Cable channel CGV is bringing back the “original TV movie” format after finding some success with Girl K; the next entry into this category is their TV Bang-ja Chronicles, so-titled to distinguish it from the film it’s based upon.

Speaking of which, I find the tagline on the poster above unintentionally hilarious; it reads, “A fresh new story nobody knew.” Ha, unless you saw the movie, of course.

Still, I find myself looking forward to this TV movie (which is really more like a mini-drama at four episodes), because I love reimagined folk and fairy tales. These days you can’t just update a familiar fairy tale and call it a day; you’ve got to add a twist, whether it’s taking the storytelling perspective of the Wicked Witch or the Ugly Stepsister or, in this case, servant man.

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Read the rest of Trailers and stills from TV Bang-ja Chronicles (261 words)

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Post tags: cable programs, Lee Eun-woo, Lee Sun-ho

Cable movie channel CGV recently had a hit with their edgy and stylized Girl K, which I’ve been enjoying, and now they’re producing another “original TV movie,” which will likewise broadcast in multiple episodes like a mini-drama series. This one is Bang-ja Chronicles, which is also the name of the hit ero-sageuk film from last year that flipped the famous tale of Chun-hyang around to play with the idea of Chun-hyang falling in love with servant Bang-ja, rather than his master, Mong-ryong (as the original tale has it).

(Note: Delightful Girl Chun-hyang was the Hong sisters’ comic take on a modernized version of the story, while Story of Hyang-dan flipped the premise around the other way, with Mong-ryong falling in love with Chun-hyang’s servant instead. It’s a popular story, and thus inspires lots of reinterpretations, in the way that there’ll probably always be a Cinderella reimagining or twenty in anybody’s recent memory.)

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Read the rest of CGV produces a TV version of Bang-ja Chronicles (319 words)

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Post tags: cable programs, Lee Sun-ho

In 2003, Kim Rae-won and Jung Da-bin (who passed away in 2007) starred in the MBC drama Attic Cat. The story has now been transferred to the stage, and the production held a press call on April 7. Two of the leads are actors you may have seen onscreen before: Hwang Bora (Love & Marriage, My Girl) in her theater debut and Lee Sun-ho (Tamra the Island).

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Read the rest of Theatrical production of Attic Cat opens (246 words)

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Post tags: Attic Cat, Hwang Bora, Lee Sun-ho

When MBC announced that Tamra the Island was getting cut and ending early, they pissed off fans and even spurred them to publish a large ad in a daily newspaper protesting the decision. (As I said before, the ratings are low but this is a mania drama, meaning that the fans it has amassed are passionate — and vocal.)

The ad, which appeared on September 3, took the broadcasting industry to task for its vice of kowtowing to ratings numbers. It was organized and signed by members of the fan cafes for actors Hwang Chan-bin (who plays William) and Lee Sun-ho (who plays Yan).

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Read the rest of Fans are spitting mad at Tamra’s curtailment (461 words)

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Post tags: controversies, Hwang Chan-bin, Im Joo-hwan, Lee Sun-ho, mania dramas, Seo Woo, Tamra the Island

Let’s get this out of the way: The first fifteen minutes or so are crap. They’re silly, questionably acted, and a little embarrassing with all the rough English (although the scenes are necessary in a strictly plot-related way). But the rest of the episode (once the story moves to Korea) has its charm, and is actually quite cute, at times laugh-out-loud funny.

I haven’t read the manhwa on which this drama is based, but I’m guessing that most of the key elements have been preserved, and I think the two leads — Im Joo-hwan and Seo Woo — are well-matched.

Granted, one can’t take Tamra the Island too seriously. That would be an exercise in futility, and would probably suck all the fun out of it, anyway. It’s meant to be fun and campy and comic book-y, and you might enjoy it on those terms — just as long as you don’t expect it to be an accurate historical reflection or dramatic piece of art, naturally.

(I notice that the website uses the spelling “Tamra” despite its hangul spelling [탐나], so for the sake of consistency I’ll use Tamra too.)

[Watch the series at DramaFever]

SONG OF THE DAY

Yoon Sang – “소심한 물고기들” (Timid fish) [ Download ]

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Read the rest of Tamra the Island: Episode 1 (2,742 words)

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Post tags: first episodes, Hwang Chan-bin, Im Joo-hwan, Lee Sun-ho, Seo Woo, Tamra the Island

There’s an interesting new drama taking over the MBC weekend drama slot from Chae Rim‘s Job Well Done, which is, sadly, getting a shortened run. Due to health concerns of its writer Park Ji-hyun, Job Well Done will not run for the originally planned 50 episodes and will instead air its last episode on August 2.

The week following that, MBC will launch Tamna the Island [탐나는도다], which is produced by Group Eight and features a cast of fresh faces. Based on the preliminary info and stills, it looks like a comical sort of Robinson Crusoe–meets–Joseon era adventure romp set on Jeju Island. Quirky, for sure.

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Read the rest of Tamna the Island on MBC weekends (369 words)

© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2009. | Permalink | 61 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Hwang Chan-bin, Im Joo-hwan, Lee Sun-ho, Seo Woo, Tamra the Island