The Korea Herald

'Fantastic Beasts' takes top spot at box office

Nov 21, 2016

“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,” a spinoff from the hit “Harry Potter” franchise, made its debut in South Korean theaters at No. 1 on the weekend box-office chart, data showed Monday.According to real-time based box office figures from the Korean Film Council, the Warner Bros.’ adventure film topped the chart, selling over 1.4 million tickets over the Nov. 18-20 weekend.The film, starring Eddie Redmayne and Katherine Waterston, is based on a screenplay by J.K. Rowling and follows Newt
Hidden Bergman 'masterpiece' to hit Swedish movie screens

Nov 20, 2016

STOCKHOLM (AFP) -- Discovered in Ingmar Bergman's archive, a previously unknown manuscript about sexual and social revolution in the 1960s is to be turned into a movie, nearly a decade after the Swedish director’s death. “Sixty-four minutes with Rebecka,” written by the legendary filmmaker when he was aged 51, was found in 2002 when Bergman donated his work to an institute in his name, shelved among thousands of letters, completed screenplays and photographs.“Finding an unknown but finished Ingm
Chinese director accuses Wanda of monopolizing market

Nov 20, 2016

BEIJING (AP) -- One of China’s most famous film directors publicly accused the country’s richest man Friday of monopolizing the cinema market and limiting screenings of his latest movie. Veteran director Feng Xiaogang said his film “I am not Madame Bovary” has been given on average 40 percent or more of available screening slots in cinemas, but only 10.9 percent in those run by Wanda Cinemas. The theater chain operator is owned by Wang Jianlin’s Wanda Group, a real estate conglomerate that has m
[Box Office] Latest movie releases

Nov 18, 2016

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them(US)Opened Nov. 16Fantasy. Directed by David Yates Eccentric, timid British wizard Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) arrives in New York with a magical suitcase full of fantastical creatures. The city is in chaos over a mysterious force that wreaks havoc everywhere, and a movement calling for the obliteration of all witches and wizards. It is up to Newt and Tina Goldstein (Katherine Waterston) to stop the shadow of evil. Vanishing Time: A Boy Who Returned(Kor
‘Fantastic Beasts’ promising, but not yet Potter-magical

Nov 18, 2016

Who’s up for a little escapism at the multiplex? J.K. Rowling, embarking on her new, post-Potter blockbuster franchise with “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,” has said herself that her screenplay, which she began several years ago, was informed by world events -- particularly, she noted, a rise in populism around the globe.And so there’s definitely some darkness in “Fantastic Beasts,” despite its being a family film, complete with the sweetest little beasts (and bigger ones) imaginable -
[Herald Review] ‘Our Love Story’ a triumph of Korean indie film

Nov 17, 2016

Director’s debut feature portrays nuanced story of new love
Director Hong Sang-soo files for divorce

Nov 17, 2016

Director Hong Sang-soo is going through divorce proceedings, legal sources said Thursday, amid rumors that he has been having an affair with actress Kim Min-hee after they met while shooting a film together.Ending a decadeslong marriage, Hong, 56, filed for divorce mediation with his wife at the Seoul Family Court on Nov. 9, according to the sources.Mediation during divorce is a way of finding solutions to issues such as child custody and spousal support without a formal trial. According to the
Portman praises Jackie Kennedy's generosity

Nov 16, 2016

LOS ANGELES (AFP) -- She is famous for jealously guarding her privacy, favoring a small wedding to a lavish celebrity ceremony and taking her grandmother’s maiden name to shield her family from the limelight.But Natalie Portman said Monday portraying grief-stricken Jacqueline Kennedy had taught her the virtue of celebrities giving more of themselves to the public.“Jackie,” Chilean filmmaker Pablo Larrain’s first English-language feature, is a searing and intimate portrait of the first lady in th
Director Paul Verhoeven bemoans Hollywood's lack of sex

Nov 15, 2016

LOS ANGELES (AFP) -- “Basic Instinct” director Paul Verhoeven complained Sunday that Hollywood had stopped making “challenging” movies featuring provocative sex as it clamored to cash in on mainstream audiences.The Dutch filmmaker, famous for a slew of films that shocked audiences with their sex and violence, said studios chasing ratings were now mainly interested in the lucrative “PG-13” market. “If you say it has to be PG-13, there are a lot of things you cannot do. You cannot be provocative,
Disaster film 'Pandora' breaks local movie crowdfunding record

Nov 15, 2016

South Korean nuclear disaster movie “Pandora” has raised 530 million won ($453,000) through crowdfunding, exceeding its goal by 30 million won, its local distributor said.The investment breaks the record previously set by Korean War film “Operation Chromite” of 500 million won for local movies utilizing this type of fundraising, Next Entertainment World said Monday.The nuclear-themed flick tells the story of ordinary people from different walks of life risking their lives to save their loved one
Samuel L Jackson joins Brie Larson's directorial debut

Nov 15, 2016

LOS ANGELES (AFP) - “Pulp Fiction” star Samuel L. Jackson is to join the cast of Oscar-winning actress Brie Larson’s directorial debut “Unicorn Store,” producer Rhea Films announced Monday.Jackson, nominated for an Academy Award and four Golden Globes over a 44-year acting career, will play opposite Joan Cusack (“Working Girl,” “School of Rock”) and Bradley Whitford, star of Amazon’s “Transparent.”Based on an original script by Samantha McIntyre, “Unicorn Store” centers on a woman who moves back
Upcoming crime flick ‘Master’ hits close to home

Nov 14, 2016

Star-studded film features immoral villain, criminal group and dogged detective
Eagles of Death Metal singer denies trying to enter Sting gig

Nov 14, 2016

PARIS (AFP) -- The frontman of the US rock group on stage in Paris when jihadists massacred 90 people a year ago Sunday denied claims he was barred entry to the show marking the first anniversary of the killings.Management of the Bataclan venue said they prevented two members of the Eagles of Death Metal including lead singer Jesse Hughes from entering the Sting gig on Saturday night.“They came, I threw them out -- there are things you can’t forgive,” the venue’s co-director Jules Frutos said la
Jeju film fest opens with ‘I, Daniel Blake’

Nov 13, 2016

The 12th Jeju Film Festival opened Saturday on Korea’s southernmost island.The annual film festival is being held through Saturday at Lotte Cinema Jeju in Jeju City. This year’s opening film was English director Ken Loach’s social drama “I, Daniel Blake,” which nabbed the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival in May. An exhibition is highlighting Korean director Kim Jee-woon’s works, including “A Bittersweet Life,” Kim’s 2005 crime drama featuring actor Lee Byung-hun as a gangster who starts a
Filmmaker Frederick Wiseman says reading key to his success

Nov 13, 2016

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Frederick Wiseman is not a Hollywood guy. The filmmaker has been quietly making documentaries from his home base in Cambridge, Massachusetts, since 1967, exploring such subjects as meat production, welfare, a ski town and a hospital for the criminally insane.Though none of his films received Academy Awards bids, Wiseman accepted an honorary Oscar Saturday at the film academy’s eighth annual Governors Awards. He is being recognized alongside action star Jackie Chan, film edito