October 17 was the night of the 48th Grand Bell Awards (or, per its Korean name, Daejong Awards), and it was a big event for a few films in particular. And while the Joseon-era David-versus-Goliath action sageuk Bow: The Ultimate Weapon didn’t sweep the categories, it did take home a nice chunk of them.

But Best Picture (and a few others) went to the Korean War film The Front Line (which is probably a good thing, since it’s this year’s entry to the Academy Awards — not that I expect it’ll win or even make final cut. Korean films rarely — never? — do).

A couple of other notable winners: bright, touching comedy Sunny, and the moody, pensive Bleak Night. All are on my Must Watch ASAP list.

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Post tags: awards, Bae Jong-ok, Cha Tae-hyun, Choi Kang-hee, Daniel Choi, Go Chang-seok, Jang Seo-hee, Jang Young-nam, Jo Hee-bong, Jo Sung-ha, Jung Soo-young, Kang So-ra, Kim Haneul, Kim Hye-soo, Kim Sumi, Lee Je-hoon, Lee Min-jung, Moon Chae-won, Park Hae-il, Park Hyo-joo, Seo Young-hee, Shin Hyun-bin, Shin Hyun-joon, Song Sae-byuk, Won Bin, Yoon Kye-sang

It’s a star-studded lineup for period film Gone With the Wind, but even before we get to the big names attached, I’m already loving the premise: It’s a comic sageuk that’s Joseon-meets-Ocean’s Eleven centering around a team of thieves that works to steal…ice? Fastest. Heist. Ever. (With that plot, shouldn’t it really be titled Gone with the Sun?)

Backing up, let’s take a look at the cast. This will be comic actor Cha Tae-hyun’s (Hello Ghost, Speedy Scandal) first foray into the sageuk world as the leader of the gang who gathers all of the top specialists of the time to carry out their scheme. Considering there’s already a modern-day “Korean Ocean’s Eleven” in the works, does this make Cha the comic equivalent of Lee Jung-jae?

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Read the rest of Gone With the Wind, a Joseon-era Ocean’s Eleven (361 words)

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Post tags: Cha Tae-hyun, Chun Bo-geun, Go Chang-seok, Kim Jung-tae, Lee Moon-shik, Oh Ji-ho, Seo Shin-ae, Sung Dong-il

Yesterday’s Go Soo post had me looking closer at his new movie, The Front Line, a high-budget blockbuster war film that’s expected to do big business this summer.

The plot caught my attention with its suspenseful, uneasy premise, and the creds aren’t so bad, either: Director Jang Hoon steered thrillers Rough Cut and Secret Reunion to box-office success. The screenplay is written by Park Sang-yeon, who wrote scripts for Queen Seon-deok and the upcoming Tree With Deep Roots, as well as the original novels for Joint Security Area and May 18, which were turned into films.

The movie is set in the very last months of the Korean War, and depicts the horrors of war as experienced by its young soldiers. Shin Ha-kyun plays an officer in the counterespionage division, Eun-pyo, who is sent to the volatile eastern front to investigate a suspicious series of events, beginning with the death of a soldier, shot by one of his own, as well as the delivery of a letter from the North Korean Army via the South Korean post. Illicit correspondence can only mean fraternizing with the enemy.

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Read the rest of Summer blockbuster The Front Line opens to high expectations (406 words)

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Post tags: Go Chang-seok, Go Soo, Lee Je-hoon, Ryu Seung-soo, Shin Ha-kyun

 
EPISODE 339. Broadcast on June 19, 2011.

Supporting Actor Special continues!

girlfriday: O.M.G. Sung Ji-ru, I love you, but that is WAY more than I ever wanted to see of you. Must. Scrub. Rampant ajusshi nudity out of brain…

javabeans: That “Stop” song just makes the moment. Lyrics: “All that I have is all that you’ve given me…” Caption: “Seductive and shapely legs.” I’m…not sure that’s how I want to think of Ji-ru ajusshi.

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Read the rest of 1 Night 2 Days: Episode 339 (3,283 words)

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Post tags: 1N2D, Ahn Gil-kang, Eun Ji-won, featured, Go Chang-seok, Jo Sung-ha, Kang Ho-dong, Kim Jong-min, Kim Jung-tae, Lee Seung-gi, Lee Su-geun, Sung Dong-il, Sung Ji-ru, Uhm Tae-woong

Just one week after the actresses have their special, we have a different kind of special in store for us today. It’s funny how something so similar in concept can yield such vastly different results. And while I think it’s made even more hilarious by putting the two specials back-to-back, this one’s hilarious enough to be a stand-out on its own merits.

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Read the rest of 1 Night 2 Days: Episode 338 (3,837 words)

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Post tags: 1N2D, Ahn Gil-kang, Eun Ji-won, featured, Go Chang-seok, Jo Sung-ha, Kang Ho-dong, Kim Jong-min, Kim Jung-tae, Lee Seung-gi, Lee Su-geun, Sung Dong-il, Sung Ji-ru, Uhm Tae-woong

Saturday, September 18, was the day of the 18th Icheon Chunsa Film Festival, held in the city of Icheon in Kyeonggi Province. The overwhelming winner was the film Moss, a crime thriller from the director of Silmido starring Jung Jae-young, Park Hae-il, Yoo Jun-sang, and Yoo Sun. It picked up awards in seven categories, including Best Picture and Supporting Actor.

Moss released in theaters in July and is based on the “web toon” of the same name. It was a big performer this summer, logging 3.3 million attendances.

Other notable winners were the war movie Into the Fire, which was given a special jury prize, and Bestseller, which picked up a few awards as well.

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Post tags: Cha Ye-ryun, Choi Jung-won, film festivals, Go Chang-seok, Go Eun-ah, Jo Jin-woong, Song Ji-eun, Uhm Jung-hwa, Yoon Yeo-jung

Yoo Seung-ho‘s new film, Busan, held its press conference on the morning of September 23, alongside his co-stars (and father figures in the film) Kim Young-ho and Go Chang-seok.

Yoo sheds his “um-chin-ah” (boy next door) image in this movie, which shows his most mature showing to date. He said, “I worked harder on this than previous projects. I tried hard to keep habits from when I played child roles from coming out here.” In the film, he is the only son of a roughneck father who’s always drinking and gambling. Go Chang-seok, who plays that father, admitted jokingly, “I had to hit Seung-hyo a lot of times, but it wasn’t because I wanted to. The director made me.”

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Post tags: Go Chang-seok, Kim Young-ho, Yoo Seung-ho

With the shooting wrapped and the release approaching, the movie Busan [父,山] has released its first poster, featuring its stars Go Chang-seok, Yoo Seung-ho, and Kim Young-ho. (At first, I thought 16-year-old Yoo Seung-ho was posing with a cigarette, till I realized the lollipop was just meant to look like one. lol.)

The story unfolds around the “fateful relationship” of the three main characters, with Go Chang-seok playing a ne’er-do-well who has never been a proper father figure to his son (Yoo Seung-ho), with whom he lives a shabby lifestyle. However, when his son becomes ill with heart cancer, in an effort to save him he seeks out the boy’s biological father (Kim Young-ho), who abandoned his family 18 years ago in pursuit of his own success.

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Post tags: Go Chang-seok, Kim Young-ho, Yoo Seung-ho

Busan [부.산 (父.山)] has been attracting some buzz for its casting, and now the film has begun shooting. The title of the movie carries dual meaning — first as the seaside city in which the story is set, and also as the hanja reading of the characters (father, mountain), which describe the plot of a father who fights to save his son.

Busan revolves around three main characters: Kim Young-ho (Portrait of a Beauty) as a cruel man willing to abandon his family for worldly success; Yoo Seung-ho (The Way Home) as a kidney cancer patient; and Go Chang-seok (Rough Cut) as a roughneck father who struggles to save his son.

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Read the rest of Yoo Seung-ho’s Busan enters filming (202 words)

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Post tags: Go Chang-seok, Kim Young-ho, Yoo Seung-ho