Busan 2014 Review: HILL OF FREEDOM Proves A Pleasant But Slight Slice From Hong Sangsoo

Part of MKC's coverage of the 19th Busan International Film Festival

By Pierce Conran

It's easy to accuse Hong Sangsoo of doing the same thing over and over again as each of his films revisit the same themes with similar characters, situations and locations. Such a reading can easily miss the point of his constant repetition, which cleverly lays bare the hypocrisy and narcissism of the characters that populate his output. Yet with his latest work, the particularly laid back jaunt Hill of Freedom, the director seems to have less to say than usual. However, with deliberately simple dialogue (in English) and an uncomplicated narrative, as well as a very brief 67-minute running time, the director also appears to be in a playful mood.

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