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August is Korean Film Month in New York City - Part 2

The second of the three Korean film festivals this month, Fright Nights in Korean Film, runs from August 9 through 13. Obviously, it's a horror film festival, and the selection is a nice sampling of the contemporary horror film -- a very popular genre in Korea. The films and dates are as follows:

• The Horror Game Movie (2000) Dir: Byeong-ki Ahn. The Horror Game Movie is an artfully executed remake of a familiar Hollywood plot previously seen in I Know What You Did Last Summer. The story turns on an accidental death, in this case the death of a fellow school club member. Two years later, heroine Hye-jin must figure out the secret of her classmate’s death before Hye-jin joins the increasing body count…
• Phone (2002) Dir: Byeong-ki Ahn. A young journalist starts receiving troubling messages on her cellular phone. When a young girl answers the phone by accident, she seems to become possessed by a malicious spirit. Phone was one of the top box-office hits of summer 2002. The rights to Phone have been purchased by Focus Features’ Rogue Division here in the United States; Americans may see a U.S. remake in the next few years.
• Wishing Stairs (2003) Dir: Jae-yeon Yun. A staircase leading to the dormitory of a remote boarding school usually has 28 stairs, but every so often there appears to be 29. When someone steps on the mysterious extra stair, the horror begins…
• Into the Mirror (2003) Dir: Seong-ho Kim. Woo Yeong-min retired from the police force after inadvertently causing the death of his partner. He becomes head of security in a shopping mall. A series of bizarre deaths makes him realize that only by facing his inner demons can he begin to solve the mysteries around him.
• Acacia (2003) Dir: Gi-hyeong Park. In this psychological thriller, a childless couple adopts a young boy from an orphanage. The boy becomes obsessed with an old acacia tree growing in their yard; he believes it is the reincarnation of his dead birth mother. When the child disappears, the couples’ marriage begins to unravel.

Filmbrain has seen Phone, (it's quite scary), and has read good things about Acacia.

Once again, all of the screenings are FREE and being shown at:
Korean Cultural Service in New York
460 Park Ave. (at 57th St.)
6th FL.

On Monte Hellman, his three favorite films, and the recognizability of Filmbrain

Last night's screening of The Shooting at BAM was a near sellout -- great to be in a room with that many Hellman fans! As promised, it was a new 35mm print, and other than a few color-timing mistakes, it looked great. Hellman spoke afterwards, and it was preceded by a big announcement -- he is about to start production on a new film (and it's a western). He was tight-lipped about the screenwriter, though he did say it was based on a novel. (Cormac McCarthy? Just a guess.)

Hellman spoke about (amongst other things) the influence of Beckett on his films, his strong relationship with Warren Oates, and his absolute hatred of expository dialog (Roger Corman insisted he add some to The Shooting). He also corrected something concerning the end of the film -- the slow motion shooting was not inspired by the Zapruder film, but by the footage of Jack Ruby killing Lee Harvey Oswald. The Q&A session was interesting, and at one point somebody asked Hellman about his three favorite films, which he was happy to provide. A most interesting list:

• The Spirit of the Beehive (Victor Erice, 1973)
• Slave of Love (Nikita Mikhalkov, 1976)
• Outcast of the Islands (Carol Reed, 1952)

Filmbrain has only seen the Erice film, and it is indeed wonderful. Outcast of the Islands is totally unavailable, and Hellman has been pressuring Criterion to restore and release it on DVD. It sounds like an incredible film, judging by this review. Both Spirit of the Beehive and Slave of Love are on DVD, but only in Europe.

And then a strange thing happened at the end of the evening. As Filmbrain was leaving the theater, a woman approached him -- "Excuse me, are you Filmbrain?"
Completely stunned. "Um....yes."
"Ah...I had this feeling. I like your site. Glad I came to this tonight."
She waved goodbye and walked off. Filmbrain could not think of anything to say. He was flattered, but dumbfounded. What was it about him that gave him away?

Filmbrain's Screen Capture Quiz: Week 6

Filmbrain is truly touched -- the response to last week's quiz was the best so far, and many, many of you recognized that the sailor was none other than Filmbrain's celluloid muse Anna Karina, looking to get pregnant in Jean-Luc Godard's Une Femme est Une Femme (A Woman is a Woman). If you haven't seen this film, you simply must. Easily JLG's most lighthearted film, but also one of his best. Between the brilliant banter of stars Jean-Paul Belmondo, Jean-Claude Brialy (and of course Mademoiselle Karina), and the lush score by Michel Legrand (there are some quasi-musical numbers) this is a film that just makes you feel good -- call it an intellectual romantic-comedy. Filmbrain is also pleased to announce that the winner was none other than fellow film blogger (and celebrity in her own right), The Cinetrix. At this, the midway point in the contest, there is no clear leader. Many of you have guessed four out of the five, and even more of you have guessed three. Hopefully, by the end of the tenth week there will be a clear victor. Following in the footsteps of last week, this week's quiz once again features a well-known actress from behind, dancing. Name her, and the film. As usual, send your guesses to this address. Good luck!

August is Korean Film Month in New York City - Part 1

It never rains it pours. In the month of August, (the month that is usually the driest culture-wise in NYC), there will be not one, not two, but three different Korean Film Festivals.

The first is a rare opportunity to see films from the golden age of Korean cinema, which lasted from the mid-1950's through the early 1970's (realism was all the rage). The mini-festival, called If Orson Welles Were Korean... includes four landmark films from the period, and it includes a rare screening of The Aimless Bullet, the film voted "Best Korean Film of All Time" by Korean film critics in 1999. The films and dates are as follows:

• A Seaside Village (1965) -- This one screened tonight, August 2. Sorry for the late post.
• School Excursion (1969) Dir: Hyun-mok Yu. From a remote island off mainland Korea, a devoted teacher takes his class of children to Seoul for the first time. Once in Seoul, the children are shocked by both the fast-paced metropolitan life and the wastefulness of it. The film can be seen as a mixed commentary on the industrialization of Korea. Tuesday, August 3, 6:30
• Hee-Bin Jang (1961) Dir: Jung Chang-hwa. Jang Hee-bin is a tale of treachery and murder in the highest levels of Korean royalty. The film stars Jee-mi Kim, one of the most popular Korean actresses of the ‘60s. It is also notable as the last film on which Im Kwon-Taek, considered by many the greatest Korean director, worked as an assistant director. Wednesday, August 4, 6:30
• The Aimless Bullet (1961) Dir: Hyun-mok Yu. Banned in Korea on its original release, The Aimless Bullet chronicles the hopeless life of a North Korean family living in Seoul in the years following the Korean War. A public accountant struggles to support his troubled family, even as he watches depression and despair slowly destroy his family’s lives. Thursday, August 5, 6:30
• The Coachman (1961) Dir: Dae-jin Kang. After the Korean War, few trucks were available in Korea. As a result, horse-drawn wagons were a major source of transportation for heavy goods. The men who drove the horses were usually very poor and badly paid; the rich horse owners took most of the earnings of the wagons, leaving only a pittance for the drivers. This film tells the story of one such driver, Choonsam, and how, after many troubles and suffering, he and his family finally came to find happiness. Friday, August 6, 6:30

All films are subtitled, except for The Coachman, though an English synopsis will be handed out.

Filmbrain has read wonderful things about The Aimless Bullet, and he will make every effort to make it to that screening.

All screenings are free and being shown at:
Korean Cultural Service in New York
460 Park Ave. (at 57th St.)
6th FL.

Donnie Darker (Or: Don't doubt Filmbrain's commitment to Sparkle Motion!)

Earlier this year, when it was announced that a director's cut of Donnie Darko was in the works, there was serious amount of buzz -- both in the blogosphere and in the real world. So what happened? Donnie Darko: The Director's Cut crept into NYC without any fanfare, and is only playing at two theaters. Perhaps the distributor felt it wasn't worth trying to compete with the big summer films....like Catwoman. Like many people, Filmbrain missed Donnie Darko the first time around, and only discovered it on DVD. (For a fascinating tale of how poor marketing and publicity can destroy a film's chances, listen to director Richard Kelly's commentary track on the DVD.) Then of course there were the midnight screenings, which began here in NYC at the Two Boots Pioneer Theater, which helped turn the film into a cult phenomenon. It was the success of these midnight screenings that played a huge part in Kelly's decision to put together this new cut. Most (all?) of the new scenes in the director's cut were found on the DVD, but now they've been properly incorporated into the film. The new version has some music changes as well, but more on those in a moment. Too often is the case that a director's cut offers little or no improvement on the original, and in some cases (Apocalypse Now Redux) it actually worsens it. With Donnie Darko: The Director's Cut, the cut scenes were originally part of the film, but pressure from various sources (and perhaps first-feature insecurity) led to their excision. With these scenes restored, the film just feels more complete than the previous version. Perhaps it was due to seeing it theatrically for the first time, but Filmbrain found this new cut to be significantly darker than the original. With more time to explore the characters (particularly Donnie) the film can be viewed as an extremely depressing tale of a mentally ill teenager -- i.e., what if all the fantastical elements in the film are merely figments of the imagination of a schizophrenic. (Filmbrain isn't suggesting such an interpretation, but the new cut allows such thoughts to creep in.) The depressing and disturbing elements of the original -- the treatment of Cherita, the child exploitation of Sparkle Motion, the banning of Graham Greene, the existence of Jim Cunningham, etc. -- seem somehow magnified this time around. The only negative things about the new cut are the enhanced special effects (completely unnecessary) and the slight music changes, though this is more a personal gripe. The opening scene of Donnie riding his bike to Echo and the Bunnymen's The Killing Moon was perfect -- INXS' Never Tear Us Apart is a poor substitute. If you haven't seen the film, this is a great chance to see it as Kelly intended. If you know the film only from home video, it's more than worth the money to see it on a big screen.