London Korean Links

Covering things Korean in London and beyond since 2006

Home Truths season: Woman of Fire

The fifth screening in the Home Truths season brings one of Kim Ki-young’s remakes of his classic Housemaid. Woman of Fire (화녀) Director: Kim Ki-young (1971, 98mins) Cast: Youn Yuh-jung, Jeon Gye-hyeon, Nam Koong Won 13 June 2019 7:00 pm @KCCUK | Reserve your seat Woman of Fire sees Kim Ki-young remake his stunning classic … [Read More]

Home Truths season: Lies

This X-rated movie was one of the first Korean films LKL’s editor saw, when it had a theatrical release in London in the early noughties. It doesn’t get screened often and it’s worth catching to see one of Jang Sunwoo’s more controversial films. Lies (거짓말) Dir: Jang Sunwoo (2000, 112 mins) Cast: Lee Sang-hyeon, Kim … [Read More]

Home Truths season: The Room Nearby

The third screening in the Home Truths season look like an interesting one: The Room Nearby (그녀들의 방) Director: Ko Tae-Jeong (2009, 106 mins) Cast: Jung Yu-mi, Ye Soo-jung, Heo Eun-kyoung, Sin Jin-hui, Paik Soo-jang Thursday 30 May 2019 7:00 pm @KCCUK | Book seat on Eventbrite Private tutor Eon-ju is living rent-free in a … [Read More]

Home Truths season: An Affair

One of the first Korean movies I saw, and still in my top 10. An Affair (정사) Director: E J-Yong (1998, 108mins) Cast: Lee Mi-sook, Lee Jung-jae, Song Young-chang, Kim Min Thursday 9 May 2019, 7:00 pm @KCCUK | Reserve seat on Eventbrite Architect’s-wife Seo-hyun (Lee Mi-sook), is constrained and muted by domestic life, when … [Read More]

Home Truths season: The World of Us

Yoon Ga-eun’s debut feature The World of Us, which was one of the quiet hits of LEAFF’s 2016 Stories of Women strand, opens the latest season of screenings at the KCC. Paul Quinn on Hangul Celluloid is a big fan of the movie: see his review here. The World of Us (우리들) Director: Yoon Ga-eun … [Read More]

KCC Screening: Black Republic

The final screening in the Rebels with a Cause season: Black Republic (그들도 우리처럼) Director: Park Kwang-Su (1990, 102 mins) Cast: Moon Sung-keun, Park Joong-hoon, Shim Hye-jin, Hwang Hae Thursday 23 August 2018 7:00 pm @KCCUK | Book tickets Opening on a pitch black screen, we begin to hear a voice: it is the words … [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]

KCC Screening: Barefooted Young

The fourth screening in the Rebels with a Cause season: Barefooted Young (맨발의 청춘) With introduction by Emily Steele Director: Kim Ki-duk (1964, 115 mins) Cast: Shin Seong-il, Um Aeng-ran, Yoon Il-bong, Lee Yea-chun Thursday 9 August 2018 7:00 pm @KCCUK | Book tickets Adolescent films first gained widespread popularity in Korea during the 1960s; … [Read More]

KCC Screening: A Woman Judge

The third screening in the Rebels with a Cause season: A Woman Judge (여판사) Director: Hong Eun-won (1962, 87 mins) Cast: Kim Seung-Ho, Moon Jung-Suk, Yu Gye-seon, Kim Seok-hun Thursday 2 August 2018 7:00 pm @KCCUK | Reserve a seat With introduction by Johan Hallstrom A young, determined woman, Jin-suk, has her mind set on … [Read More]

KCC Screening: The Sea Knows

The second in the KCC’s Rebels with a Cause season: The Sea Knows (현해탄은 알고 있다) Director: Kim Ki-young (1961, 119 mins) Cast: Woon-ha Kim, Sang-sa Lee, Ye-chun Lee 26 July 2018 7:00 pm @KCCUK | Book tickets Includes conversation between Danielle Capretti and Dr Mark Morris. In 1944, Japan is conscripting Koreans into the … [Read More]

Film review: The Unfair / Minority Opinion

The Unfair (also known as Minority Opinion) screened as the penultimate movie in the Korean Novels on Screen season at the KCC. Based on a novel by Son Aram, it is the only film in the season where the underlying book has not (yet) been translated into English. Although the scenario is based loosely on the … [Read More]

Screening: My Brilliant Life + Kim Aeran Q&A

One of my favourite directors, and one of my favourite authors. I’ll be there. My Brilliant Life (두근두근 내 인생) With author Kim Aeran Q&A Director: E J-yong (2014, 117 mins) Cast: Song Hye-kyo, Kim Seung-wook, Gang Dong-won, Baek Il-seob Original novel by Kim Aeran Thursday 28 June 2018, 7pm, KCCUK | Book here My … [Read More]