Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Trivia About Korean Movies and Drama

1.
What Korean movie has the longest title?
2.
Are there Western movies made in Korea, too?
3.
What is the first Korean movie banned for violating the National Security Law?
4.
What is the first Korean movie to receive criminal charges for violating the National Security Law?
5.
What were the greatest box office hits from 1974 to 2005?
6.
What is the first Korean movie to receive criminal charges for sexually explicit content?
7.
Which Korean director produced the most number of films in Korean film history?
8.
Which Korean movie was made in the least number of hours?
9.
What is Korea’s first feature-length animation film?
10.
Where and when was the first movie shown to the public in Korea?
11.
What is the first Korean anti-Communist film?
12.
Who is Korea’s first movie narrator?
13.
What is Korea’s first cinemascope movie?
14.
Who is the first female director of Korea and what movie did she make?
15.
What is the first Korean movie?
16.
What is Korea’s first sound film (“talkie”)?
17.
Which was the first color cinemascope film in Korea?
18.
What was the first Korean movie in color?
19.
What is Korea’s first comedy film?
20.
Which Korean film had the first kiss scene?
21.
What is the first Korean film to receive recognition in a foreign film festival?
22.
What is the oldest Korean film that has been preserved?
23.
What is the first joint film made in Korea?
24.
What is the genealogy of box office hits in Korea?

Windstruck

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Part 7
Part 8
Part 9
Part 10
Part 11
Part 12
Part 13

Main characters
Jun Ji-hyun as Officer Kyung-jin Yeo
Jang Hyuk as Myung-woo Ko

Plot summary
The film stars Jun Ji-hyun as Officer Kyung-jin Yeo, an ambitious young female police officer serving on the Seoul police department. One day while chasing a purse snatcher, she accidentally captures Myung-woo Ko (played by Jang Hyuk), a physics teacher at an all-girls school, who was actually trying to catch the thief. Later, Myung-woo discovers the stolen purse, but just as he picks it up, Kyung-jin spots him and tries to arrest him again. Kyung-jin is then given the job of escorting Myung-woo through a dangerous district, only to be distracted when she tries to break up a meeting between Russian Mafia and Korean gangsters. With Myung-woo handcuffed to her, Kyung-jin almost single-handedly brings down the two rival gangs (although she is helped when she accidentally causes the groups to start shooting at each other).
The first half of the film, told from Myung-woo's point of view, details the couple's growing attraction and love for each other, which climaxes with a trip to the countryside where Myung-woo tells Kyung-jin that if he were to ever to die, he wanted to come back to earth as the wind. Soon after, he is almost killed in a freak automobile accident, but Kyung-jin saves his life.
The film takes a turn into the fantasy genre in its second half, after Myung-woo is accidentally shot and killed by another officer (although the situation is such that Kyung-jin thinks that it was her shot that killed him) as Kyung-jin chases after a criminal. Kyung-jin falls into a suicidal depression over his death and attempts to kill herself several times, finally almost succeeding when she throws herself off a building, only to be saved when a giant balloon floats under her. Soon after, she experiences visitations from Myung-woo, who appears as the wind, sending her messages and, at one point, he even appears in her dreams in order to give her the will to live after she is nearly shot to death by a criminal.
Ultimately the film follows a similar path set out by the American film Ghost with Myung-woo and Kyung-jin communicating and sharing one final gesture of love before he moves on to the afterlife. Myung-woo said that he will whisper, when she hear him whisper in the wind, she will meet someone with a soul like him. Myung-woo told Kyung-jin that he always beside her, which a book and a photo left by Myung-woo in the restaurant before he rushed to meet Kyung-jin who was chasing the insane criminal.
In the first half of the film, Myung-woo told that his only memory of high school was his high school trip. The book and the photo is found and returned to Kyung-jin in the police station. The photo show that Myung-woo trip and nearby was Kyung-jin. This proved Myung-woo "I always beside you" to Kyung-jin. Kyung-jin rush out to find the finder, till in the train station, where she is saved by Cha Tae-Hyun (credited as The Guy) in the train station, Myung-woo whispered that The Guy is the one that with the soul like him. Kyung-jin whisper that "he is always beside her."

Connections to My Sassy Girl
Windstruck shares the same leading actress and director as an earlier popular South Korean film, My Sassy Girl. As a result, Windstruck contains several subtle references to the previous film. For example, a photo of Jun Ji-hyun from My Sassy Girl is visible on Kyung-jin's piano (while playing the piano). Plus the final scene of Windstruck, in which Kyung-jin meets her new soul mate (played by Cha Tae-hyun, the male lead from My Sassy Girl) on a train platform, is similar to the beginning of My Sassy Girl and her character from My Sassy Girl is distraught over the death of her true love.
Also, when Kyung-jin is chasing Sin Chang-su she tells a random citizen to be as a steppingstone to climb over the wall just like she forced Tae-hyun in My Sassy Girl to act similarly.

Monday, June 23, 2008

Strongest Chil Woo

Title: 최강칠우 / Choi Kang Chil Woo
Also known as: Strongest Chil Woo
Chinese Title : 最強七迂
Genre: Historical
Episodes: 20
Broadcast network: KBS2
Broadcast period: 2008-June-17 to 2008-Aug-19
Air time: Mondays & Tuesdays 21:55 (9:55 Korean time)

Synopsis

Kang Chil Woo is a lowly officer during the Joseon era. Chil Woo is not a very smart and one of his life long goals is to become a midlevel officer. However when night falls, he is no longer that low level officer but instead a top assassin in an assassination organization. He gives out punishment to criminals and gives justice where needed. So Yoon and Chil Woo have a tragic love story. Yeon Doo is the daughter of a fallen yangban who owns a textile shop. She falls in love with Chil Woo after he rescues her from thugs who were harassing her.

Cast

Eric as Kang Chil Woo
Koo Hye Sun as So Yoon
Kim Byul as Yeon Doo
Yoo Ah In as Heuk San

Extended Cast

Im Ha Ryong as Choi Nam Deuk (Chil Woo’s adoptive father)
Lee Un as Ja Ja
Jun No Min as Min Seung Kook
Kim Young Ok as Mong Dung Ne
Kang Jae as Jo Ahn Joong
Choi Ran as Chung Ju Daek
Im Hyuk as Kim Ja Sun
Jung Jin as Sa Na Jang
Shin Seung Hwan as Oh Na Jang
Park Joon Seo as Jung Na Jang
Jung Joon Young as Chul Suk Yi
Nam Myung Ryul as Do Sa
Jung Won Joong
Choi Jung Woo as In Jo
Song Yong Tae as Do Jae Jo
Son Kwang Up (손광업)
Lee Yun Sung
Woo Young
Lee Ho Sung
Oh Man Suk as Chil Woo’s biological father (cameo)
Kim Ji Suk (cameo)
Choi Soo Han as young Chil Woo
Lee Han Na as young So Yoon

Production Credits

Director: Park Man Young
Scriptwriter: Baek Yoon Chul
Producer: Park Man Young

Official Site

Watch Online with English Subtitle (not yet available)

Watch Online with Chinese Subtitle

Sunday, June 22, 2008

Jenny, Juno

Watch!
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Part 7

Plot

The plot centers around the relationship of a 15-year-old couple, Jenny (Park Min-ji) and Juno (Kim Hye-sung), who meet in school. When Jenny discovers that she is pregnant, she and Juno decide against having an abortion, opting for parenthood instead. They try to conceal the pregnancy from their families for as long as possible, but the truth is revealed eventually, and their parents do not approve.

Debate

The film's subject matter provoked intense discussion in the media upon its release in South Korea. Although there is no sex scene between the protagonists, the film was initially given a rating of 18+, but this was lowered to 15+ upon appeal. Critics expressed concerns that the film's presentation of teenage pregnancy was unrealistic, in that Jenny is from a well-to-do, secure family that is able to support her decision, and that this might send the wrong message to less fortunate teens. Kim Ho-joon, the film's director, responded to this criticism by stating:^[1]^[2]

"Jenny and Juno are certainly wayward children who should have never done a thing they did for their age. But it was an accident that they made the mistake and their love is in a way innocent. What should be really criticized is not the couple but adults who only say 'no.' This film shows how they make a mistake but how we should take responsibility."

Similarities to Juno

Rumors arose about the similarities of Jenny, Juno to a 2007 American comedy film, Juno, which also deals with teenage pregnancy and features a character with the name Juno (a girl). The film's screenwriter, Diablo Cody, commented on the coincidence in October 2007, stating that she had been unaware of the existence of Jenny, Juno prior her own film's release. She said that, although she had not yet watched Jenny, Juno, she now is interested in seeing it.

Upcoming Korean Drama

When It's At Night

Details

Title: 밤이면 밤마다 / When It's At Night
Also known as: Everyday Night / When Night Comes
Genre: Romance, comedy
Episodes: 16
Broadcast network: MBC
Broadcast period: 2008-Jun-23 to 2008-Aug
Air time: Mondays & Tuesdays 21:55 (9:55 Korean time)

Synopsis

Kim Bum Sang is a arts scholar who is crazy about virgins and is a supervisor of property assets. Heo Cho Hwi is a 29 year old woman who is always mistaken as someone who is crafty because of her natural-born sexiness. The story will be about how these two cross paths and how their chance meeting will cause turmoil for the both of them.

Cast

Kim Sun Ah as Heo Cho Hwi
Lee Dong Gun as Kim Bum Sang
Kim Jung Hwa as Wang Joo Hyun
Lee Joo Hyun as Kang Shi Wan

Extended Cast

Park Chul Min
Kim Jun Ho
Jo Jung Rin
Kim Hyang Gi as Kang Ji Yoon (Shi Wan's daughter)
Choi Joo Bong
Park Young Ji
Lee Young Yoo as young Cho Hwi

Episode Ratings

Date	Episode	Nationwide	Seoul
2008-06-23	1	-	-
2008-06-24	2	-	-
2008-06-30	3	-	-
2008-07-01	4	-	-
2008-07-07	5	-	-
2008-07-08	6	-	-
2008-07-14	7	-	-
2008-07-15	8	-	-
2008-07-21	9	-	-
2008-07-22	10	-	-
2008-07-28	11	-	-
2008-07-29	12	-	-
2008-08-04	13	-	-
2008-08-05	14	-	-
2008-06-11	15	-	-
2008-06-12	16	-	-
Average		-	-