Friday, March 30, 2012

April 2012 Korean Releases

This monthly features previews the coming month's attractions in Korean cinema.  All of these monthly posts are available in an archive on the Upcoming Releases page.


April 5

Mother

April 11

Doomsday Book
The Scent

April 19

Duet

April 26

Eungyo (A Muse)
Rain and Rain
Red Maria
Spring, Snow

April TBC

The Peach Tree


Mother


Director:  Tae Jun-seek
Release date:  April 5

A documentary about an elderly woman and her impact on the people with difficult lives.  Mother has screened at a number of documentary festivals including the DMZ International Documentary Festival.



Doomsday Book


Director:  Yim Pil-seong, Kim Jee-woon
Cast:  Kim Kang-woo, Kim Gyoo-Ri, Ryoo Seung-beom, Song Sae-byeok
Synopsis:  Three unique stories of human self-destruction in the modern high-tech era.  In a hope to restore the humane compassion in the insusceptible modern age, the film displays an alternative form of genuine humanity.  And thus you are stepping into the world of future, where a series of unexpected stories awaits you.  All these stories originate from the earth. From the very earth you live on. 
Release date:  April 11

An eagerly anticipated omnibus film which initially went into production in 2006 but halted due to financing problems, recently the project was put back on track.  and will sate us as we await Kim Jee-woon's debut American feature in 2013.  This will be Yim Pil-seong (Antarctic Journal, 2005; Hansel and Gretel, 2007) first work in 5 years.  Han Jae-rim was initially to directed a segment before the production shut down.  The final segment was recently completed with Yim Pil-seong directing and Kim Jee-woon in a supporting role.  I am not certain about the release date, since no trailer has appeared to date the film may be pushed back.


The Scent


Director:  Kim Hyung-jun
Cast:  Park Hee-soon, Park Si-yeon, Joo Sang-wook, Cha Soo-yeon
Synopsis:  A woman asks a detective, who does some PI work on the side, to investigate her husband whom she suspects is having an affair.  When the husband winds up dead it's the detective who becomes a suspect.
Release date:  April 11

Kim Hyung-jun's second feature following 2010's No Mercy.



Duet


Director:  Lee Sang-bin
Writer:  Lee Sang-bin
Cast:  Ko Ah-sung, James Page
Synopsis:  Nanye is a young musician who takes a 15-day trip to England and meets James who becomes her guide.
Release date:  April 19


Eungyo


Director:  Jeong Ji-woo
Cast:  Lee Paul, Yeom Hyeon-joon, Kim Sae-byeok
Synopsis:  Lee Juk-Yo, a respected poet, is an old man who cares fondly for his younger disciple Seo Ji-Woo.  When a teenage 17-year-old enters their lives, their lives are turned upside down.
Release date:  April 26

Jeong Ji-woo, the director of Happy End is back with an adaptation of popular novel Eungyo starring Park Hae-il, hot off his multiple Best Actor wins for War of the Arrows, who will portray a 70-year old man.  This vaguely reminds me of 2010's Moss which featured Jeong Jae-yeong under layers of makeup and also starred Park.



Spring, Snow


Director:  Kim Tae-gyoon
Cast:  Yoon Seok-hwa, Lim Ji-gyoo, Lee Kyeong-yeong, Kim Ha-jin
Synopsis:  A drama about a typical mother Soon-ok and her family's process of getting ready to say goodbye.
Release date: April 26



Red Maria


Director:  Kyung-soon
Cast:  Yoon Seok-hwa, Lim Ji-gyoo, Lee Kyeong-yeong, Kim Ha-jin
Synopsis:  A documentary that follows suffering women across Asia who work in the sex trade, as immigrants, are homeless and more.
Release date: April 26


Rain and Rain


Director:  Kim Nam-kyung
Cast:  Im Chang-jeong, Yu In-young, Lee Kyeong-jin
Synopsis:  A romance story between musicians Soo-Hyun and Ji-eun.
Release date:  April 26


The Peach Tree


Director:  Ku Hye-sun
Cast:  Nam Sang-mi, Ryu Deok-hwan, Cho Seung-woo
Synopsis:  A complicated love triangle of siamese twins who fall for the same girl.
Release date:  April

The Peach Tree bowed at the Busan International Film Festival last October.


Resources:

Asian Wiki
Han Cinema
KOBIS


Reviews and features on Korean film appear regularly on Modern Korean Cinema.  For film news, external reviews, and box office analysis, take a look at the Korean Box Office UpdateKorean Cinema News and the Weekly Review Round-up, which appear weekly on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings (GMT+1).

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