Lee Kyoung-mi (이경미): The Truth Beneath (비밀은 없다, 2016) Review by Robert Cottingham Lee Kyoung-mi got her start in films working with Park Chan-wook, and from watching this film it seems she has taken his lead when it comes to violent revenge. When a politician’s daughter goes missing the scandal threatens to upset his ambitions … [Read More]
Year: 2016 (page 4)
Choigate, censorship and the arts
At any other time the presence of a demonstrator outside the KCC – and outside the opening screening of the London Korean Film Festival – protesting about artistic censorship that is said to have taken place during the current KCC director’s stint at the National Gugak Centre would have been prominent news. But choreographer Jung … [Read More]
Event news: Under the Sun – Vitaly Mansky’s DPRK documentary screens at the KCC
One of the rare occasions when KCC has hosted an event about North Korea: Screening event: Under the Sun Director: Vitaly Mansky (2015) Screening organised by Free NK Friday 18 November 2016, 7pm – 9pm Korean Culture Centre | 1-3 Strand | London WC2N 5BW Free entry but registration required via Eventbrite Description This movie screening … [Read More]
Korean Horror Movies: A Different Perspective — at New Malden Library
LKL friend and sometime contributor Colette Balmain will be presenting on the subject of K-horror next week. Ties in nicely with the female directors strand in the London Korean Film Festival. Korean Horror Movies: A Different Perspective New Malden Library, Kingston Road, New Malden, KT3 3LY 10th November 2016, 19:00 – 20:00 Free (Book in … [Read More]
LKFF report: the opening night and The Truth Beneath
The eleventh of the London Korean Film Festivals organised by the KCCUK opened on Thursday with a little sprinkling of stardust. Jung Woo-sung, who electrified the audience during the 2014 festival where he was the headline attraction, came to the opening night as just a regular guy wanting to watch a movie. But that didn’t … [Read More]
BECTU: “Film festival sets disgraceful example in Living Wage Week”
Many of us enjoyed the London East Asia Film Festival recently, myself included. But let’s not forget the hard work of the staff who make it happen. BECTU, the Broadcasting, Entertainment, Cinematograph and Theatre Union, is supporting the temporary and part time workers who according to a news item on their website were paid below … [Read More]
Korean War not quite forgotten in Canary Wharf art trail
As we approach Remembrance Sunday, the walkways and open spaces of Canary Wharf have been adorned with works by artist Mark Humphrey in what is described as the UK’s first Remembrance Art Trail, in association with the Royal British Legion and constructed with the help of the Corps of Royal Engineers, consists of seven art … [Read More]
The Handmaiden (아가씨, 2016) review: a masterclass in sensual storytelling
Park Chan-wook’s ‘The Handmaiden’ is a masterful film contrasting dark with light and (male) lecherous ugliness with (female) emotional beauty in a multilayered tale of immaculate depth and indeed meaning. Ultimately, ‘The Handmaiden’ sits atop the very best of Korean cinema, both in terms of narrative content and visual sumptuousness. [Read More]
Jinjuu Mayfair opens
Marking the opening of Jinjuu Mayfair at 39 Albemarle Street W1S 4JQ there’s an interview with Judy Joo in Food Republic. There’s a nice quote about how she came to open her first restaurant at the beginning of last year: I got a random phone call. My business partner just cold-called me. He said “I’ve … [Read More]
Ambassador Hay talks to Korea Times
There’s a nice interview with Ambassador Hay in the Korea Times this week. In it, he gives us news about the UK participation in military exercises on the peninsula that had the North Koreans so riled (four Eurofighters will join in an aerial drill with Korean and US planes at Osan air base in Gyeonggi-do), … [Read More]
November events 2016
November is a big month for film, with the London Korean Film Festival which lasts from 3 Nov to 17 Nov and then moves on to the rest of the country. Full details on the festival website. All the London screenings and talks are on the LKL events calendar. Other events as follows: Exhibitions Riptide, the … [Read More]
Seminar news: Ambassador Ra Jong-Yil on Jang Songtaek
The London Asia-Pacific Centre for Social Science announces a keynote Guest Lecture. This is in addition to the Contemporary Korea Speaker Series that has already been announced. No registration is required. Son in Law of a Political Theocracy: The Rise and Fall of Jang Songtaek Amb. Ra Jong-Yil Former Republic of Korea Ambassador to UK … [Read More]
Event news: November talks hosted by the All Party Parliamentary Group on North Korea
Please find below details of three APPG North Korea events for November. Unless otherwise stated, events are free, open to members of the public and are accessed via the Cromwell Green visitor entrance to the Houses of Parliament. North Korea’s Hidden Revolution November 2nd at 17:00 in Committee Room 20, the Houses of Parliament Jieun … [Read More]
New Paju footbridge honours Glorious Glosters
I am grateful to the Association for the Study of Songun Politics UK for alerting me to the recent opening of a new bridge – the “Gloucester Heroes Bridge” – commemorating the role of British forces (and it was not just the Glosters, though they are the regiment who feature most prominently in the accounts) … [Read More]
Exhibition news: Bae Joonsung, at Pontone Gallery
Notice of an upcoming exhibition by one of Shine Artists’ regulars, Bae Joonsung: Bae Joonsung: The Costume of Painter – Still Life Pontone Gallery | 43 Cadogan Gardens | London SW3 2TB | www.pontonegallery.com 28 October – 20 November 2016 Monday by appointment | Tues – Fri: 10am – 7pm | Sat: 11am – 7pm … [Read More]
Park Chan-wook talks about Handmaiden, octopuses and more
Park Chan-wook discusses adapting Fingersmith to colonial Korea, adding racial and class barriers, collaborating with Jung Seo-kyung and filming intimate scenes. He reflects on lessons from Stoker, violence and symbolism, octopus imagery, working with his brother on Night Fishing, shamanistic themes, adaptation processes and making films for future Korean audiences. [Read More]