The Korea Times

BTS becomes cultural phenomenon

Superstar K-pop band covered in films, books, webtoons, games By Park Jin-haiOn Saturday, the CGV theater in Seoul's southwestern Yeongdeungpo-gu discrict, was turned into a concert hall. Fans waited in long lines to enter the theater for the special two-night screening event called “ARMY Bomb Screening,” where BTS fans could sing along to songs and wave light sticks called “BTS Bomb” while watching live BTS concert tour footage on the big screen. Like the real concert, fans chant each member's names, passionately waving color-changing sticks as guided by Bit Hit staff members. "Love Yourself in Seoul," a documentary released on Saturday that recorded BTS' "Love Yourself" concert series in the city, attracted over 180,000 moviegoers in two days during the opening weekend. It became the second-most-seen film at the local box office. It is BTS' second film in just two and a half months ― its first, "Burn the Stage: The Movie," garnered an audience of 2 million in some 70 countries and regions following its release in November 2018. Their second documentary film

Jan 28, 2019By Park Jin-hai

Films

Occult thriller starring Lee Jung-jae to hit theaters

Lee Jung-jae seen in his upcoming thriller “Svaha” / Courtesy of CJ EntertainmentBy Park Jin-haiVeteran actor Lee Jung-jae will star in a mystery thriller featuring a fictional covert Buddhist cult.“Svaha,” a Sanskrit word used in Buddhism equivalent to the Christian “amen,” tells the story of a pastor, played by Lee, who runs a research center on religion and is involved in a mysterious murder case involving twin sisters. Lee investigates the mysterious Buddhist cult behind it called the “Deer Farm.” The film is directed by Jang Jae-hyun, who received critical acclaim for triggering an Occult genre boom in the local cinema scene with his 2015 box office hit “The Priests” about Catholic exorcism. In the wake of his film's commercial success that attracted nearly 5.5 million, many films and dramas have explored similar topics. Na Hong-jin's mystery thriller “The Wailing” (2016) and dramas “The Guest” and “Priest” that hit the airwaves last year are some examples that emulated “The Pri

Jan 27, 2019By Park Jin-hai

Occult thriller starring Lee Jung-jae to hit theaters

Travel & Food

'Tea is essential part of Buddhist culture'

A bloomed flower lies in an empty tea cup on the rock at Geumdun Temple in South Jeolla Province, Jan. 22. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-sukVenerable Jiheo speaks of life with tea By Park Jin-haiVenerable Jiheo, 77, who has devoted his life to growing green tea plants since he became a monk at the age of 15, says the essence of Buddhist culture lies in tea. “A famous ancient book praising green tea says if one drinks seven cups of tea, that person can become a Buddha. With each cup of tea, one's thirst, loneliness and complaints gradually go away. When the person reaches the seventh cup, he can feel the clear breeze blowing underarm with no wind at all,” said the former chief monk of Seonam Temple. He now runs a small temple Geumdun, just 14 kilometers south of Seonamsa (sa is Korean for temple), with some wild tea fields over 700 years old. “In practicing seon (zen), focusing on the single thought of hwadu, one's body caves in to sleep and distracting thoughts. Teas help eliminate waste matter from the body, clear one's mind and focus on the single subject of hwadu

Jan 24, 2019By Park Jin-hai

'Tea is essential part of Buddhist culture'

VIDEO Temple reveals timeless devotion to Buddhism

Travel & Food

VIDEO Temple reveals timeless devotion to Buddhism

A fish-shaped wind chime hangs from the exterior corner of Seonam Temple in South Jeolla Province. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk By Park Jin-haiSUNCHEON ― In Seonam Temple located in the foothills of Mount Jogye in South Jeolla Province, every small thing seems to form a bigger picture that Mother Nature has created, from rolling small cobbles on the unpaved road to a little stream, a tree trunk scorched by lightning strike and walls revealing clay and straw that has been standing for over a thousand years. Unlike bigger temples that overwhelm visitors, Seonam Temple, the head temple of the Taego Order, boasts of modest and time-honored beauty. The historic temple, constructed by Doseon in 875, has no vivid decorations or majestic Four Heavenly Kings statues guarding devotees. Instead Seungseongyo, a rainbow-shaped stone bridge designated Treasure No. 400, greets visitors. When crossing the bridge, one is believed to become a Daoist hermit and erase the contamination of the secular world. Seungseongyo at Seonam Temple in South Jeolla Province. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-

Jan 24, 2019By Park Jin-hai

[VIDEO] Temple reveals timeless devotion to Buddhism

'Tea is essential part of Buddhist culture'

K-pop

Wanna One's Ong Seong-wu debuts as actor

By Park Jin-haiOng Seong-wu / Courtesy of FantagioOng Seong-wu, a member of disbanded project K-pop boy band Wanna One, will begin his acting career in the JTBC upcoming drama “Moments of 18.” The 23-year-old, who debuted as a singer through TV audition show “Produce 101” in 2017, went solo after the popular 11-member boy band was disbanded as scheduled at the end of last year. Ong is cast as the drama's male lead, 18-year-old quiet and solitary new student Choi Jun-wu in the coming-of-age drama which tells the story of high school students and their precarious lives. “Ahead of my new beginning, my feelings are mixed. I am nervous but excited at the same time. It's just like when I was preparing for my debut as a singer,” Ong said. “I'm taking this career with all my heart since it is something I've long dreamed of.” The singer is also planning to release a solo album, the date of which has yet to be decided. Ong and the rest of the Wanna One members are scheduled to perform in four concerts at Gocheok Sky Dome between Thursday and Sund

Jan 22, 2019By Park Jin-hai

Wanna One's Ong Seong-wu debuts as actor

Films

Comedy films dominate box office again

A scene from the comedy film “Inside Me” / Courtesy of Merry ChristmasBy Park Jin-haiKorean cinemas are set to rebound as several comedies have drawn positive responses from moviegoers following crushing performances of much-anticipated local films in the box office last year. With “Inside Me” at the forefront, a low-budget comedy with a surprise box office success, a slew of other comedies are slated to screen in coming months. With no big name hallyu stars, “Inside Me,” directed by Kang Hyo-jin, premiered without much media publicity on Jan. 9. But the film, telling the story of a gangster-turned-businessman and a schoolboy who have exchanged bodies, has continues to attract moviegoers. The film surpassed 1 million ticket sales on its eighth day and is nearing its 1.5 million break-even point. Although the plot of souls being switched has been told many times in other films, “Inside Me” is being praised for its wit and humor. With the help of word of mouth, the film's second weekday admission average rose by 10,000 people from the ope

Jan 20, 2019By Park Jin-hai

Shows & Dramas

Writer tells of AR-game influence on drama

By Park Jin-haiWriter Song Jae-jung speaks about her fantasy thriller “Memories of the Alhambra” during a press conference at FKI Tower in Seoul, Tuesday. Courtesy of CJ ENMSong Jae-jung, 45, who wrote the country's first augmented reality-gaming drama “Memories of the Alhambra,” said her drama was inspired by tech mogul Elon Musk and the “Pokemon Go” game. “I happened to read Elon Musk's autobiography and his life story inspired me to create the male lead of the drama,” the writer said during a press conference at FKI Tower in Seoul, Tuesday. “I seldom read storytelling-focused books like novels. Instead I read humanities books and magazines. I'm drawn to stories of real figures and how they live this world… some extraordinary figures living abroad.”The fantasy thriller tells the story of Yoo Jin-woo ― played by Hyun Bin ― a young CEO of a private equity group that invests in the IT industry, who happens to play a genius AR game and realizes how enchanting and realistic the AR gaming world can be.But the game gets bu

Jan 16, 2019By Park Jin-hai

Writer tells of AR-game influence on drama

Shows & Dramas

TV show accused of promoting wrong eateries

A scene from SBS food show “Baek Jong-won's Alley Restaurant” Courtesy of SBSBy Park Jin-haiFamous namesake chef and eatery franchises owner Baek Jong-won hosts one of Korea's hottest reality shows at the moment, the food reality show “Baek Jong-won's Alley Restaurant.” The SBS Wednesday show, with no big-name celebrity cast members, enjoys strong viewership. Its recent episodes have surpassed 10 percent, topping the time slot for months. But the show recently has been hit hard by a casting controversy for selecting the wrong restaurant owners. By giving the spotlight to unprepared ones, some viewers complained the wrong casting choices doesn't live up to the show's purpose ― to help talented but struggling small restaurant owners find success ― and urges the producers to use a more considerate selection process for the featured restaurateurs. Its popularity stems from the “human drama” in each episode. At a time when many unprepared self-employed people join the restaurant business due to the industry's low entry barriers and add to the fierce com

Jan 14, 2019By Park Jin-hai

TV show accused of promoting wrong eateries

Arts & Theater

British artist performs disability art

British artist Jo Bannon speaks during an interview with The Korea Times at Ieum Korea Disability Arts & Culture Center in Seoul, Wednesday. Courtesy of British Council KoreaUK artist, audience communicate without speaking By Park Jin-haiJo Bannon, 36, a British artist born with albinism, visited Seoul for a five-day performance called “Exposure,” which runs until Jan. 13. In her performance, which belongs to a lesser-known genre called “disability art,” audience members are guided into complete darkness. In the ten-minute, one-on-one performance, the audience listens to the artist's recorded voice talking about her life with the genetic disorder and her identity. It is not until the very end, the audience gets to see the artist's face and the artist and audience share a moment to look at each other. “So much happens in that moment when we look at each other. We don't speak, but some kind of conversation happens,” said Bannon, who met 20 Korean audience members in her opening performance, held at Ieum Korea Disability Arts & Culture Ce

Jan 13, 2019By Park Jin-hai

Shows & Dramas

Notorious drama writers tapped in to rescue falling viewership

Yoo Jun-sang, center, and other cast members of KBS new family drama “Live or Die” pose during a press conference at Amoris Hall in Seoul, Wednesday. Courtesy of Hankook Sports EconomyBy Park Jin-haiIn a bid to draw in fans and recover from prolonged viewership slumps, major broadcasters are calling in drama writers who are infamous for their controversial plotlines. Unlike cable channels such as tvN and JTBC that are becoming increasingly influential due to their high-quality dramas, major TV channels rely on the shock elements provided by soap operas.With Kim Soon-ok's offering, “The Last Empress,” on SBS currently topping ratings in the Wed-Thus drama time slot with 16-18 percent viewership, KBS called in notorious writer Moon Young-nam to rescue falling viewership. KBS' new Wed-Thus drama “Live or Die,” penned by Moon Young-nam, premiered Wednesday, is a story about Lee Poong-sang, played by Yoo Jun-sang, and his four troublemaking siblings. Middle-aged Poong-sang, running a small car repair shop, has lived his whole life as a father figure, de

Jan 9, 2019By Park Jin-hai

Park Jin-hai

Read more

BTS becomes cultural phenomenon

Occult thriller starring Lee Jung-jae to hit theaters

'Tea is essential part of Buddhist culture'

VIDEO Temple reveals timeless devotion to Buddhism

Wanna One's Ong Seong-wu debuts as actor

Comedy films dominate box office again

Writer tells of AR-game influence on drama

TV show accused of promoting wrong eateries

British artist performs disability art

Notorious drama writers tapped in to rescue falling viewership

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