One month after the close of LKFF we’re finally getting around to penning some thoughts on the movies we saw there. We’ve already commented on Im Sang-soo’s latest, which left us with very warm feelings about the festival as a whole. What about the rest of the programme? Let’s get this out of the way … [Read More]
Director: Lee Su-jin
London Korean Film Festival 2021: the detailed schedule
Here’s the detailed schedule for the 2021 London Korean Film Festival. Lots to look forward to here. You can find the official press release here. Time Title Strand RSC = Regent Street Cinema | ICA = Institute of Contemporary Arts | PHC = Picturehouse Central | CIA = Cinema in the Arches | ESG = … [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]
Han Gong-ju (한공주, 2013) review: a heartbreaking critique of societal apathy
While centred on the victimisation and abuse of a schoolgirl and featuring a number of elements often seen in school-based narratives, ‘Han Gong-ju’ has far more in common with insightful dramas dissecting societal attitudes, persecutions, misperceptions and assumptions. Exemplary in realisation, there is a great deal more to ‘Han Gong-ju’ than its school-centric setting might imply. [Read More]
Festival Film reviews: we also went to…
We’ve almost finished clearing the London Korean Film Festival backlog, the only major review outstanding now being Park Chan-kyong’s fascinating documentary Manshin. While I’m polishing that, here are a few brief reviews of the films I didn’t feel moved to write dedicated articles about. Han Gong-ju A heavy and depressing story redeemed by the sensitive … [Read More]