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Asian cinema: Korean films

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Asian cinema: Korean films
From the stylish blockbusters of Park Chan-wook and Bong Joon-ho to art-house gems by Hong Sang-soo and Kim Ki-duk, this is the place to go for reviews, interviews and features about movies both classic and new from South Korea.
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Youn Yuh-jung attends the premiere of The Wedding Banquet in Los Angeles on April 14, 2025. The Korean actress says she used her personal experiences to bring intense emotion to her scenes in the film. Photo: Reuters
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Toshiro Mifune in a still from Akira Kurasawa’s epic Seven Samurai. Photo: courtesy Janus Films via AP
Cinema

Revelations director Yeon Sang-ho on exploring belief in new Netflix film

The Train to Busan and Hellbound director says his new film with Ryu Jun-yeol draws on people’s tendency to only see what they want to see.

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In Streaming, Kang Ha-neul plays someone ‘you don’t want to get close to’

Actor talks about playing someone who ‘got swallowed up by money’ in Korean thriller, and why he agrees with the film’s adults-only rating.

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South Korea

Petition in South Korea demanding laws against celebrity bullying gains traction

Prompted by the death of K-drama star Kim Sae-Ron, the petition has garnered enough signatures to warrant a review by a committee.

A TV screen showing an image of the late South Korean actress Kim Sae-ron at Seoul Railway Station. Photo: AP
Asian cinema

Review | Revelations: Ryu Jun-yeol leads Yeon Sang-ho’s disappointing Netflix thriller

A flimsy plot and sketchy logic spoil this story of a pastor and a detective who go after a recently released sex offender.

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Twice’s Dahyun aims to bring joy with You Are the Apple of My Eye role

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Dahyun of Twice at the VIP premiere of You Are The Apple of My Eye. Photo: Instagram/mrmdbu
Cinema

Bong Joon-ho on the message of sci-fi Mickey 17, starring Robert Pattinson

Korean director hails Pattinson’s ‘excellent’ playing of two versions of his character in a film about persistence in the face of adversity.

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Bong Joon-ho and Robert Pattinson at the Berlin International Film Festival. Photo: dpa via AP
Asian cinema

Review | What Does that Nature Say to You: Hong Sang-soo finds humour in domesticity

Korean director’s film examines, with humour, the difficulties of artistic life through the lens of a man meeting his girlfriend’s family.

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Why 2000 movie Joint Security Area resonates still, and why that’s ‘sad’

Park Chan-wook’s 2000 film Joint Security Area told a controversial story of friendship between North and South Korean soldiers.

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Kim Sae-ron the latest in a long line of Korean stars bullied to death

Korean celebrities may be loved by their fans, but make one slip-up and the online abuse starts, often fuelled by mass media.

South Korean actress Kim Sae-ron, 24, at the 2017 Mnet Asian Music Awards in Hong Kong. She was found dead at home after enduring years of online abuse following a drink-driving incident. Photo: Reuters
Asian cinema

Review | Forbidden Fairytale: bubbly Korean sex comedy is closed-minded and prudish

Park Ji-hyun plays a youth protection officer who starts writing pornography to pay for car repairs in this non-risqué erotic comedy.

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Park Ji-hyun as as Dan-bi in a still from Forbidden Fairytale.
Asian cinema

Review | Mickey 17, wild sci-fi satire from Parasite’s Bong Joon-ho

Robert Pattinson plays the titular Mickey, a loser sent into space, where he is cloned with hilarious results in this cult-novel adaptation.

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Obituaries

South Korean actress Kim Sae-ron found dead at her home in Seoul

Police said there was no sign of foul play. Kim, 24, is best known for her role in the 2010 film The Man from Nowhere.

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Asian cinema

Review | Dark Nuns: Korean exorcism horror with Song Hye-kyo, Jeon Yeo-been

Two nuns resort to extreme measures, including exorcism, to save the life of a possessed boy, and in the process defy their church superiors.

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Song Hye-kyo as Sister Giunia in a still from Dark Nuns.
Cinema

Ha Jung-woo on ‘tremendous anger’ behind his new film Nocturnal

Korean actor talks about Nocturnal director Kim Jin-hwang’s unique vision, working with new people and connecting with fans on social media.

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Why Dark Nuns actress Song Hye-kyo is taking on darker roles

Back on screen in Dark Nuns, movie about nuns saving a boy who is possessed, Korean actress says The Glory reignited her passion for acting.

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Korean actress Kim Min-hee pregnant with first child at 42

Director Hong Sang-soo, 64, left his wife for actress Kim Min-hee in 2015. The child she is carrying will be the first for both of them.

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Korean actress Kim Min-hee and film director Hong Sang-soo, who it has been revealed are having a child together, who will be the first for both of them. Photo: Instagram/hong.sangsoo, Reuters/Pool
Asian cinema

Review | K-Family Affairs: how a family endured 30 years of Korean political turmoil

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Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Exhuma, Twilight of the Warriors lead Asian Film Awards nominations

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Where Squid Game creator gets his inspiration, his ‘darker’ next project

The young Koreans buying cryptocurrency and gambling online inspired some of the new characters in Squid Game season 2, Hwang Dong-hyuk says.

Choi Seung-hyun as Thanos in a still form Squid Game season 2. Photo: No Ju-han/Netflix
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Song Joong-ki opens up on Bogota struggles and why he supports Hyun Bin

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Korean actor Song Joong-ki, 39, says that his new movie, Bogota: City of the Lost, is fundamentally about responsibility. Photo: Instagram/hi_songjoongki
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‘I’m second,’ says South Korean star Hyun Bin on life now he’s a dad

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Asian cinema

Review | Hidden Face, a Korean erotic thriller, serves up scandalous fun

This sexy K-movie follows a conductor who sleeps with the replacement player for his cellist fiancée, who seems to have disappeared.

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