Go, Stop, Murder gives a highly original take on classic Korean Cinema ideas and themes; feeling refreshingly different while retaining an almost unconscious familiarity. An unashamedly low budget production that deftly uses its financial limitations to greatly strengthen an already intelligently written script. [Read More]
Category: Film reviews and comment (page 15)
Blood and Ties (공범, 2013) review: family loyalty and a faltering moral thriller
While ‘Blood and Ties’ tries to be an original take on a familiar narrative subject in its attempted dissection of familial ties, any chance of insightful commentary is marred by plot holes and predictably. Ultimately, the appearance and performances of Son Ye-jin and Kim Kap-soo are by far the strongest aspects of the film. [Read More]
Mourning Grave (소녀괴담, 2014) review: classic Korean horror with heart, humour and romance
With ‘Mourning Grave’, director Oh In-chun extends his experience of blending horror and humour to include romance and melodrama; thereby not only fulfilling the almost requisite Korean cinema merging of love, loss and laughter elements in a single narrative but also resulting in the film feeling utterly classic, from the first frame to the last. [Read More]
Miss the Train (미성년, 2014) review: spirit, loss and the beauty of the journey
With its gently understated narrative realisation, ‘Miss the Train’ is at once a spiritual tale of destiny and a dream-like journey through love and loss, and though many will be able to anticipate its endpoint, in a film such as this the beauty and engagement of the journey itself takes precedence over any revelation at its destination. [Read More]
2014 Travel Diary day 1: Harassed in Haeundae
In which I arrive, somewhat frazzled, at Busan’s crowded beach area. Canary Wharf, London, Thursday 5 June, 3:30pm. Every time I leave the office for a trip, no matter how much I’ve tried to tidy up all my loose ends in advance, the departure from work is stressful. I had left a good hour to finish … [Read More]
The Wicked (마녀, 2014) review: dark humour, shifting perceptions and creeping dread
With the Korean horror genre having been somewhat in the doldrums recently – the majority of output (sadly) being rather predictable – ‘The Wicked’ comes as a breath of fresh air; refreshingly original at the same time as succeeding in being one of the most deeply creepy and wickedly humorous Korean horrors for some time… [Read More]
Thread of Lies (aka Elegant Lies) (우아한 거짓말, 2014) review: bullying, secrecy and the cost of silence
In focusing on the psychological aspects of bullying rather than the far more often seen examples of physical brutality, ‘Thread of Lies’ can delve far more deeply into the issue. An incredibly insightful and deeply poignant discussion of childhood persecution that feels utterly true to life, from start to finish. [Read More]
90 Minutes (90분, 2012) review: the price of entitlement
With its pulse-pounding, sexually-charged story detailing female retribution against a self-serving male guilty of flagrant sexual indiscretions and abuses, ’90 Minutes’ not only stands as an utterly gripping thriller but also serves to further the ongoing trend for depictions of strong women in Korean cinema as a whole. [Read More]
Antarctic Journal: a promising start, a confusing end, and a film to be avoided
Antarctic Journal (Im Pil-seong, 2004) screened at the KCC on 24 April as part of the Year of the Film Professionals. The second professional to be so featured was cinematographer Chung Chung-hoon, who gives Park Chan-wook movies their distinctive look. Antarctic Journal is one of Chung’s rare films with another director. Given the poor reviews … [Read More]
A Boy’s Sister (누나, 2013) review: rain, faith, and surrogate healing
One moment moving and poignant, another brutal and difficult to watch, ‘A Boy’s Sister’ is ultimately a gripping depiction of deep-seated pain, guilt and blame and though, to my mind, one theme in particular is rather unnecessarily overstated, the film overall deftly succeeds in its goals. [Read More]
The Face Reader (관상, 2013) review: fate, power and intrigue in Joseon Korea
While The Face Reader could be said to have a somewhat simpler story overall than many of its Joseon era set contemporaries, its narrative is nonetheless as nuanced, multilayered and gripping as any; the sidestepping of any sexual/adult content serving to show that graphic sexual imagery is not a prerequisite for insightful drama. [Read More]
Killer Toon (더 웹툰: 예고살인, 2013) review: webtoon horror meets familiar ghostly vengeance
Killer Toon starts strongly – an interesting premise deftly realised with the help of exquisitely dark, stunning webtoon visuals – and though the film somewhat loses its way in its middle section, ultimately it stands as an engaging addition to the Korean horror film genre; complete with several perfectly creepy moments along the way. [Read More]
A review of the London Korean Year 2013
In this article, we look at some of the highlights of the Korean cultural year, with a primary focus on London. Celebrations It was the year of anniversaries. 130 years of formal relations between Britain and Korea, and the 60th anniversary of the Korean War ceasefire. The KCCUK celebrated its fifth birthday with a special … [Read More]
Nora Noh (노라노, 2013) review: fashion, film and a life of conviction
An enthralling documentary telling of the iconic designer’s efforts to create an exhibition to celebrate her 60 years in the fashion industry, also providing insights into post-war Korea, the changing place of women in Korean society, and the influence of Nora Noh’s designs on the Korean film industry and its stars [Read More]
Festival Film Review: Behind the Camera — the Q&A of the feature of the documentary of the making of the …
British cinema-goers are used to a short commercial before the main feature in which a film director is pitching his latest movie idea to some corporate suits whose only interest is that the film should promote a certain mobile phone network at every opportunity. So it’s not such a strange idea that a well-known Korean … [Read More]
Brief film review: Hope / Wish (Lee Joon-ik, 2013)
One of the more anticipated films of the 2013 London Korean Film Festival was Lee Joon-ik’s Hope, a harrowing family drama examining the long-term effects caused by the traumatic sexual assault on a young girl by a construction worker near her school. It’s a powerful film which one won’t watch for pleasure, or indeed watch … [Read More]