Published : Aug. 24, 2012 - 20:08
Carnage (France, Germany, Spain and Poland)
Opened Aug. 16
Comedy. Directed by Roman Polanski. Two pairs of middle-class parents meet to discuss why one couple’s child broke the front teeth of the other couple’s son. Though both parties try to remain “civilized” and “well-mannered” in the beginning of the meeting, they end up becoming childish and even attacking each other while drunk. Starring Jodie Foster, Kate Winslet, Christoph Waltz and John C. Reilly, the film is an adaptation of celebrated French playwright Yasmina Reza’s play “God of Carnage.”
Total Recall (U.S.)Opened Aug. 15
Action. Adventure. Directed by Len Wiseman. Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell), an ordinary factory worker suffers from violent nightmares every night. One day, he visits “ReKall,” a company that can implant artificial memories and turn fantasies into reality. A Rekall employee, McClane (John Cho), convinces Douglas to implant the memories of a secret agent. During a compatibility test in the process of “memory-implanting,” an accident occurs and McClane accuses him of being an actual spy. Suddenly, a fully armed SWAT team storms in and points the gun at him. Douglas manages to escape, but he soon realizes that he is falsely accused of being a spy and chased by police as well as an unknown group of people. Douglas, who is now at the center of a scheme that can endanger the whole world, tries to find his true identity.
The Grand Heist (Korea)
Opened Aug. 8
Action. Comedy. Directed by Kim Joo-ho. Lee Duk-moo (Cha Tae-hyun), son of the Joseon royal court’s only clean official, is a clever young man, but only chases after pretty girls and reads junk books. One day, Duk-moo finds out that his father is falsely accused of a crime and is eliminated by a corrupt official Cho Myung-soo (Nam Kyeong-eup). Duk-moo comes up with a brilliant scheme to heist Myung-soo’s Seobingo, a store of ice considered one of the most important and valuable commodities of the time. With the former chief guard of the royal ice storage Baek Dong-soo (Oh Ji-ho) as his partner, Duk-moo assembles a group of experts in a variety of fields including tactical strategy, artillery, explosives, diving and disguise. Together, the 11 thieves plot to put an end to Myung-soo’s reign and steal 300,000 blocks of ice.
We Need to Talk about Kevin (U.S.)
Opened July 28
Drama. Directed by Lynne Ramsay. Eva (Tilda Swinton), once a prominent travel writer, now works for a small travel agency. Her son Kevin (Ezra Miller) is in prison after committing an ineffable crime at his high school. She looks back at her memories of the difficult relationship she had with her son, who never bonded with her throughout his life.
The Thieves (Korea)
Opened July 25
Crime. Action. Directed by Choi Dong-hun. Anycall (Gianna Jun), Popeye (Lee Jung-jae), Chewing Gum (Kim Hae-sook) and Zampano (Kim Soo-hyun) are professional thieves who work together. After their success in a gallery heist, the group hears that Popeye’s old partner, robbery mastermind Macao Park, is back for another job after having gone missing for many years. Pepsi (Kim Hye-soo), a genius safecracker and Macao Park’s old flame, decides to join the group to settle the old score with Park, who betrayed her in the past. With the joining of Park’s Chinese professional thieves, the 10-member group plans to steal a legendary diamond worth $20 million known as the Tear of the Sun.