Kim Haneul and Kang Ji-hwan

Did the Blue Dragon Awards sneak up on us this year or what?

As one of the largest year-end awards shows, the Blue Dragon always tends to draw out a good number of A-listers, and we saw plenty of them out on the red carpet on November 20 and posing pretty for photos.

One big winner of the night was the “kimchi Western” The Good, The Bad, The Weird, as was the thriller The Chaser and even the sports movie Forever the Moment, from way back in January.

But, as with any awards show, sometimes the fun is less about the actual awards and more about parsing all the red carpet looks.

More photos! (May take a while to load) >>

Tags: awards, fashion, Go Jun-hee, Han Chae-young, Han Eun-jung, Han Ye-seul, Joo Ji-hoon, Jung Jun-ho, Kang Ji-hwan, Kim Haneul, Kim Hye-soo, Kim Joo-hyuk, Kim Min-sun, Kim Nam-gil, Lee Bo-young, Lee Jung-jae, Lee Ki-woo, Lee Mi-yeon, Lee Soo-kyung, Park Shi-yeon, Shin Hyun-joon, So Ji-sub, Sohn Ye-jin, Song Yoon-ah, Su Ae, Uhm Tae-woong

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The film Portrait of a Beauty [미인도] held its press conference and VIP preview on November 4, and a bevy of VIPs showed up to catch an advance look at the risqué period film. It has attracted much comparison to the drama series Painter of the Wind (see trailer below), as both deal with the life of the Joseon artist Shin Yoon-bok. They also seem to share a similar cinematic flair, although obviously there are key differences between a film and a drama series.

The cast also talked to reporters at a press conference, led by lead star Kim Min-sun and her co-stars Kim Young-ho, Chu Ja-hyun, and Kim Nam-gil, who for some reason has changed his stage name from Lee Han (of Goodbye Solo, When Spring Comes). I don’t get this whole changing-names-mid-career thing (see also: Go Jun-hee). Why bother at this point?

Portrait of a Beauty opens to the public on November 13.

More from the VIP event >>

Tags: fashion, Han Hye-jin, Jeon Hye-bin, Jung Ryeo-won, Kim Haneul, Kim Hye-soo, Kim Min-sun, Kim Nam-gil, Lee Jin-wook, Lee Jong-hyuk, Lee Jung-jae, Lee Tae-ran, press conferences

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Han Ye-seul, currently starring in the SBS drama Tazza, is hawking clothing for apparel brand SI in these just-released photos advertising its fall-winter line.

Great! Now everyone can combine the skin-baring flirty cuts of summer (sleeveless tops, knee-length bottoms) with the materials of winter (heavy-duty leather and fur), matched artfully to give off the Oh this ole thing? I just threw it on, but aren’t I fabulous? vibe of a sexy circus acrobat.

It isn’t the clothing itself that makes this outfit odd, but the way seemingly random items are worn together. Voluminous fur stole, check! Flowy “luxury” skirt, got it. Rugged elbow-length gloves protect the forearms from the harsh elements of winter, while the upper arms are left bare by what appears to be a fitted crushed-velvet or crushed-silk tank top. The hands say, “Let me take care of that flat tire for you,” but the bottom says, “while twirling gracefully in my flouncy skirt and heels!” But of course.

Then again, not everything is that bad >>

Tags: fashion, Han Ye-seul, photo shoots

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Cable channel O’live TV hosted its first Style Icon Awards on the night of October 30, and a parade of stars turned out on the “orange carpet” for the event. Held at Club Answer in the upscale Seoul neighborhood of Cheongdamdong, the event awarded select members from not only entertainment sphere to honor as icons, but also some from society and the arts.

Actor Jung Jun-ho (The Last Scandal of My Life) acted as host, and awards were handed out to stars like Rain, above (Style Icon of the Year), Jung Ryeo-won, Park Tae-hwan, Sohn Ye-jin, and more.

 
SONG OF THE DAY

Rain - “사랑이라는 건” (The thing called love), from his recent 5th album, “Rainism.” I don’t love or hate the album — the third was really my favorite, and I was not impressed with anything after that — but it has a few nice tracks, like this one (I tend to prefer the songs Rain doesn’t release as singles.)
[ Download ]

See the full list of winners and the attendee fashions >>

Tags: awards, Big Bang, cable programs, Choi Ji-ho, fashion, Hwang Bo, Jang Yoon-joo, Jung Hye-young, Jung Jun-ho, Jung Ryeo-won, Lee Eon, Lee Jung-jae, Park Tae-hwan, Rain, Seo In-young, Sohn Ye-jin

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I’ll just give you a second to let that image sink in. (I mean, really, really sink in that this is indeed two of Korea’s hottest rising pretty boys made famous by two of Korea’s biggest youth drama hits, Joo Ji-hoon of Goong and Kim Jae-wook of Coffee Prince.)

October 28 was press preview day for the new movie Antique (full title: Western Antique and Bakery Shop), starring Joo Ji-hoon, Kim Jae-wook, baby-faced Yoo Ah-in (Strongest Chil Woo), and model Choi Ji-ho (Time of Dog and Wolf).

 
Also: Let the Coffee Prince comparisons begin?

More from the film and press conference >>

Tags: Choi Ji-ho, fashion, homosexuality, Joo Ji-hoon, Kim Jae-wook, press conferences, Yoo Ah-in

Filed under: Chungmuro/Film by javabeans - 65 Comments →