KOFFIA 2014 Review: THE DINNER Offers Too Many Cold Servings

By Hieu Chau

Creating a compelling domestic family drama is never an easy task mainly due to the stories these films have to tell. The narrative of a family drama is almost never about something new but it definitely takes a certain type of filmmaker to be able to evoke something profound and invigorating out of typically ordinary circumstances. Director Kim Dong-hyun tries his hardest to be that type of filmmaker with his latest family drama, The Dinner, but unfortunately lacks the astute direction and strong scripting that a poised filmmaker such as Japan's Hirokazu Koreeda possesses.

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KOFFIA 2014 Review: Fashion, Feminism and Film Collide in NORA NOH

By Hieu Chau

Fashion has always played a huge part in shaping films despite the fact that costuming is easily one of the most overlooked aspects in film discussions. On a textual level, fashion informs character - one can tell a whole story about a person simply based on costume choices. And this can easily apply to people in reality as well. Then there’s the effect fashion has outside of the film on a cultural and aesthetic level, where audiences seek to emulate and recreate the looks of the stars they see on screen.

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News: Choi Dong-hoon's ASSASSINATION Assembles Killer Cast

By Pierce Conran

Following 2012's blockbuster caper hit The Thieves, director Choi Dong-hoon is back at it with the new period action-thriller Assassination. What's more, he's bringing his The Thieves stars Gianna Jun, Lee Jung-jae and Oh Dal-su with him, along with more star wattage in the form of Ha Jung-woo and Cho Jin-woong.

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KOFFIA 2014 Review: HOPE Is An Obvious Yet Successful Tearjerker

By Hieu Chau

It wouldn’t be entirely wrong to say that Korean film has some affinity for children. Whether it’s a crowd-pleasing comedy like Miracle in Cell No. 7 or something a bit darker like Silenced, there really isn’t much of a shortage when it comes to stories about children in Korean cinema. Hope, last year’s recipient for Best Film at the Blue Dragon Awards (beating out films including Snowpiercer, New World, The Berlin File and The Face Reader), is one other such film with a story that’s motivated by children.

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Top 25 Korean Films of All Time

By Pierce Conran

I've thought about doing a list like this for some time but frankly found the task quite daunting. Having seen so many Korean films and there being so many that I love, drawing up a list inevitably meant cutting out a large number of films that I wish could get more recognition. But for our 4th anniversary (it's hard to believe it's been that long) I wanted to do something a little special. It certain did prove to be a difficult task...

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MKC Turns 4 & New Plans on the Horizon!

Today marks the 4th anniversary of MKC! After 4 years, 312 reviews, almost 900 posts and 1.05 million views I'm thrilled to say that the site is doing better than ever.

It's a labor of love, but it wouldn't be possible if it weren't for all the passionate fans of Korean cinema out there. So thank you for all the support over the years!

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Review: RED FAMILY's High Concept Suffers From Stilted Delivery

By Pierce Conran

Though as a theme it has spawned some of Korean cinema's biggest hits, including Shiri (1999), Joint Security Area (2000), Silmido (2003), Taegugki (2004) and Welcome to Dongmakgol (2005), the representation of North Korea on screen has always been a thorny one. It's a sensitive topic that is consistently affected by ebbing political tides. Though many different styles of narrative crop up relating to the Korean republic's Northern neighbor, those that have been most palatable to the public have featured themes of camaraderie across the demilitarized zone, films that stripped characters (mostly soldiers) of their ideologies and showed them for what they really were, which is of course people that are not all that dissimilar from one another.

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