Park Chan-wook Wins Jury Award at Cannes

South Korea's maestro director Park Chan-wook shared the Jury Prize at Cannes for his vampire thriller "Thirst" with Britain's Andrea Arnold ("Fish Tank") -- his second one after "Old Boy" in 2004.

Read the news wire from AFP below:

(AFP) - CANNES, France, May 24, 2009 (AFP) - Asia's dark and disturbing movies scooped Cannes kudos on Sunday, with awards for cult directors from China and Korea, as well as controversial Filipino auteur Brillante Mendoza.

At Cannes with a blood-and-gore tale about vampire love titled "Thirst", South Korea's Park Chan-wook jointly won the festival's Jury Prize, taking home his second trophy from the festival after "Old Boy" in 2004.

A torrid and unexpectedly graphic gay love movie from China, "Spring Fever", won best screenplay for outlawed director Lou Ye.

And Mendoza, one of the most divisive directors at the 12-day movie bonanza, got the best director prize for a gritty look at violence in "Kinatay", which means massacre and shows the slow butchering of a prostitute into pieces with blunt kitchen knives.

"I know opinions are divided on my movies," Mendoza said after picking up his prize. "I was expecting it."

Mendoza faced a barrage of criticism from some quarters at Cannes at his first showing last year with "Serbis", which was set in a Manila porn-theatre with long close-ups of festering boils and overflowing toilets.

Both films background Manila's poor, with "Kinatay" chronicling a day in the life of a young police officer that begins with his wedding and closes with his involvement in the rape, murder and hacking into pieces of a prostitute.

"This is not just entertainment, these kinds of stories are real," Mendoza said.

Park's priest-turned-vampire suffers cruelly in the movie, from inner demons and physical ills, but picking up his award at the red-carpet ceremony the film-maker in contrast said:

"I think I still have a long way to go to be a true artist because I still don't know about the pain of creation. I only know about the joy of creation."

Park, who describes his rivers-of-blood tale as a "scandalous vampire melodrama," shows a good-Samaritan priest caught in an ethical quagmire after being turned into a vampire by a mysterious blood transfusion.

Lusting not only after blood but after a childhood friend's wife -- who turns into a vampire too -- the priest is drawn into crime while seeking redemption as he soars through windows to rooftops in search of life-saving blood supplies.

*It's interesting to note that both "Thirst" and "Kinatay" star the striking Filipina actress Mercedes Cabral. Her furtive glances in Park's film left an admirable impression. Congrats Mr. Park!

Asian films are flying on a cinematic high! When Juliette Binoche visited Seoul recently, she said that Asian cinema is totally hot right now and are inspiring the int'l film world. Cannes, la creme de la creme among film fests, exemplifies this.

"Thirst" topped the local box office but ceded the No. 1 spot to the romantic comedy "My Girlfriend Isn't an Agent." Still, it's not a bad score for something that is rated R to the core.

>>Read my movie review (one of the first in English) on Park's "Thirst."
>>Read about what Park had to say about his film (though it's a little outdated, it contains the essence of his thoughts on the piece).

Hugh Jackman Jogs With 'Hanbok'-Clad Daughter

Hugh Jackman jogging with his daughter, who's pretty in her pink "hanbok" (traditional Korean dress). The "X-Men" star is the honorary ambassador to Seoul; his father worked in South Korea for almost 30 years, so he's a big fan of "bulgogi" (Korean beef), etc.

This is such a precious picture... makes me love him even more :)

>>Read what the Wolverine-cum-Aussie had said during his promotional tour in Korea.

Actor John Cho Aims to Break Stereotypes

I had my doubts about "Star Trek," since J.J. Abrams, the director, is a "Star Wars" fan. But it was awesome movie (not to mention that Spock is uber sexy). I got to interview charming Mr. Cho for a second time.

Yonhap Photo

It appears that the mission of John Cho, much like his ``Star Trek: The Beginning'' character, is ``to boldly go where no one has gone before.'' If the space pilot Hikaru Sulu seeks new life and new civilizations, then the Korean-American actor strives to break certain Asian stereotypes until one day it won't be necessary to do so.

``Part of my mission as an actor has been to define what an American is. I've played roles that aren't expected of an Asian,'' said the star of the cult comedy ``Harold and Kumar,' and' who popularized the term ``MILF'' in the ``American Pie'' trilogy, in an interview Monday in Seoul.

Asians being typecast as funny ``is a new stereotype,'' said the 36-year-old, explaining that Asian Americans had hitherto been labeled as ``cold, non-humorous and involved in our books.''

(Photo courtesy of First Look) But Cho, one of 2006 People Magazine's Sexiest Men Alive, said the ultimate goal would naturally be to not worry about stereotypes for choosing parts.

``Any role that gets repeated (by Asians) will be misinterpreted as a stereotype. The goal of Asians in the arts is plurality of roles. I've always been hindered by me over-thinking what is a stereotype and what isn't,'' he said. ``The more roles there are, the more actors there are. No (Asian) actor has to think about how is this affecting anyone except me, and just think about whether or not I want to do this role.''

In recent years, an increasing number of Korean actors have been cast in Hollywood films, such as Gianna Jun (Jun Ji-hyun) in ``Blood: The Last Vampire.'' ``Hollywood has been so impressed by Korean films, so there is an interest in Korean actors,'' he said, though carefully, not feeling comfortable about commenting definitively on the subject.

Cho does feel however that it is difficult for an actor or director's talents to wholly translate across borders, and something inevitably gets lost. He hopes that a new filmmaking hotspot will arise outside of Hollywood and rival it, so that cineastes wouldn't need to endorse a different culture in order to make a larger impact ― in 50 years or so it could be South Korea, he said.

The actor had appeared in the Korea-United States joint production ``West 32nd'' by Michael Kang, and said he would one day like to appear in a local project. ``I was impressed by the creativity of the concept in Korea cinema. There is a unique Korean vision happening right now. (…) I'd like to work on a Korean movie if I had the opportunity. Mostly (because) I'd like to stay here for an extended period of time,'' said the Los Angeles native.

Meanwhile, ``Star Trek,'' helmed by ``Lost'' and ``Mission Impossible 3'' creative brain J.J. Abrams, is currently topping the North American box office, drawing in more than $79.2 million during its opening weekend according to the Associated Press.

`` I'm very excited,'' he said. ``I know there was some level of suspicion about how we'd handle this franchise that was considered kind of dead.'' The action flick is based on the epic sci-fi television series tracing the adventures of the Federation starship U.S.S. Enterprise, a pan-universe version of the earthly UN.

``It's one of those series that has been consistently on re-runs for 40 years. It has become of part of the cultural fabric of America,'' he said. However, he stopped watching the original series; the lead actor, Chris Pine, who plays the role of Kirk, previously said the same thing to The Korea Times. ``I stopped because I knew much more (about `Star Trek') than I realized; it had been around for so long that I forgot I'd seen and had absorbed it.''

In the original series, Cho's character Sulu was ``very much in command of the spaceship,'' he said. In the prequel, Cho said he portrayed a young Sulu that is ``a little shakier, a little less secure.'' Indeed, the film invited some laughter when the highly trained pilot is unable to launch the spacecraft in one go.

As for playing a role originally played by Japanese American actor George Takei, Cho said it was ``fair game as an actor,'' since the part did not require a Japanese accent or Japanese lines. Unlike old TV series such as ``Mash,'' where non-Korean actors were forging Korean accents,'' he was ``happy my casting fulfills (the original TV series creator) Gene Roddenberry's vision of a multinational spaceship.''

[Mr. Takei was quote as saying in an interview that he did not mind a Korean American playing his former role -- Sulu is supposed to represent Asia, he said.]

In an interview with The Korea Times two years ago, in Busan, Cho said he always wanted to play roles such as a classic American cowboy that he played as child with his younger brother. Starring in ``Star Trek,'' something he grew up watching, seems to be a great start.

Born in Seoul in 1972, Cho immigrated to Los Angeles at the age of six. He stepped into the world of acting by chance while majoring in English literature at UC Berkeley.

>>Read my previous interview with John Cho.

>>Read about Mr. Cho's other film, "West 32nd."

Be Your Own Rock Star

Record an Album

Lee Jung-hwan, 28, has a passion for singing but never pursued a professional career. He is in fact a busy medical student, but he decided to do something more than just croon his favorite tunes at the local ``noraebang’’ (karaoke) to express his musicality _ he recorded a couple of albums at a studio.

Featuring a dozen tracks, a glossy jacket and casing, they look like professional CDs released by major labels _ except the songs were sung by Lee and his family and an artsy friend designed the covers.

``It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity, an eventful and fruitful family event that lasts,’’ he told The Korea Times. The project arose when Lee’s mother heard about a studio where amateurs can make albums.

The family of three took the opportunity to spend several days together, from choosing the songs to the actual recording and designing of the album cover. His family also headed to the photo studio for a family portrait to feature in the album jacket. ``It’s an event where everyone got together and got really involved,’’ he said.

The father and son sang oldies such as Lee Eun-mi’s ``I Have a Lover’’ and Richard Marx’s ``Right Here Waiting,’’ and were careful to feature a variation of songs in an orderly fashion, alternating between songs in E Major and A Minor, for example. They ordered about 200 copies, which were distributed to friends, relatives and colleagues.

``They absolutely loved it. Korea has a unique noraebang culture, where everyone loves to sing and party. They were amazed to hear the voice of someone they know in a recording,’’ he said. Lee went on to record a solo album featuring his favorite songs such as ``Desperado.’’ He wishes to make another CD with his future wife and children.

Nara Music in Bundang, Gyeonggi Province, a satellite city of Seoul, is one of the few professional studios that offer such a service.

The owner, Kang Dong-suk, was the musical inspiration behind classic TV cartoons such as ``Flying Superboard.’’ He now specializes in producing ``dongyo,’’ or nursery songs, and albums for opera singers. But the studio also welcomes small-scale projects for music professors and amateur singers such as Lee’s family.

Releasing an album comes with a price, of course. It normally costs about 10 million won and up, depending on the number of tracks, mixing (live orchestration or electronic music, etc.) and the amount of post-production it requires, and takes up to about a month. The studio takes care of slight glitches, akin to how photographs are edited on computer programs.

Nara Music is located near exit 1 of Yatap Station on the Bundang subway line. Call (031) 708-6631.

Form a Band

The movie ``Bravo My Life’’ features listless white-collar workers rising back to life through amateur rock bands. Such movies were actually inspired by true stories _ it’s never too late, it seems, to realize your dreams of becoming a rock star.

Yamaha Korea offers classes for various instruments, ranging from the piano to electronic guitar. Many think that piano lessons are for toddlers only, but you won’t be the only adult there. There are two groups, children and professionals from all walks of life in their 30s and 40s. Visit www.yamaha-music.co.kr for more information.

A scene from the movie "Brave My Life"

Hyundai Sungwoo Resort in Gangwon Province is hosting a competition for amateur workers’ bands on May 30. Any band purely comprising of workers that have not released an album will be able to participate. It is accepting applications until May 26 through its Web site (www.hdsungwoo.co.kr).

The judges award bonus points for bands comprised of members from the same firm. The grand prize winners get 1 million won and a free voucher for a night in the resort’s luxury room; the runners up receive 500,000 won and two vouchers for suites; the second runners up receive 300,000 won and one voucher for a family room; and the third runners up can win 200,000 won and one voucher for a family room.

Make Music at Noraebang

If you think recording an album is too expensive, or forming a band is time-consuming, then hit a noraebang. But forget the generic, dark, underground ones with broken tambourines. Local noraebang have evolved to allow special touches to karaoke night.

Su Noraebang in Hongdae, a nightlife hub of Seoul, is famous as a luxurious franchise with multiple chains. Among them is Prince Edward, which features a full drum set, guitar, keyboard and other kinds of instruments to add live instrumental effects to vocals.

In the hallway, those waiting for a room can play the white grand piano, which is equipped with sheet music of the latest songs. For the more serious singer, the noraebang even provides lockers for personal microphones. It also has a washing machine and offers free ice cream and a cell phone battery-charging service. Variety TV programs often shoot in the chicly decorated rooms, so you could run into a celebrity.

Naturally, prices are more expensive than the typical noraebang next door, costing about 20,000 an hour. Visit www.skysu.com or call (02) 322-3111.

For those who want a memento of their historical noraebang extravaganza, Tinga Tinga in Seongnam-dong, Ulsan, offers guests a chance to make their own music video. Singers du jour can choose a background and sing in front of the camera, which you can take home in the form of a CD, or upload it online as a UCC (user-created content) video.

It costs 15,000 won per hour. If you’re planning on making a music video, the owner suggests calling in advance so you can reserve one of the nicer rooms. Call (052) 243-1612.

Director Hong Sang-soo’s Realm of Comic Realism

New in local theaters and currently showing in the out-of-competition section of the Cannes Film Festival is Hong Sang-soo’s latest feature ``Like You Know It All.’’

Like Hong’s other films, ``Know’’ is told in a live journal-like format that is reminiscent of Eric Rohmer. While it is set in a couple of Korea’s top vacation spots, the movie, as typical of its minimalist director, features characterless hotel rooms and drinking spots and showcases more of the mirror-image structures inherent to Hong’s stories of frustrated ideals and sexual desires.
Modest, fragmented and meandering it may be, but the low-budget digital franchise stars some of South Korea’s most high-profile actors tangled up in mundane yet comic situations and engaged in phony talks about art, philosophy and love.

Like his previous feature ``Night and Day,’’ which was shown at last year’s Berlinale, ``Know’’ stars another one of the director’s archetypal womanizing anti-heroes. Actor Kim Tae-woo (Hong’s 2004 ``Woman Is the Future of Man’’) is Koo, a rising filmmaker known for his artsy works.

He is invited as a judge for the 2008 Jecheon International Music Film Festival (JIMFF). But the festival, set among the cascading mountains and scenic lakes of North Chungcheong Province, is just an excuse for everyone to have drinking parties. Here, Hong does not hesitate to bash the film industry, by depicting a know-it-all programmer (Uhm Ji-won) and superficial movie critics to the smug star director and the desperate actress trying to climb into his bed. Koo is at once the aloof observer and the passive participant in the shallowness.

Meanwhile, Koo runs into an old buddy, Bu (Kong Hyeong-jin), and is invited to his happy home. Joined by Bu’s wife Yu-sin (Jeong Yu-mi), the three start another round of drinking. A series of mishaps, however, result in Koo being labeled a sexual harasser, and back at the festival, he again gets blamed for another accident involving too much booze and compromised sexual morals.

Twelve days later, Koo is invited to give a lecture at a film school on Jeju Island. Of course, the camera foregoes the beautiful palm trees and beaches of Korea’s Hawaii, and instead takes viewers to more drinking parties. This time he reunites with a senior colleague, the elderly painter Yang, and is invited to his home.

Yang’s new wife turns out to be none other than Koo’s old flame, Koh (Go Hyun-jung). The two keep their past affair a secret from Yang, and end up in bed together _ a casual affair for Koh, while a pitiful, self-gratifying attempt for Koo to attach meaning to his frustrated past. Things become complicated, however, when the neighbor Jo (Ha Jung-woo), who swears a bizarre sense of loyalty to Yang, catches them.

``People don’t make use of all the gifts in life,’’ Hong once said. ``They can be ungrateful about the good things in life while they agonize over unnecessary desires, beliefs that are unfounded, self-destructive or oppressive, and misguided ideals. I am intrigued by such things.’’

In ``Know,’’ Hong explores the small yet affecting results of misunderstanding and misinformation, and how history is bound to repeat itself when people fail to understand their mistakes. Running as long as ``Night and Day,’’ the director’s longest film yet, ``Know’’ develops in a tangential yet natural, and moreover, extremely funny, way. Some say that the realist always makes similar movies; Hong is consistent but is also consistently evolving, bringing new dimensions of small and subtle yet delightful rhymes.

Read my review of Hong's "Night and Day"

Royal Tombs Nominated for World Heritage List

Photos courtesy of the Cultural Heritage Administration.

The Royal Tombs of the Joseon Kingdom (1392-1910) was nominated to become a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Cultural Heritage Administration of Korea (CHA) announced Wednesday.

The International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), which along with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (ICUN) presides over a tentative list of cultural and natural properties. The tombs scattered around Seoul and Gyeonggi and Gangwon Provinces await final approval at the 33rd session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, which will take place June 22-30 in Seville, Spain.

``No site recommended by the ICOMOS has ever been turned down before,’’ Kim Hong-dong of the CHA International Affairs Division was quoted as saying in the Munwha Ilbo. If the Joseon royal tombs are approved, it will become South Korea’s ninth UNESCO-designated treasure.

The tombs comprise the mausoleums of 27 generations of Joseon kings, and queens, including those who were posthumously recognized, spanning over five centuries. Such an intact preservation of the royal tombs from a single dynasty is unheard of elsewhere in the world.

A total of 40 tombs among the 42 were submitted for candidacy _ the excluded two, Jaeneung and Huneung, are in North Korea. The ICOMOS is reported to have highly regarded the site’s unique architectural and landscape forms rooted in Confucian and geomantic traditions, as well as the fact that related funereal rituals from the times continue to this day, in the form of an intangible cultural heritage.

These tombs, called ``neung,’’ are part of altogether 119 tombs in the area, which include 13 ``won,’’ those that belonged to crown princes and princesses and the biological mothers of kings (i.e. mothered by a royal concubine), and ``myo,’’ which include those belonging to royal family members and overthrown kings such as Gwanghaegun and Yeonsangun.

Local sites registered by UNESCO include Jongmyo, Joseon’s Royal Ancestral Shrine, and the Joseon-era Changdeok Palace in Seoul. The Royal Tombs’ nomination suggests the heightened recognition of the late kingdom’s cultural value.

Other sites include: Seokguram-Bulguksa and Gyeongju Historic Areas in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province; Tripitaka Koreana at Haeinsa Temple in Hapcheon, South Gyeongsang Province;Hwaseong Fortress in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province; Gochang, Hwasun and Ganghwa Dolmen Sites; and the volcanic Jeju Island and its lava tube.

If designated, the royal tombs will be subject to protection and oversight by the international community.

As of July, 2008, a total of 878 cultural and natural sites from 141 countries are registered in the list. Italy has 43 while China has 33.

In order to qualify as a World Heritage, a cultural site must possess all of the following (condensed) conditions: 1. Represent a masterpiece of human creative genius; 2. Exhibit an important interchange of human values; 3. Bear a unique or at least exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or civilization; 4. Be an outstanding example of a type of building, architectural or technological ensemble or landscape; 5. Be an outstanding example of a traditional human settlement, land-use or sea-use; and 6. Be directly or tangibly association with events or living traditions, etc.

Jose Carreras Still Got It

Photo courtesy of Goyang Cultural Foundation

Tenor Jose Carreras wrapped up his South Korean recital tour Tuesday with a crowd-pleasing program in Goyang, Gyeonggi Provice, a satellite city of Seoul. (The last public concert he had here was in 2006. In '07 and '08 he came for those fancy, private functions.)

The 63-year-old Catalan took some time to warm up his voice (and it was really, really warm in the concert. I was particularly irritated by the Korean Symphony Orchestra (argh in less than a week after Friday's "Fidelio"), which, conducted by the singer's nephew David Gimenez, kept confusing power with volume and drowned out the vocal.

After intermission, however, Mr. Carreras showed why he's one of The Three Tenors in an impassioned duet with soprano Park Mi-hye. I loved Ms. Park's singing -- even though her lung capacity was slightly lacking (weak volume), her voice was silvery and lyrical.

He wrapped up the evening with "Musica Prohibita" and gave two encores including "Granada."

>>Read about what Mr. Carreras told reporters recently in Seoul

>>Read about the recent Seoul recital of Placido Domingo, the other surviving member of the Three Tenors.