The KCCUK has been adapting its activities to fit the constraints of a Covid-19 world. Together with the Birkbeck Film Programming and Curating MA course they have curated a new season of four film nights on a suitable theme. The movies are all available on the Korean Film Archive YouTube Channel (LKL’s index here), but … [Read More]
Director: Im Kwon-taek
Selected publications
- Anthology: Im Kwon-Taek: The Making of a Korean National Cinema ed David E James and Kyung Hyun Kim, Wayne State UP 2001
The Korean Film Archive Youtube Channel
Continuing some suggestions of what to do when you’re stuck at home… Many of you will already be aware that the Korean Film Archive has a wonderful YouTube Channel with loads of classic Korean movies, with English subtitles, available for free. Thing is, I’ve never found an index of the channel. So, over the years … [Read More]
London Korean Film Festival 2019: the official press release
Here is today’s official press release that announces the line-up for the 2019 London Korean Film Festival: The London Korean Film Festival (LKFF) has launched its full programme of films and events for the upcoming 14th edition, taking place from 1st-14th November in London before embarking on the annual tour 18th-24th November. The Special Focus, … [Read More]
Chihwaseon screens at the National Gallery
The second in the London East Asia Film Festival’s KCinema 100 series is Chihwaseon by the veteran director Im Kwon-taek, which tells the story of iconoclastic Joseon Dynasty artist Jang Seung-eop (pen name Owon). It will be screened at the National Gallery. Chihwaseon (취화선) Dir: Im Kwon-taek (2002, 116 mins) Cast: Choi Min-sik, Ahn Sung-ki … [Read More]
KCC Screening: Mandala
The fifth screening in the Rebels with a Cause season: Mandala (만다라) Director: Im Kwon-taek (1981, 112 mins) Cast: Ahn Sung-Ki, Jeon Moo-song, Bang Hee, Gi Jeong-su Thursday, 16 August 2018 7:00 pm @KCCUK | Book tickets Set in contemporary Korea, Mandala follows two rather different characters: Pob-un, a young Buddhist monk who has decided … [Read More]
A new year gift from the Korean Film Archive
Those nice people at the Korean Film Archive have given us a new year gift, in the form of twenty-one English subtitled classic movies newly uploaded to their YouTube channel. At least two of these have been available on subtitled DVD before (Come, Come, Come Upward and Gingko Bed) but I’m assuming these are new, … [Read More]
LKL at 10 years: the best of the past decade
Well, if you can’t reminisce on your website’s 10th birthday, when can you? Here’s a collection of some of my favourite London memories of the past 10 years (and one or two from slightly further afield). Some of the moments lived up to expectation: a front row seat at a performance by K-pop ballad diva Lee … [Read More]
Im Kwon Taek’s Festival to screen at RCA Battersea
The latest of the KCC’s screenings on university campuses is at the Royal College of Art’s Battersea site on 11 May: Im Kwon-taek: Festival (축제, 1996) + Introduction by Tony Rayns 11 May / 6:30pm / Royal College of Art’s Gorvy Lecture Theatre Dyson Building, Royal College of Art, Battersea SW11 4AN Cast: Han Eun-jin, … [Read More]
Great news: 94 “lost” films rediscovered
I’m prepared to trust Im Kwon-taek’s judgement about the quality of his 14th film that is in the batch of lost films just donated to the Korean Film Archive – Battlefield and Mistress as a title doesn’t sound promising. He made similar comments about his early output when he spoke during his London retrospective back … [Read More]
A week-long programme of films based on Korean novels at SOAS
April is the month of the London Book Fair (14-16 April at Olympia). Last year Korea was the market focus, an honour assumed by Mexico this year. But the Korea Publishers Association, LTI Korea and other bodies will be attending to fly the flag for Korea. To remind us of the fun we had last … [Read More]
Looking back at 2014: Culture, sport and tourism
In the first of four articles looking back over 2014, we recall some of the culture, sports and heritage stories that made the news. Arts Dansaekhwa emerged as flavour of the year. Following the MMCA exhibition in 2013 and Joan Kee’s book, Kukje Gallery had a monochrome retrospective, and dansaekhwa artists were included in MMCA … [Read More]
Im Kwon Taek’s Festival is the next screening at the KCC
The KCC has announced the next of its free screenings: Festival (축제) Director: Im Kwon Taek (1996) Screening Date: 29 January 2015, 7pm at the KCCUK Running Time: 108 Book via KCCUK website This film is based on the novel of the same title by Lee Cheong-jun. It has an intriguing structure, moving between the … [Read More]
The 2015 KCC film schedule launches with Im Kwon-taek’s Wangsimni
The theme for this year’s film screenings at the KCC is “early works by 10 celebrated Korean directors”; and with ten months between now and the 10th KCC London Korean Film Festival, we are told that there’s a link there. No doubt more will be revealed in due course. This month there are two screenings … [Read More]
The London Korean Links Awards 2014
Our regular unscientific seasonal post which recognises some of the people, books, films and events which made 2014 an outstanding year. Personality of the Year This year there seem to have been more anti-heroes than heroes – examples to avoid rather than emulate. Villains we loved to hate this year have included the reclusive photographer, … [Read More]
Festival Film Review: Hwajang / Revivre
Well, I was right. Ahn Sung-ki confessed in the Q+A which followed the screening of Hwajang that one of his most difficult tasks in portraying Oh Sang-moo, a senior executive in a cosmetics company, was to project certain aspects of being old – of being blocked inside because of the swollen prostate, of being more … [Read More]
Bringing Kim Hoon’s Hwajang to the big screen: How to act a swollen prostate?
Im Kwon-taek set himself quite a challenge when he decided to make a movie of Kim Hoon’s Hwajang. It is a dense, concentrated and rich piece of writing – I hesitate to say “short story”, because really there’s not much narrative flow. Instead, there’s well-balanced contrast; there’s inner thoughts and emotions; there are the human … [Read More]