The London Korean Film Festival 2012

 

The London Korean Film Festival returns to the capital this November, with a number of movies showing across various cinemas in the West End. Choice picks this year include Choi Dong-Hoon's crime caper 'The Thieves', Choo Chang-Min's historical drama 'Masquerade', and the sports movie 'As One'.

A full list of films can be found below and advance tickets, screening times and more details are available at www.koreanfilm.co.uk.

 

'The Thieves' + Q&A
Thursday 1st & Friday 2nd November 19:00

After a large heist, five of Korea’s most infamous thieves, Popeye, Pepsi, Yenicall, Zampano and Chewingum, jump at the chance to get out of town when offered a job in Macao. Their goal is to steal the ‘Tear of the Sun’, a 318 carat diamond, worth over $20 million at the Macao Casino. The brain behind the break-in is Macao Park who has assembled his own Chinese team to join the crew. However tensions run high when person histories get in the way of the present and some of the criminals having their own designs on the diamond and are willing to double cross the other to make off with the prize.

Pace Maker
Friday 2nd November 18:45

Once a promising marathon runner, Joo Man-Ho was forced to give up his dreams because of a critical leg injury and to support his younger brother. Still unable to leave the track and field for good, Man-Ho became a pacemaker - a runner who leads his team during the first section of a marathon event before dropping out. He makes ends meet by delivering fried chicken for his friend’s restaurant.

Park Sung-Il his old coach from his marathon running days pays Man-Ho a visit. Park Sung-Il wants Man-Ho to become the pacemaker for the Korean national team as it prepares for the upcoming 2012 Olympics. Man-Ho is even offered the chance to run in the Olympics as the pacemaker for the Korean team. He happily accepts, but faces the recurrence of his leg injury, which could prevent him from ever running again. He must choose between his dream of running in the biggest race in the world and possibly never being able to run again.

The Weight
Friday 2nd November 21:15

Jung, a mortician, is severally dependent on his pain relief medication prescribed for his near crippling tuberculosis and arthritis. His life has not been a pleasant one as he was born with a hunchback and left in an orphanage only to be adopted by a woman who kept him in an attic forced to sow dresses for her. He has a younger stepbrother who dreams of becoming a woman with the world around him, despising him for it. Jung’s only joy in the world is his work in the morgue. He finds beauty in the preparation of the dead for their funerals, fantasizing the dead are his friends who he dances with and even paints.

Katuri - A Story of A Mother Hen
Saturday 3rd November 15:30

A mother pheasant, Katuri, and her 9 little children are enjoying the peaceful spring time by the beautiful countryside, but the happiness doesn’t last very long. A forest fire occurs and all of the animals and birds living there struggle to escape from the quickly-spreading-wildfire. Katuri and her family also battle through the fire, but get trapped.

Woochi The Demon Slayer + Dir Q&A
Saturday 3rd November 16:30

Over 500 years ago, during the Chosun Dynasty, a sacred pipe with ultimate power falls into the evil hands of the goblins, sending the world into certain chaos. The ancient Taoist wizards seek out the aid of the greatest ascetics of their period, the Master and Hwadam. To help vanquish the goblins, the wizards entrust their saviors each with a half of the pipe.

Meanwhile the Master’s apprentice, Woochi, a mischievous young wizard, makes a mockery of the King and is hunted down. This forces the Taoist wizards to visit the Master but they find him murdered and his half of the pipe missing. Believing Woochi to be the killer, the Taoists imprison Woochi in a painting with his trusty servant, Chorangyi. Now in present day, the much revered wizards are now scrapping by in the modern Seoul and have found themselves becoming targets of the shape shifting goblins. Left with only one option, the wizards release Woochi to uncover the identity of the person behind their attempted assassinations.

PADAK
Saturday 3rd November 18:30

Once a free fish in the ocean, the 'Mackerel' was caught by the fishing net and brought to the fish tank in a seafood restaurant. She relentlessly searches for a way out the moment she hits the tank but finds herself surrounded by the sceptical pessimist 'Old-flatfish'. He was also from the ocean unlike other fishes in the tank that were raised in the fish farm. As the longest survivor in the tank, he reigns over other fishes with his knowledge of survival. To him, Mackerel's protest against him to escape from the tank is a threat to his regime.

King Of Pigs
Saturday 3rd November 20:30

It’s been fifteen years since Jong-suk and Kyung-min, two high school friends, have seen each other. Both grew up poor and weak, constantly being picked on by others. The school they attended had the students separated into two factions, The Dogs, who were the richer, well to do, popular kids while the poor and scrawny kids were known as The Pigs. Jong-suk and Kyung-min were Pigs.

The two have dinner and talk about the old days, especially an old friend, Chul who used to stand up to The Dogs. Every time one of the Pigs was targeted Chul would retaliate a hundred fold. He had nothing but contempt for the Dogs and embraced his low social standing in society. Chul promised to always punish those that lorded over the weak with each act becoming crueller and crueller. After fifteen years what has become of Chul?

Running Turtle + Actor Kim Yoon-suk Q&A
Sunday 4th November 14:30

Jo Pil-seong, a rural detective, is an unhappy husband, often blamed by his older wife for gambling. Despite her being hard on him, he steals money from her to bet on bull butting. Fortunately, he chalks up an unexpected win, but his luck, by no means, lasts long because his money gets snatched by an unprecedented absconder.

Mr Idol
Sunday 4th November 17:35

An aspiring, all male, KPop band called Mr Children are finding it impossible to bring through as the next big thing. They meet the sharp tongue producer, Gu-ju, who sees the potential in the group. She quickly starts putting the boy band through their paces to try and get them into shape. As they begin to gain a fans and recognition a rival executive who looks to stop the groups rise so before a major music festival he releases a damning video of the band’s lead singer. On the cusp of getting everything that the band wants, will they be able to overcome their differences to be the success could truly be?

Tazza: The High Rollers
Sunday 4th November 19:30

Having lost his, and his sister’s, life savings in gambling joints, Go-nee is determined to drink his life away. However he finds out that he has been swindled by professional gamblers dubbed ‘slickers’. To regain his family’s money, Go-nee undergoes training to become the greatest ‘slicker’ of them all by a master named Mr Pyeong. Go-nee becomes infamous, visiting every gambling arena Korea holds with his master. He soon gains the interest of Madam Jung; an old rival of Pyeong’s who looks to steal Go-nee away from his mentor.

Papa
Monday 5th November 18:30

Chun-seob, a Korean talent agent, looks to have a career in America where he arranges a fake marriage to gain a green card. He joins a very unconventional family, acting as a stepfather to his new wife’s six children. However tragedy strikes when his wife is suddenly killed in a traffic accident. Chun-seob faces the possibility of deportation if he does not keep up the pre-tence of the children’s stepfather and most take custody of them. But can a fake family ever be a real family.

Black Eagle (R2B: Return to Base)
Monday 5th November 20:45

Tae-hun finds himself transferred to a combat flying unit after a preforming an unplanned and near fatale manoeuvre at a fly show. On his first day he meets the unit’s top pilot, Cheol-hui, and the two opposing attitudes, Tae-hun’s free spirit and Cheol-hui’s by the rules approach, butt heads. Tae-hun also meets Se-yeong and falls head over heels for the female engineer. However Tae-hun’s impulsive, and dangerous, behaviour lands him in a suspension just when a reconnaissance mission turns sour with the death of one of his friends that the disappearance of another. The teammates have to put aside their petty differences and band together to find their friend and stop a possible war.

Eungyo + Dir Q&A
Tuesday 6th November 19:00

A famous and beloved old poet, Jeok-yo, adopts an untalented but eager student, Ji-woo, who wish is to become a novelist. Their relationship that grows between the two is a complicated one, with an equal measure of love and hate. The bond between the two is tested further when the 17 year old, Eun-gyo seeks out the poet, entrancing both student and teacher immediately. A love triangle forms with a growing sense of resentment between the Ji-woo and his mentor forcing them to decide between salvaging their father/son relationship or sacrifice the possible love of their lives for the other’s happiness.

Gabi
Wednesday 7th November 18:30

In the twilight of the 19th Century, King Gojong of Korea’s Joseon Dynasty finds refuge in a Russian consulate after threats of foreign invasion. While being a guest of the Russian government the King falls in love with a drink yet to find popularity in Korea, that drink being coffee. When the threat subsides, Gojong returns to his throne and hires Tanya to be his personal barista. Due to her closeness to the King Tanya finds herself being dragged into a dangerous social circle where she makes the acquaintance of a Russian sniper and a mysterious socialite Bae Jeong-ja. Tanya soon becomes a political pawn and one strand in a web of lies to overthrow the king.

I AM: SMTown
Wednesday 7th November 20:10

To the rest of the world, the Korean music scene seems to have appeared over night with albums and downloads sells totalling in the millions. Though many of the KPop stars may make it look easy it certainly is not and this is want I AM: SMTown will show. Part documentary, part concert, shows the hundreds of hours, blood, sweat and tears that each SMTown artist has sacrificed and led to the first ever East Asian music performance at the world's most famous venue, Madison Square Gardens in New York City.

The film shows the coming-of-age story and performances of each of the SMTown's artists including; BoA, Girl's Generation, friends of the festival SHINee, KANGTA, TVXQ, Super Junior and f(x). If you are a KPop fan then this is not an event to be missed.

The Ugly Duckling
Thursday 8th November 17:45

From the director of Pain and Typhoon, Kwaw Kyung-taek, comes a comedy drama, The Ugly Story, based on the director’s time serving in the military. The film follows Private Jeon, a 23 year old service man in 1987 Korea, a time of political unrest. Jeon struggles in the army and is forced to abuse inmates in a prison facility which opens his eyes to the problems in his country’s society, empowering him to rise against the wrongs he has witnessed.

The Grand Heist
Thursday 8th November 18:30

250 years ago, during the Chosun dynasty, Lee is the son of a powerful 2nd Vice-premier, but his social and career advancements are hampered since he was born out of wedlock. Lee limits himself to his friend’s bookstore where he can enjoy the amazing new western imports and lives happily. His world is soon turned upside down when his father is eliminated by a political enemy; the first vice-premier named Cho, and sent away on an exile. Cho also frames a family friend of Lee’s who oversees the country’s storage of ice, the nation’s most valuable commodity. With this action Cho becomes the most powerful person in the land and creates a stranglehold on the supply of ice to the lower classes. The poor are forced to find ice in treacherous rivers with many dying in the process. Seeing the tyranny that Cho as created, Lee bands together a group of skilled people to steal all the ice from under Cho in an aid to bring him down.

Deranged
Thursday 8th November 20:45

Just before sunrise a number of gruesomely skeletal bodies are found floating in the Han River. The people appeared to of died in some kind of mass drowning. Before anyone can get to grips with the situation more and more cases of people being found dead by drowning, surface across the nation. The cause is soon determined to be a mutated parasite called hairworm that brainwashes its host to jump into water and commit suicide. With a short incubation period, a 100% fatality rate and no sign of the cause or a cure, the country descends into nationwide hysteria. Pharmaceutical company salesman Jae-hyeok discovers that his family is infected with the parasite and is desperate to find the cure. But in doing so, he uncovers a frightening conspiracy behind the infection.

White Night
Friday 9th November 18:00

Since the 2006 film No Regret, director Leesong Hee-Il has made a name for himself as a pioneer in Korea’s gay cinema scene. The director follows up with a slight thriller following Kang Won-gyu who travels back to Seoul from Germany after a two absence. The last time he was home, he was viciously beaten for being gay. He has return upon hearing that the gang who attacked him has been released from prison. He meets his former lover who only wants to put the attack behind him and presses Kang Won-gyu to do the same. Won-gyu arrives an internet who he sleeps with and considers what to do.

I Am The King
Friday 9th November 18:30

A feeble minded Prince, Choong-nyeong, is buckling under the pressure of his future kingship and dreams of a life outside of the place walls. With extras burdens placed on him by his father, the King, and his advisors, Choong-nyeong, decides escape the palace and responsibilities before falling asleep. Meanwhile a slave, Deok-chil, is a drunk who opens his month before thinking and always throws the first punch. He dreams of what power being the prince would bring and just happens to look remarkably like Choong-nyeong. He does have a noble streak though as he runs to the palace in an attempt to save the daughter of a spy but is not unconscious. When the slave wakes he finds himself the Prince and the Prince wakes to find himself the slave. Through this madcap and hilarious story the Prince and the slave are faced with the realities of their dreams and have to decide if this is the life they always wanted.

As One Korea
Friday 9th November 20:45

A cinematic retelling of the first ever Unified Korean team that participated in the 41st World Table Tennis Championships in 201991. In order to defuse the heightened situation after the bombing of Korean Air Flight 858 in 1987, a summit took place between North and South, Koreas. The priority of this summit was to form unified Korean sports teams to exchange goodwill between the two nations, and soccer and table tennis, which were popular sports in that era, were debated over. Thereafter, the first ever unified Korean team was formed, under the name ‘Korea’ and participated in the 1991 World Table Tennis Championships in Chiba, Japan. At the time the Korean participants could never overcome their Chinese opponents, now that they have joined together they finally have a chance at glory.

Masquerade
Saturday 10th November 19:00

During the confusing and conspiratorial Joseon Dynasty King Gwang-hae orders his councilor, Heo Kyun, to find him a double in order to avoid the constant threat of assassination. Heo Kyun finds Ha-sun, a jester who looks remarkably like the king, and just as feared, Gwang-hae is poisoned. Heo Kyun proposes Ha-sun fill the role as the king until Gwang-hae recovers fully and grooms Ha-sun to look and act every bit the king.

While assuming the role of the king at his first official appearance, Ha-sun begins to ponder the intricacies of the problems debated in his court. Being fundamentally more humanitarian than Gwang-hae, Ha-sun’s affection and appreciation of even the most minor servants slowly changes morale in the castle for the better. Over time he finds his voice and takes control of governing the country with real insight and fair judgments. Even Heo Kyun is moved by Ha-sun’s genuine concern for the people, and realises he is an infinitely better ruler than Gwang-hae. However, his chief opposition, Park, notices the sudden shift in the king’s behavior and starts to ask questions.

A Barefoot Dreams
Sunday 11th November 13:30

Kim Won-kwang used to be a promising soccer player but now he’s a struggling businessman who’s often mistaken for a con man. With nothing to lose, he ventures out to East Timor, the land still recovering from the civil war for his last chance. He thinks he is heading to a land of opportunity to set up a football shoe store to discover that no one can afford what he’s selling. He decides to let the kids have the shoes and pay him a dollar per day for 2 months but even that’s too much for the poverty-stricken boys.

With the store being neglected, Kim ends up coaching the kids and even forms a team with them. But it isn’t an easy road as some of the kids are at each other’s throat because their families, scarred by the civil war. Kim believes in them and decides to take them to the international tournament.

Acoustic
Sunday 11th November 16:15

The omnibus film is a staple in the East Asian film industry with Acoustic tackling a number of different genres but still keeping music at its heart.

Episode 1 – Broccoli sees a female, singer-songwriter who suffers from a rare disease were she can only survive on ramen noodles. She is rejected by all the record labels and must decide what her last song will be.

Episode 2 – Bakery Attack is based on the short story by Haruki Murakami and sees two starving musicians looking to sell their guitars but instead they are re-inspired by a local baker.

Episode 3 – Unlock is set in a future where music has ceased to exist and sound is used as a woman. A couple set about to access an iPhone, now an old relic, yet still holds music inside which holds sentimental value.

Sleepless Night
Sunday 11th November 18:30

This short but sweet film is a realistic and honest portrayal of a contemporary Korean marriage. The film centres on a young couple who have been married for two year. They have reached a point where they wish to start a family by having a baby. But with the pressures from family, friends and a lack of money makes the process a struggle. Though they are finding married life hard they their problems begin to bring them closer together.

Spring Snow
Sunday 11th November 20:30

Soon-ok is a devoted wife and mother who suddenly learns that she has a terminal illness with less than a year to live. She pauses to think about the family she will leave behind: a completely helpless husband, a kind son who cares about nothing except his mother, and a daughter too busy to attend to anything but her own affairs. Soon-ok begins to prepare a gift for her family -- the opportunity to bring them together for a final farewell. Once fractured and separated, the family comes to learn that death does not have to be the antithesis of life, but can be its affirmation and awakening.

 

Posted October 30, 2012