Tag Archives: South Korean Film

Birth (2022) ☆☆☆(3/4): A hell called pregnancy

Posted on November 26, 2023 by kaist455

South Korean film “Birth” was often difficult to watch for me. Because I saw its trailer a few weeks ago, I braced myself even before the screening was started, and, boy, it turns out to be as grimly intense as … Continue reading →

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Big Sleep (2022) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): His curt kindness

Posted on November 25, 2023 by kaist455

South Korean film “Big Sleep”, which is incidentally not associated with American classic noir film “The Big Sleep” (1946) at all, is a moody social drama which somehow fails to engage me. While it surely shows us well the harsh … Continue reading →

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A Man Who Heals the City (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): One decent old man

Posted on November 25, 2023 by kaist455

South Korean documentary film “A Man Who Heal the City” intrigues us as observing one decent old man from the distance for a good reason. Although he helped and supported many different people for several decades as a respected local … Continue reading →

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12.12: The Day (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): That infamous night in Seoul, 1979

Posted on November 22, 2023 by kaist455

South Korean film “12.12: The Day” is an intense fictionalized version of what happened at one terrible night of December 1979 in Seoul. Although I and many other South Korean audiences are well aware of how the story eventually ends, … Continue reading →

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Iron Mask (2023) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): A kendo player under challenge

Posted on November 17, 2023 by kaist455

In my trivial opinion, there are not many things as intense, spectacular, and compelling to watch as a human mind under challenge, and little South Korean independent film “Iron Mask” is a terrific example of that. On the surface, it … Continue reading →

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Juhee from 5 to 7 (2022) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): Her and some others from 5 to 7

Posted on November 12, 2023 by kaist455

I was disappointed to see that South Korean independent film “Juhee from 5 to 7” does not focus on its titular heroine as much as I expected from its very title. Here is a potentially interesting female figure to illustrate … Continue reading →

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A Wild Roomer (2022) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Things somehow happen to him…

Posted on November 12, 2023 by kaist455

South Korean independent film “A Wild Roomer” surprised me in one unexpected way or another. While it mostly feels dry and detached in terms of mood, character, and storytelling, the movie often catches us off guard with a series of … Continue reading →

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The Dream Songs (2022) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Two girls on one day

Posted on October 29, 2023 by kaist455

The emotional power of South Korean film “The Dream Songs” mainly depends on how much you know about a certain disastrous incident which shook the whole South Korean society on April 16th, 2014. I think the story itself will still … Continue reading →

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In Our Day (2023) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): The 30th film by Hong Sang-soo

Posted on October 23, 2023 by kaist455

The most memorable thing in Hong Sang-soo’s 30th feature film “In Our Day” is one fluffy (and plumpy) cat, which always steals the show whenever it appears on the screen. Probably because the movie is relatively less interesting than Hong’s … Continue reading →

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A Tour Guide (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): The loneliness of one North Korean defector

Posted on October 22, 2023 by kaist455

South Korean independent film “A Tour Guide”, which was released as “A Person to Trust” in South Korea, follows the struggles of one North Korean female defector in the middle of the South Korean society. No matter how much she … Continue reading →

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