South Korean Movie Reviews »
71: Into the Fire (2010) Movie Review
Let’s face it: war movies have been done to death, and it’s pretty hard to top the Godfather of all war movies, Steven Spielberg’s “Saving Private Ryan”. Of course, it helps if you have...
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Poetry (2010) Movie Review
After a three year hiatus following his multiple award winning “Secret Sunshine”, master Korean film maker Lee Chang Dong returns with “Poetry”. Unsurprisingly, the film made a similar splash on the festival circuit, having...
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Sooni, Where Are You (2010) Movie Review
Korean director Kim Ho Jun, still best known for his controversial 2005 teen pregnancy romantic drama “Jenny, Juno”, returns with something a bit more straightforward in the form of the madcap comedy “Sooni, Where...
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Republic of Korea 1% (2010) Movie Review
Serving up a Korean take on “G.I. Jane” is “Republic of Korea 1%”, a comedy following a young woman’s efforts to break into the country’s elite Special Forces. Actress Lee Ah Lee (“The Legend”)...
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My Dear Desperado (2010) Movie Review
Odd couples have long been a staple of the romantic comedy genre around the world, and they don’t come much more potentially wacky than a useless gangster and an unemployed college grad with a...
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Bestseller (2010) Movie Review
Popular Korean actress Uhm Jung Hwa, recently in the likes of “Insadong Scandal” and the big budget disaster epic “Haeundae”, returns with something a little different in the form of the twisting thriller “Bestseller”....
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Parallel Life (2010) Movie Review
“Parallel Life” is a film with an interesting concept, that certain people can find themselves repeating the lives of others from years gone by, following the same series of events towards the same fate....
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Harmony (2010) Movie Review
“Harmony” is an inspirational tale following a female prison choir, headlined by popular actress Kim Yoon Jin of “Lost” fame. Marking the directorial debut of Kang Dae Gyu (who previously served as an assistant...
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Runaway from Home (2009) Movie Review
“Runaway from Home” (also known by the more literal title “Looking for my Wife”) marks the return of “Bewitching Attraction” director Lee Ha, and sees him again dealing with the difference between the sexes...
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Closer to Heaven (2009) Movie Review
Park Jin Pyo, Korean director of “Voice of a Murderer” and “You are my Sunshine” returns to the subject of romance in the face of terminal illness with “Closer to Heaven”, a hard hitting...
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Happy Killers (2010) Movie Review
With the whole cops hunting serial killers plot having become increasingly popular in Korean cinema of late, such films now really need something a little different to stand out from the crowd. Thankfully, “Happy...
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Secret Love (2009) Movie Review
Popular Korean actor Yoo Ji Tae (“Old Boy”, “Woman is the Future of Man”) returns in a double role as twin brothers in “Secret Love”, which marks the directorial debut of Ryu Hoon, screenwriter...
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Outlaw (2010) Movie Review
Vigilantism has long been a popular theme in cinema, offering the chance to criticise the failings of the system whilst serving up visceral escapist thrills. These are universal themes, with the frustrations of the...
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Lovers Vanished (2010) Movie Review
“Lovers Vanished” is a Korean independent which bravely takes on the controversial subject of aids by following the seemingly doomed relationship between a criminal on the run and a young woman with a tragic...
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Twilight Gangsters (2010) Movie Review
“Twilight Gangsters” (also released as “Revolver Gangster Gang”) is a crime comedy which features three of the most unlikely bank robbers ever in the form of veteran Korean actresses Kim Hye Ok (“My Dear...
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Revolver Gangsters’ Gang (2010) Movie Review
I have a very unusual love-hate relationship with movies that tackle the trials and tribulations associated with growing old. Although I’m not necessarily worried about what my life will be like when I’m wrinkled,...
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Jeon Woochi: The Taoist Wizard (2009) Movie Review
Big budget Korean fantasy “Jeon Woo Chi: The Taoist Wizard” is the latest outing for writer director Choi Dong Hun, best known for hip crime flicks “Tazza: The High Rollers” and “The Big Swindle”....
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Le Grand Chef: Kimchi Battle (2009) Movie Review
“Le Grand Chef: Kimchi Battle” is the follow up to 2007’s culinary blockbuster, again based on the manhwa comics by Hur Young Man. With the first film having been a neatly self contained affair,...
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Secret (2009) Movie Review
Korean mystery yarn “Secret” marks the directorial debut of Yoon Jae Goo, screenwriter of the superb Kim Yoon Jin starring kidnap thriller “Seven Days”. Unsurprisingly, Yoon aims again for taut suspense and a labyrinth...
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Attack the Gas Station 2 (2010) Movie Review
“Attack the Gas Station 2” is director Kim Sang Jin’s sequel to his 1999 smash hit, a film which also found cult popularity in the west. Having since helmed the likes of “Mission Possible:...
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