[HanCinema's Digest] Cinema Snippets

A recent KOFIC report reveals the most popular re-releases of the past year, Pierce Conran reviews what went down at the 21st BiFan festival in Bucheon, box office hits pique interest in historical books, and The New York Times reveals the unsung hero behind "A Taxi Driver" (played by Song Kang-ho).

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"Oldies but Goodies"

Re-releases of popular or timely tales are a fairly regular feature at the Korean box office. From the romantic drama "Love Actually" to the thoughtful "Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind", Korean filmgoers enjoy reliving some of their favourite cinematic experiences again and again on the big screen. According to a recent industry report from the Korean Film Council (KOFIC), there were 90 such films re-released in Korea over the past year. But which films drew the largest crowds? KOBIZ's slick new infographic reveals all...

...READ ON KOBIZ

"Historical books on demand with box office hits"

"As the three biggest highly anticipated films for this summer ["Dunkirk", "The Battleship Island", and "A Taxi Driver"] happen to deal with modern historical events", writes Kim Jae-hun for The Korea Times, "people are reading the books about these topics as the popular movies". South Korea's literary scene has made great strides this year, but film adaptations are also giving many moviegoers great reasons to explore the historical significance of some films through the written word. Why worry about whether the book is better than the film if you can enjoy both? Either way, book it...

...READ ON THE KOREA TIMES

"In South Korea, an Unsung Hero of History Gets His Due"

Choi Sang-hun, writing for the The New York Times, explores the inspiring story behind a hero taxi driver, played by Song Kang-ho in "A Taxi Driver", who went above and beyond during the infamous Gwangju massacre of 1980. Interestingly, the man's real identity is still unknown: "Interest in the movie has made the name one of the most searched-for terms in the country, but no one has come forward". Have you seen this hero?

...READ ON THE NEW YORK TIMES

"Korean Films Shine at 21st BiFan"

Pierce Conran reports on the recently concluded Bucheon International Film Festival (BiFan). According to Pierce, a film critic, producer, and journalist, the event continues to gain momentum, and here he looks back at the festival's swell programme and shares some of the highlights from this, BiFan's 21st edition. If you weren't able to attend this year, this brief report on KOBIZ will get you up to speed.

...READ ON KOBIZ