'Right Now, Wrong Then' well received in US

Poster for "Right Now, Wrong Then"

By Kim Da-hee

Director Hong Sang-soo’s “Right Now, Wrong Then” (2015) has been well received since its release in the U.S. on Friday, media reports say.

The film, which won the Golden Leopard at the 68th Locarno Film Festival last year, opened in the U.S. on Friday.

Critics in the U.S. favorably reviewed the film, which follows a male director (Jung Jae-yeong) who meets a female painter (Kim Min-hee) by chance in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province.

The Los Angeles Times reviewer on Thursday called the film an incisive tale of romantic possibility.

“The prolific South Korean director Hong is often accused of making the same movie over and over again,” the review said. “’Right Now, Wrong Then,’ his finest film in years, suggests that practice makes nearly perfect.”

The New York Times also favorably reviewed the film, saying: “There’s no need to choose, because Mr. Hong and his highly skilled, heroically patient actors have already done the necessary work.”

The romantic film, which was released here last September, has been in the spotlight in Korea again because of an alleged love affair between Hong and Kim.

According to media reports on Tuesday, the married director, 56, and unmarried actress, 34, started their affair while filming, last year.

The two have not commented about the allegation.