Movies Feed on Raw Action

"Rough Cut"

Action movies celebrate the human body twisting in unimaginable ways and engage the audience in the art of primal combat. Here come two films, one about the making of an unconventional action movie, and another that documents stuntmen who help make such films possible.

`Rough Cut’: Stranger than Fiction

Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris’s famous fight scene has made the 1979 film ``Way of the Dragon’’ an action classic. Onscreen duels between top actors sell well, as demonstrated in this year’s box office hits like ``Public Enemy Returns’’ starring maverick actors Sul Kyoung-gu and Jung Jae-young. Another visible trend here is the ``toughening up’’ of melodrama heroes. It seems to have become a rite of passage set by Jang Dong-kun, who proved he’s more than just a pretty face by adopting a thug persona in ``Friend.’’ Joo Jin-mo (``A Love’’) and Song Seung-heon (``Fate’’) followed.

``Rough Cut’’ combines these two marking points, and features two handsome stars kicking and punching each other. So Ji-sup makes a comeback as Gang Pae (which sounds similar to the Korean word for ``thug’’), a gangster that once dreamed of being an actor (the movie doesn’t forget to include a snippet of So playing an extra in the Korean classic ``Green Fish’’). Opportunity comes knocking at the door when he crosses paths with Su Ta (which literally means ``hit with the hand’’ and played by Kang Ji-hwan), a movie star with a reputation of being a thug. After sending another one of his co-stars to the emergency room, desperate Su Ta asks Gang Pae to star in his movie. The real-life thug accepts, but on the condition that the action sequences be real.

Unlike Catherine Breillat’s film about filmmaking ``Sex is Comedy,’’ the two’s off screen animosity fuels the filmmaking process: Su Ta reprimands Gang Pae’s acting skills and calls him a low life scum, while Gang Pae knocks out Su Ta on the set and teases him of making a living mimicking others. Will Su Ta be able to realize the script and beat Gang Pae in the final scene?

The film really tests the fine line between fiction and reality. The tumble in the mud at the end had the two male leads, who are actually really good friends, really punching each other. Despite action schooling, the actors were unable to stick to choreography in the slippery mud.

The fighting aside, the combat in terms of screen presence is also worth watching. So is unforgettable in his role as a gangster who is scary but also very soulful and sexy in his black Armani suits. Kang also brings a freshness from his TV breaks, but So’s radiating charisma outshines him.

After working as assistant director for Kim Ki-duk (who wrote the screenplay), Chang Hoon makes his directorial debut with this fun, experimental film about real action.

``I was like the assistant director to director Bong,’’ joked the director in a recent press preview about the film’s characters, director Bong. Bong wishes to make a believable action movie, but ends up getting one that’s all too real. The movie pokes fun at just about everything in the entertainment business, from the greedy producers to senseless directors and stuck up actresses. But it also sympathizes with stars who are able to enjoy dates and other small pleasures in life.

``Rough Cut’’ has the jarring entertainment factor of ``Fight Club’’ and the crude humor of ``Sex is Comedy,’’ but not without its own original color. It will be interesting to see the future works of director Chang. In theaters Sept. 11. 113 minutes. 15 and over. Distributed by STUDIO 2.0.

`Action Boys’: Art of Stunt

In 2003, ``Ong Bak’’ brought a new martial arts style to the big screen -- Muay Thai without wires. Tony Jaa’s raw, bona fide action redefined how a martial arts movie could be crafted. New in theaters is a film about the nameless men who help make movies like ``Rough Cut.’’

``Action Boys’’ documents the lives of five men, who are among the eight who make it through the hell training of action school. Se-jin must pay off a debt from getting a tattoo of a tiger on his back -- a fortuneteller had told him that his future depends on ``piggybacking a tiger.’’ Jin-seok had become a hair stylist after falling in love with Winona Ryder in ``Edward Scissor Hands’’ but now his best asset is his six-pack abs. Gwi-deok, who is skilled in making freefalls and cars flip over, is constantly collapsing from bridges and horses and recreating car accidents. While his high kick isn’t perfect, Seong-il makes the cut because of his good looks. Moon-cheol, while the youngest of the five, boasts the best skills.

They are action heroes. This documentary that inspires more laughter than reality TV shows and more touching drama than fiction, as the camera follows around the five eccentric men from auditions to dangerous shoots, and moreover, the quiet time of the day when they reaffirm their love for action, which makes the life-risking acts worth it.

Since its appearance at Jeonju International Film Festival this year, the documentary is drawing ticket sales at a fast rate. It will also appear in film festivals in Vancouver, New York and Japan. 110 minutes. 12 and over. Distributed by Sang Sang Madang.

`Modern Boy' Opens in October

Director Jung Ji-woo, center, and actors Park Hae-il, left, and Kim Hye-soo appear at a promotional event for the film "Modern Boy" in Seoul, Wednesday. /Yonhap

``Modern Boy'' (모던보이, S. Korea)

Directed by Jung Ji-woo (정지우). Starring Park Hae-il (박혜일), Kim Hye-soo (김혜수).

The critically acclaimed director of ``Happy End'' (starring ``Old Boy'' hero Choi Min-sik and ``Secret Sunshine'' heroine Jeon Do-yeon) brings a dramatic love story set in 1930s Gyeongseong or old Seoul, when Korea was under Japanese colonization (1910-45). With years of pre-production for the period detail, the film also utilizes the most blue screen shoots for computer graphics imagery(CGI) used in a Korean movie.

``In trying to recreate the period, I realized how little remains of the past because Korea was so focused on economic development,'' director Jung Ji-woo told reporters. The film resurrects via CGI the recently burnt down Sungnyemun and other landmarks.

``Unlike the black and white documentaries we're familiar with, 1930s Gyeonseong was a thoroughly modern city, very colorful with neon lights,'' he said, explaining that while it was a time of tragedy, it was also very dynamic with culture thriving and modernization in full gear. Like recent success ``The Good, the Bad, the Weird,'' which is set in the 1940s, this particular period, which had in the past been the subject of depressing documentaries, becomes a backdrop for crafting rich, exciting drama.

``The point here is not making a story about the colonial era but taking a character who could well exist in 2008 and displacing him in the past,'' he said. Park plays the role of a ``modern boy,'' a suave, rich young man who is unaffected by the fact his country was colonized. With his Japanese best friend, he struts around with his fashionable perm and customized linen suits, womanizing while flirting with a civil servant position. One day, however, he becomes mesmerized by a sexy singer/dancer (Kim), and becomes implicated in this mysterious woman's schemes to bomb a building. >>More

Violinist Daishin Kashimoto, Maestro Chung to Take Stage

This is the 18th in a series of interviews with the next generation of classical musicians. ― ED.


A soaring number of Asian musicians can be spotted in major world orchestras, but only a handful of star soloists like Japanese violinist Midori shines through. The future seems bright, however, with the next generation of promising artists like pianist Kim Sun-wook, cellist Han-na Chang and violinist Daishin Kashimoto ― the latter being ``a jewel-like presence,'' according to music critic Lee Chang-song (Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra Magazine, September 2007).

Born in London in 1979, Kashimoto started playing the violin at age three. He entered the Juilliard School pre-college in New York as its youngest student (age seven) and continued his studies in Germany, where he is currently based. His accomplishments include winning, the youngest ever in history, of both the 1996 International Fritz Kreisler Violin Competition in Vienna and the Marguerite Long-Jacque Thibaud International Competition for Piano and Violin in Paris.

The 29-year-old appears in major concert venues with such conductors as Chung Myung-whun and Lorin Maazel and artists like Mischa Maisky and Yuri Bashmet. He revisits Korea July 29-30 to perform with the Asia Philharmonic Orchestra (APO). Joining him are Maestro Chung, as pianist, and esteemed Chinese cellist Wang Jian for Beethoven's Concerto for Violin, Cello and Piano in C Major, Op. 56.

The Korea Times conducted an email interview with Kashimoto to discuss his thoughts about music.

Q How did you fall in love with the violin?

A ``The reason why I started violin was because of my mother, a pianist. She gave me toys of various instruments when I was small and I chose a toy violin, as it was more fun for me to have things in both hands (bow in one and the instrument in another). My mother loves music and she went to concerts when she was pregnant. So, in a way, I was listening music from that time and unconsciously music has been a part of my life.''

Q What is music to you?

A ``Music is, for me, the only method to deliver all of the human emotions to others beyond differences of culture and languages. It is a precious way to communicate with people without words. Even with the same piece, every time I play the music, I cannot feel the same. Music is a living thing in a way and is essential for humanity.''

Q How does heritage affect your musicality, if any?

A ``I feel that Asian (musicians) have a sensitivity that is unique to Asian people, and I think that it reflects in the music we play. There are many musicians with great talent from Asian countries. This is already becoming recognized in Europe, and I think that people are now paying a lot of attention to Asian musicians. I believe that there will be a time when all this talent will become active on the international stage.''

Q: Welcome back to Korea. What is your impression of the audience here?

A ``I am always inspired by the great energy and power of the Korean people. I think that people in Korea are very passionate and the audience listens to music with great enthusiasm.''

Q The APO brings together top musicians from Asia and the Asian Diaspora. It must be exciting to play with the ensemble.

A ``It is the first time for me to perform with APO, but I have heard from friends it is an excellent orchestra, and that Maestro Chung has been working with them regularly. Therefore, I am very much looking forward to playing with them at the concerts. The most interesting thing for me is the fact that people from different countries in Asia with different backgrounds, education, language and culture are working together to make the music. It is, indeed, a wonderful idea.''

Q What is it like to collaborate with Maestro Chung again?

(photo with maestro Chung, Courtesy of Matthias Creutziger)

A ``I have had opportunities to work with him both at orchestral concerts and chamber music concerts. My recent CD released from Sony BMG was a live recording from a Brahms concert in Dresden (2006) with Staatskapelle Dresden under Maestro's baton. It had been a dream for me to record this repertoire with Maestro Chung. As a conductor, Maestro has incredible concentration.''

Q What are your future plans and dreams?

A ``Personally, I want to have a family someday. Whenever I meet with Maestro Chung, I realize how he is placing importance on his family. It seems to me that the family is a source of passion and a great support for Maestro. I am always touched by his (regard) for his family, and I want to be like him in the future.''

Tickets for the concert at Incheon Multiple Arts Complex, July 29, cost 30,000 won and 50,000 won. Tickets for the performance at Seoul Arts Center on the following night cost from 30,000 won to 100,000 won. Call (02) 518-7343.

After the concerts with APO, Kashimoto will appear at the Salon de Province Music Frestival in France and give a recital in Denmark. In October, the violinist will assume music directorship of a chamber music festival in Himeji, Japan. He hopes musicians from Korea will attend the festival.

Kwon, Sohn to Wed in Sept.

Hallyu star Kwon Sang-woo, 32, announced plans to tie the knot with actress Sohn Tae-young, 28, in an outdoor ceremony at the Shilla Hotel, Sept. 28. Kwon appeared before reporters Friday night at the Seoul Plaza Hotel to confirm the news that had fans and the actors' own management companies in confusion.

Kwon expressed great surprise at the influx of reporters at the press meeting that took place at 9 p.m. at short notice. The actor rose to hallyu stardom through his tough guy role in the TV soap ``Stairway to Heaven'' opposite Choi Ji-woo and recently appeared as a gangster in ``The Fate.'' But in real life, he said he was the one who shed tears after proposing to Sohn with an engagement ring. His fiancee hugged him warmly.

The ``My Tutor Friend'' star met the former Miss Korea earlier this year at a small party with mutual celebrity friends. News of their romance started circulating Wednesday and became the most searched topic on major domestic portals like Naver. Before the press meeting, Kwon verified the engagement through his fan Web site and apologized for the belated announcement. ``Sohn Tae-young is my haven,'' he told reporters, but kept silent to inquiries about a pregnancy.

Sohn is known through several TV melodramas and received acclaim for her role in the film ``The Railroad.'' Netizens are once again gossiping about the screen beauty's dating history. In 2001, she made headlines for dating actor Shin Hyun-joon shortly after splitting with famed songwriter Joo Young-hoon. A so-called love triangle among the three drew much public attention. Sohn again became the talk of the town in 2006 when she got involved with music video director Cool K. She openly expressed the pain of breaking up on a TV talk show last year, saying ``I have lost faith in love.''

Meanwhile, Sohn's sister Hye-im, also a former Miss Korea, was also in the media spotlight after giving birth to a daughter July 9 with her husband, popular pianist/composer Yiruma. The two were married at the same venue Kwon and Sohn plan to marry.

Kim Dong-won, Daxun Zhang Travel New Road With Yo Yo Ma

The double bass and pipa (Chinese lute) bring spontaneous combustion, and the unmistakable quivering of ``chang'' (Korean opera) resounds with the rhythm of Brazilian shakers and dumbeck. It's indefinable, yet deeply rooted with a sense of belonging and culture. It's the Silk Road Ensemble helmed by cellist Yo Yo Ma.

The term ``fusion'' or ``crossover'' is inadequate to describe this international music group, which claws at something deeper and thoroughly intuitive, deconstructing our concept of music and culture. ``Man could hear how the lively dialogue between ancient folklore and contemporary music came together,'' wrote music critic David Koch.

The Korea Times recently met two members of the group who participated in the Silk Road Ensemble's second album ``New Impossibilities'' (Sony BMG): South Korean ``gugak'' (traditional music) artist Kim Dong-won and Chinese double bassist Zhang Daxun.

Kim got involved with the project through Korean composer Kang Joon-il. Kang gave Ma a piece for cello, piano and ``janggo'' (Korean double-headed drum) and specifically asked that Kim play the drum.

A disciple of ``samulnori'' founding father Kim Duk-soo, the 42-year-old teaches at Wonkwang Digital University. One has to wonder how such an artist of wondrous caliber was hidden from the Korean public for so long.

While unable to meet due to scheduling conflicts, both Kim and Zhang spoke affectionately of each other and the Silk Road project.

``Daxun is such a warm, humble person. He really resembles the double bass ― you know, those kind of people that make you feel good just by being around,'' said Kim. ``He pours so much affection into his playing, and I am truly proud of him as a fellow Asian.''

Ma invited Zhang to join the Silk Road Ensemble after hearing him play for just ten minutes backstage. Violist Richard Yongjae O'Neill, a founding member of chamber group Ditto, also asked the 26-year-old to join after falling in love with his playing.

If one has the chance to hear him, it is strongly advised to sit by stage left, where the jumbo string is usually found. One can marvel as Zhang's luscious tunes fill in the hollows of the Earth and allow the sound of other instruments to take flight.

``He's wonderful,'' said Zhang, smiling, about Kim. He then did an impression of his ``gugak'' friend's unique vocal technique.

``To share and learn each other's music was really, really eye-opening. All music is folk music,'' he said. Born into a family of double bassists in China, Zhang moved to the United States because its diverse cultures would help him better understand the ``universal language'' of music.

``If you think about the essence of ethnic music, its peculiarity is, ironically, both its source of beauty and hindrance,'' said Kim. The latter is because music becomes set in a traditional pattern that often makes it an acquired taste. But the Silk Road Ensemble, he said, achieves something ``beautiful and extraordinary.''

``It's a liberation of music. These people who don't look like they'll get along come together and make music,'' he said. The Silk Road Ensemble, while still preserving the essence of each culture, establishes a new means of communication. Along the way the artist breaks down his or her own preconceptions of music. ``The classical cello usually delivers soft vibrato, but Yo Yo Ma said he used `crazy vibrato' to create sounds that the cello was not meant to make,'' he said.

Exploring New Horizons

Zhang got to improvise for the first time through the ensemble. ``If the bass is finally to produce a headliner, the instrument can have no better champion,'' wrote the Washington Post regarding the first ever double bassist to champion the Young Concert Artists International Auditions. He is very open about music ― he likes tuning into the latest Chinese pop music and plays whimsical jazz pieces on the piano.

While the Silk Road project was something new, Zhang is no stranger to innovation. The scarcity of music for his instrument doesn't seem to be a problem and he is always paving a new path for himself by rearranging string pieces originally written for violin and cello. But fortunately there is an increasing number of contemporary classical music for the double bass, he said.

Kim is also busy making something of his own. In his newly released first solo album ``On the Way'' (Sony BMG), traditional percussion beats are spiced with psychedelic bass guitar tunes and soulful Korean narratives take on a new color when delivered in English.

``One can live comfortably as a traditional musician, by feeding upon what our mothers gave us. But I wanted to do something of my own,'' he said. ``It's like I've finally let go of 20 years' worth of luggage,'' he said about the slim CD that wraps up his entire musical career thus far.

The album was fashioned in a way reminiscent of the hit Irish movie ``Once.'' His good musician friends based in Europe offered to make an album in their spare time and many were impromptu creations. While the music is distinctively Korean, it is fluid enough to seep into the hearts of non-Koreans. "It's an inspiration to make music with him," wrote Ma in the album jacket.

``When we talk about a Silk Road experience, we don't mean simply the cultural exchange brought about by caravans traveling across deserts, but something much broader,'' Ma was quoted as telling The Guardian in September 2007. ``Whether the intercultural development of the tang in Argentina or the transport of indigo dye from India to Cape Verde to the Caribbean, to the term blues to the jeans we wear today, the collaboration and creativity of mini Silk Roads have given birth to some of the most extraordinary cultural evolutions,'' he said.

Asia has seen exciting cross border endeavors like the Asia Philharmonic Orchestra led by maestro Chung Myung-whun, which will perform July 29-30 in Korea.

Another venture delves deep into Asia's colorful cultural identity. In December, the Korea-ASEAN (Assoc. of South East Asian Nations) Folk Orchestra will be officially launched at the summit meeting in Thailand. The state-sponsored project is hoped to give way to more artistic activities in the tradition of the Silk Road Ensemble.

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/art/2008/07/135_27605.html

Indulge in Imaginative Operas on Small Stages

The Seoul Opera Ensemble is staging “Mozart and Salieri” as part of its opera festival at the National Theater of Korea through July 27. / Courtesy of Seoul Opera Ensemble

Last month, the Seoul Opera Ensemble Company staged a hip version of Verdi's ``Rigoletto'' at the Towol Theater, Seoul Arts Center. Such small stages will continue to host operas that flirt with experimental structures and bring audiences closer to the genre.

The Small Theater Opera festival, currently ongoing through July 27 at the National Theater of Korea, features rare-to-see pieces such as Rimsky-Korsakov's ``Mozart and Salieri.'' The work dramatizes the supposedly fatal rivalry between the two composers in 18th-century Vienna, and inspired the critically acclaimed Milos Forman movie ``Amadeus'' (1984).

Accompanying the show are works by the Mozart and Salieri themselves, ``Der Schauspieldirektor (The Impresario)'' and ``Prima la musica e poi le parole (Music Comes Before Speech),'' respectively. At the time, it is said that the emperor assigned the two to write an opera about the birth of opera, and Salieri's piece was preferred over Mozart's satirical criticism of the corrupt music scene.

Tickets for each opera cost from 30,000 won to 50,000 won. Call (02) 6223-5312 or visit www.seoulopera.org. Located near Dongguk University station, line 3, exit 6.

While Seoul Arts Center prepares for its Opera Theater's reopening in mid-December with ``The Nutcracker,'' the Towol Theater will continue to resound with operatic arias. The National Opera of Korea invites first-time opera-goers and avid fans to watch Bizet's Spanish love story ``Carmen'' July 23-Aug. 1.

Tickets cost from 10,000 won to 50,000 won Students and children can receive special discounts up to 50 percent, with the lowest reservation price costing 5,000 won. Call (02) 586-5282.

In August, Seoul Arts Center presents Mozart's ``The Magic Flute'' from Aug. 9 to 24. This is part of the center's annual best-selling summer vacation treat for families. The fantastic visuals and storyline featuring nymphs and singing flutes will captivate children and adults alike. Under the baton of Christopher Lee from Austria, the Seoul Arts Center Festival Orchestra and the country's top singers will deliver a night of magic with the stellar Queen of the Night aria.

Tickets cost 30,000 won to 50,000 won. Call (02) 580-1300 or visit www.sac.or.kr (Korean and English). The center is located near Nambu Bus Terminal station, subway line 3, exit 5.

Chin Unsuk's "Alice in Wonderland" on DVD

In the meantime, local fans will finally be able to appreciate an original opera at home. South Korea's feted composer Chin Unsuk's ``Alice in Wonderland'' is now available on DVD (Eklasse).

Lewis Carroll's classic story is brought to life with Chin's dreamy music, Chinese-American playwright David Henry Hwang's poignant libretto and Kent Nagano's fine-tempoed interpretation. It debuted last year at Munich's Bayerische Staatspoer (Bavarian State Opera) with maestro Nagano at the baton, and now everyone can experience the performance. The opera was listed in the Los Angeles Times' ``Best of 2007'' and named ``World Premiere of the Year'' by European critics in Opernwelt magazine.

Deliciously surreal and hypnotizing, Alice's adventure is thoroughly deconstructed through multimedia creations inspired by pantomime, theater and musical. It is at once fascinating and thought-provoking as our protagonist asks the undying question: ``Who in the world am I?'' Soprano Sally Mathews delivers arias with restrained drama and deep tones while she speaks the lines with a childish purr.

Particularly striking is the scene with the smoking Caterpillar, brought to life by a bass clarinet soloist. The opera production seems to be an audiovisual materialization of the composer's musicality ― her greatest muses being dreams, light and color.

In English with Korean, French, German and Italian subtitles. Chin herself spent six months translating the libretto into her native tongue. On sale at major record shops and bookstores. Call (031) 911-5613.