King and the Clown director Lee Jun-ik’s latest movie, Like the Moon Escaping from Clouds [구르믈 버서난 달처럼], has released character posters for its four leads, and they are simply gorgeous.

Based on a manhwa created by Park Heung-yong, this movie is set in the Joseon era as a revolutionary attempts to upend the social order and become king. The year is 1592 as the three lead males “are forced to wield their swords at each other in a fateful showdown.”

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Read the rest of Four character posters for Lee Jun-ik’s new film (150 words)

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Post tags: Baek Sung-hyun, Cha Seung-won, Han Ji-hye, Hwang Jung-min

Han Ji-hye’s next role takes her back to Joseon Korea, and for her role as a famous gisaeng, has begun taking a variety of classes. As gisaeng entertainers were often skilled in the arts of dance and music, her education includes classes in the gayageum (a stringed lute, the same instrument Honey Lee is known for playing) and singing in verse.

Han Ji-hye has mostly been known for acting in dramas (East of Eden, Likable or Not), but this project is the latest movie from director Lee Jun-ik (You’re Far Away, King and the Clown), called Like the Moon Escaping from Clouds [그르믈 버서난 달처럼, also written 구름을 벗어난 달처럼]. It’s an action-fighting period film based on a Park Heung-ryong manhwa of the same name and boasts quite an impressive cast list: In addition to the previously announced Hwang Jung-min it has added City Hall’s Cha Seung-won and Accidental Couple’s young Baek Sung-hyun. (Looks like Uhm Tae-woong and Ryu Seung-beom are out.)

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Read the rest of Han Ji-hye turns gisaeng in new film (305 words)

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Post tags: Baek Sung-hyun, Cha Seung-won, Han Ji-hye, Hwang Jung-min, Ryu Seung-beom, Uhm Tae-woong

Once again, I’m thrilled to have Dahee Fanel guest-posting her thoughts on a drama — in this case, KBS’s recently ended Wednesday-Thursday drama Accidental Couple, aka Just Looking aka That Fool. It’s always a pleasure, Dahee! –javabeans

 
SONG OF THE DAY

Judy Garland – “Over the Rainbow.” [ Download ]

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Read the rest of Accidental Couple: A review (1,658 words)

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Post tags: Accidental Couple, Baek Sung-hyun, guest bloggers, Hwang Jung-min, Kim Ah-joong

Twenty-year-old cutie Baek Sung-hyun (Our School E.T., Stairway to Heaven) is currently playing a movie star’s rebellious younger brother in KBS’s Accidental Couple and had a minor injury while filming the drama.

In Episode 5, his character gets into a fight with Hwang Jung-min (who is entering into a contract marriage with Baek’s sister, played by Kim Ah-joong). He hit a wall and scraped the skin from both hands, and while I’m sure that stung, this is such a minor story that it’s odd to see it in so many media sites. (In fact, at first I thought it must be a motorcycle-related accident, since all the articles were using photos of him seated on his bike.)

I wonder if it’s only being reported now to drum up ratings; while the Wednesday-Thursday drama ratings have been relatively even across the board so far, City Hall is in first, its most recent episode posting a 14.6%, with Accidental Couple in second with 10.3% and Cinderella Man slipping into last with 7.9%.

I liked the first couple episodes of Accidental Couple, but I’m starting to lose interest in this drama. Anyone watching think it’s going to get better and should be worth sticking around for? These days I just don’t have the time to stick with a “maybe-but-probably-not” series.

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Read the rest of Baek Sung-hyun shakes off minor filming injury (245 words)

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Post tags: Accidental Couple, Baek Sung-hyun, star accidents

Lee Da-hae is so pretty. She’s also five years older than actor Baek Sung-hyun (20), with whom she pairs up in a new music video, and while the age difference is pretty evident, they still look pretty good together.

The two actors are featured in kpop singer Kim Hyung-joong’s rather hyped music video; the song is his new single “Today’s Fortune” [오늘의 운세]. The video itself is somewhat standard kpop ballad fare; the story is told post-breakup, with flashbacks that point to a happier time when the couple was in love. (Watch below.)

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Read the rest of Lee Da-hae couples up with Baek Sung-hyun (216 words)

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Post tags: Baek Sung-hyun, Lee Da-hae, music videos

It’s kind of unnerving how all the news right now is either Choi Jin-shil’s sudden death or the 13th Pusan International Film Festival (PIFF), and sometimes while looking through the news listings, it’s easy to confuse the two based on the thumbnail images. (Given the timing, as far as I can see, there were no overlaps in attendees — or at least, very few — between PIFF and Choi Jin-shil’s funeral viewing.)

October 2 saw the opening night to the nine-day festival; PIFF closes on October 10 and is the largest film festival in Korea, and one of the largest in Asia. Over the course of the week, more than 300 films will be screened from 60-plus countries.

Kim Rae-won and Han Eun-jung, above, came as brand models for PIFF sponsor L’Oreal. Other famous name actors showed up to the red carpet night; the opening film was Kazakhstan’s The Gift to Stalin, as well as the Hyun Bin & Lee Bo-young film I Am Happy.

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Read the rest of Pusan International Film Festival’s opening night (165 words)

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Post tags: Baek Sung-hyun, Cha Seung-won, Choi Jung-yoon, Choi Kang-hee, Eom Ji-won, Eugene, fashion, film festivals, Go Ara, Gong Hyo-jin, Han Eun-jung, Hyun Bin, Jang Dong-gun, Joo Ji-hoon, Jung Ryeo-won, JYP, Kang Hye-jung, Kim Ji-soo, Kim Jung-eun, Kim Rae-won, Kim So-yeon, Kim Sun-ah, Lee Bo-young, Lee Dong-wook, Lee Jin, Lee Jung-jin, Lee Seon-kyun, Lee Wan, Lee Yeon-hee, Oh Ji-ho, Park Eun-hye, Park Hae-il, Park Jin-hee, Shin Hyun-joon, Shin Mina, Song Chang-eui, Yeh Ji-won, Yoon Jin-seo

August 28 saw the VIP preview of the comedy Our School E.T., which opens in wide release on September 11.

The title’s “E.T.” is both a cheeky reference to Spielberg’s extraterrestrial and to the lead character played by funnyman Kim Su-ro, who takes on the role of a not-so-bright physical education teacher. As a result of the growing pressure for students to stress an English-language education, he needs to switch to teaching English (becoming the “E.T.,” or English Teacher). Alas, his limited talents aren’t quite up to the task. But he tries — and what he lacks in brainpower, he makes up in determination.

The cast also features a crop of young actors — Baek Sung-hyun (pictured above, with lead actor Kim Su-ro), Park Bo-young, Lee Min-ho, and Moon Chae-won — as well as veteran comedic actor Lee Han-wee.

There were a slew of familiar faces at the VIP screening, including those of actors Kim Rae-won, Lee Seon-kyun, and Oh Man-seok, as well as recent Olympic gold-medalist swimmer Park Tae-hwan. More beyond the cut.

Here’s the preview, which is in Korean, but worth watching just for the last two lines (preceding them, starting at the 1:57 mark, Lee Han-wee’s character tells Kim Su-ro’s to speak only in English):

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Post tags: Baek Sung-hyun, Kim Rae-won, Kim Su-ro, Lee Chun-hee, Lee Min-ho, Lee Seon-kyun, Moon Chae-won, Oh Man-seok, Park Bo-young, Park Tae-hwan, press conferences