'Anatomy of a Fall' wins Cannes Film Festival's Palme d'Or Director Justine Triet, Palme d'Or award winner for the film "Anatomie d'une chute" (Anatomy of a Fall), holds her award on stage next to actor Jane Fonda during the closing ceremony of the 76th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France, May 27, 2023. Reuters-Yonhap3rd time female director wins top honorJustine Triet's “Anatomy of a Fall” won the Palme d'Or at the 76th Cannes Film Festival in a ceremony Saturday that bestowed the festival's prestigious top prize on an engrossing, rigorously plotted French courtroom drama that puts a marriage on trial.“Anatomy of a Fall,” which stars Sandra Huller as a writer trying to prove her innocence in her husband's death, is only the third film directed by a woman to win the Palme d'Or. One of the two previous winners, Julia Ducournau, was on this year's jury.Cannes' Grand Prix, its second prize, went to Jonathan Glazer's “The Zone of Interest,” a chilling Martin Amis adaptation about a German family living next door to Auschwitz. Huller also stars in that film.The awards were decided by a jury presided over by May 28, 2023
Renowned Japanese director's early films premiere at Seoul Eco Film Festival Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda / AFP-YonhapHirokazu Kore-eda's three documentaries are among 37 SIEFF films premiering in Korea and AsiaBy Ko Dong-hwanNow that his hair is turning white and his films are receiving global recognition from international awards, Hirokazu Kore-eda is looking back over his career, going back 30 years. Watching the nature documentaries he had produced for Japanese TV broadcasters, the director appreciated that the works that jumpstarted his creative career finally earned the chance to premiere in Korea for international movie-goers.“I have learned that three of my TV documentaries I produced in my 20s are premiering in Korea,” Kore-eda, now 60, said in a self-recorded video sent to this year's organizer of the Seoul International Eco Film Festival (SIEFF). The videos were made for TV documentary series NONFIX in 1991 and 1992. “These documentaries are very precious to me as they opened doors for me to grow up in a lot of aspects,” he said.Despite the belatedness, the SIEFF organizing committee's inclusion of Kore-eda's documentMay 25, 2023By Ko Dong-hwan
Ma Dong-seok goes all out to create iconic action hero in 'The Outlaws' threequel A scene from the film "The Roundup: No Way Out" / Courtesy of ABO EntertainmentBy Kwak Yeon-sooActor Ma Dong-seok said he has poured his heart and soul into making “The Roundup: No Way Out,” the third installment of “The Outlaws” series.The bone-crunching action comedy film follows detective Ma Seok-do (Ma) after he has joined the Regional Investigation Unit. He and his colleagues discover that Japanese gangsters have smuggled illegal drugs into Korea and an unidentified villain is involved in the distribution. ?Actor Lee Jun-hyuk joins the franchise as the new film's villain while Japanese actor Aoki Munetaka will play Riki, a member of the yakuza syndicate.Unlike the two previous films ― “The Outlaws” (2017) and “The Roundup” (2022) ― that featured a single villain, “The Roundup: No Way Out” features two antagonists.“The two villains are not parallel characters. They are three-dimensional, powerful characters who build the thrill and complicate Ma's investigation,” he said during an interview with The Korea TimMay 25, 2023By Kwak Yeon-soo
Kim Seon-ho returns to screen with film debut in 'The Childe' From left, Kang Tae-ju, Go Ara, Kim Seon-ho, and Kim Kang-woo pose during a press conference for the new action film “The Childe,” held in Gwangjin District, Seoul, Monday. Courtesy of NEWBy Lee Gyu-leeActor Kim Seon-ho is set to make his film debut with the title role in the upcoming noir action movie, “The Childe,” as his first screen project in two years since the hit rom-com series, “Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha” (2021).Park Hoon-jung, who is known for directing the action films “The Witch: Part 1. The Subversion,” (2018) and its sequel, “The Witch: Part 2. The Other One” (2022) and “New World” (2013), will see the new movie holding its premiere on June 21.The film revolves around a boxer, named Marco (Kang Tae-ju), who is born to a Korean father and Filipino mother. He leaves the Philippines and travels to Korea in hopes of finding his father who abandoned him.While trying to track down his father, he gets involved with some bad people, including a mysterious man known as, Childe (Kim Seon-ho), and a rich heir, DireMay 23, 2023By Lee Gyu-lee
Netflix discussing release of Sulli's posthumous film 'Persona 2' Sulli took her own life on October 14, 2019. YonhapBy Woo Da-binFans of the late singer and actress Sulli may get another glimpse of the star in a movie that she partially filmed before her untimely death in 2019.Netflix announced, Sunday, it is currently holding talks over the possible release of a special episode of the film, “Persona,” featuring Sulli. Earlier, a social media user claimed that a new “Persona” film starring Sulli had been added to the catalog of Netflix Brazil slated for release on June 16, which will include a special episode and an interview with the actress filmed in 2019. These rumors and the official acknowledgment by Netflix of a possible release of the movie are fueling anticipation among fans hoping for a chance to see Sulli on the screen once again.“Persona” is an omnibus film series consisting of four stand-alone movies from four different directors, released on Netflix in 2019 with singer IU starring as the main protagonist. After Sulli's passing, her agency, Mystic Story, said, “Sulli was the main character of tMay 22, 2023
Ha Jung-woo to direct, star in comedy film, 'OB' Actor-director Ha Jung-woo / Courtesy of NetflixBy Kwak Yeon-sooActor Ha Jung-woo will direct and star in comedy film tentatively titled, “OB,” about a man lobbying financiers and lawmakers by taking them on golf tours to win a government contract.“Ha is in the process of writing the script and casting new faces for his upcoming film 'OB,'”his management agency, Workhouse Company, said, Friday. Ha previously helmed the 2013 disaster comedy film, “Fasten Your Seatbelt,” and 2015 drama film, “Chronicle of a Blood Merchant.” As an actor, he has several projects lined up for cinematic release this year. “Boston 1947,” which chronicles the exploits of Korean athletes during the Boston Marathon in 1947, will be released in theaters in September. Another film, “Kidnapped” (working title), which tells the story of Korean hostages captured in Beirut, Lebanon in the 1980s, is also set for release this year. The exact date is yet to be announced. Ha's movie career took a back seat while he was investigated for drug use in 2May 22, 2023By Kwak Yeon-soo
DiCaprio and Scorsese score raves at star-packed Cannes From left, actor Leonardo Dicaprio, director Martin Scorsese and actor Robert De Niro arrive for the screening of the film "Killers of the Flower Moon" during the 76th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, Saturday. AFP-YonhapLeonardo DiCaprio and Martin Scorsese were set for a victory lap at Cannes on Sunday after their Native American crime epic, "Killers of the Flower Moon" scored rave reviews, while the festival prepared to bow down before Jude Law as King Henry VIII.Scorsese's latest opus, about a wave of murders among oil-rich Osage Indians in the 1920s, was showered in words like "searing," "triumph" and "masterpiece" by critics who scored the Cannes Film Festival's hottest ticket on Saturday night.Based on a non-fiction bestseller, the film sees DiCaprio as a weak-willed man who marries a wealthy Osage woman and is drawn into the deadly schemes of his kingpin uncle, played by Scorsese's other long-time muse, Robert De Niro.IndieWire said DiCaprio gives "his best-ever performance", while The Guardian awarded five stars for a "remarkable epic about theMay 21, 2023
Ju Ji-hoon, Lee Sun-kyun's 'Project Silence' pre-sold to 140 countries A poster for the film "Project Silence" / Courtesy of CJ ENMBy Kwak Yeon-soo“Project Silence,” starring actor Ju Ji-hoon and Lee Sun-kyun, was pre-sold to 140 countries across the world.The film's distributor CJ ENM said on Wednesday that the film, which was invited to the 76th Cannes Film Festival's Midnight Screening section, was sold to major European countries including France, Germany, Spain and Italy as well as Japan and Hong Kong. “Foreign buyers are confident about the quality of the film after watching already unveiled movie clips. What's encouraging is the interest in not coming from one specific region. After the film premieres at the Cannes Film Festival, we expect it will be sold to more countries overseas,” a CJ ENM official said. “Project Silent” tells the story of people struggling to survive against an unexpected threat while trapped on a bridge on the verge of collapse, in thick fog. Lee plays the role of a man who tries to protect his daughter from the disaster while Ju stars as a tow truck driver.The film's world premiere will bMay 18, 2023By Kwak Yeon-soo
76th Cannes film festival to screen 7 Korean films A promotional poster for Korean director Kim Jee-woon's new feature film "Cobweb" / Courtesy of Barunson E&ASeven Korean films by established and up-and-coming directors will be screened at this year's Cannes Film Festival that opens Tuesday in the French Riviera city.With no Korean films chosen for the competition lineup, five features and two short films were invited to official and parallel sections for the 76th edition, which runs through May 27. Director Kim Jee-woon's new feature film "Cobweb" will be presented at the Out of Competition section on May 25."Cobweb" tells the story of a film director from the 1970s who is obsessed with creating a masterpiece and struggles to shoot the film amid government censorship and uncooperative actors.Song, who won the best actor award at last year's Cannes, plays the role of the director in the film.This marks Kim's third invitation to Cannes and Song's eighth. Kim's previous films, "A Bittersweet Life" (2004) and "The Good, the Bad, the Weird" (2008), have also been selected for the noncompetition section.Director Kim Chang-hoon's debuMay 16, 2023
'Extraordinary Attorney Woo' writer to debut as director Screenwriter Moon Ji-won / Courtesy of ENABy Kwak Yeon-sooThe screenwriter of the hit drama, “Extraordinary Attorney Woo,” will make her directorial debut with a mystery thriller that features a hearing child of deaf parents. Barunson Studio, the production company behind Kim Jee-woon's black comedy, “Cobweb,” will produce Moon Ji-won's feature directorial debut.“Deaf Voice” (working title) is a mystery thriller following the story of a child of deaf adults who uncovers new evidence in an unsolved murder case 20 years after the crime. The film is based on Japanese writer Maruyama Masaki's novel, “Deaf Voice: A Sign-Language Interpreter in Court.” Moon will also pen the script for the project. “'Deaf Voice' centers on a protagonist who is caught between the deaf and hearing worlds. His story highlights the complexities of mixed identity in hearing status. As a police officer proficient in sign language, he also seeks the truth behind an unsolved murder case that took place in the deaf community,” Moon said in a statement. &ldMay 15, 2023By Kwak Yeon-soo
