22 movies compete for the prestigious Palme d’Or during 12-day film festival CANNES, France (AP) ― Wes Anderson opened the 65th Cannes Film Festival with his meticulously composed ode to young love, “Moonrise Kingdom,’’ while less mannered theatrics surrounded the annual French Riviera extravaganza. Anderson and his star-studded cast declared the festival officially begun at the opening ceremon...

“Tokyo Waka: A City Poem” by John Haptas and Kristine Samuelson of the United States won the Best Feature Film Award of this year’s Green Film Festival in Seoul (GFFIS), including prize money of 10 million won ($8,668), organizers said Tuesday. Tokyo Waka was selected as the best feature film, as it broadly reflected social and cultural viewpoints while signifying the relationship between the en...

Director of ‘Love Letter’ criticizes Japanese media’s coverage of the nuclear disaster For those used to seeing Iwai Shunji’s sentimental romantic films such as “Love Letter” and “Hana and Alice,” his latest film may come as a surprise. The film, titled “Friends after 3.11,” is a documentary with no fictional narrative. The anti-nuclear film deals with the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, an...

Chinese actress Lan Yen has announced on Friday that she is a lesbian, according to Chinese news reports. The 26-year-old Lan said that she “would not choose men in reality” during a press conference introducing her new movie. The bold announcement caught many by surprise. She also told the reporters that her “eternal idol” was late Leslie Cheung, a world-renown Chinese actor who was also known...

Granny is in 1st Grade (Korea) Opening May 24 Drama. Directed by Jin Gwang-gyo. Nan-ee, a 70-year-old illiterate woman, lives with her granddaughter in her rural hometown. She has just lost her son to a car accident and is still grieving. One day, Nan-ee finds out her late son had left her a letter while he was alive. Anxious to find out what’s in the letter, Nan-ee decides to learn how to read...

There’s one thing everyone will be able to agree on regarding Tim Burton’s cinematic reimagining of the old TV series “Dark Shadows”: This isn’t your mother’s gothic soap opera. The original, which ran from 1966 to 1971, smashed the daytime-TV mold by introducing cool supernatural storylines into the usual heat of love triangles and broken hearts. Long before staid afternoon dramas like “General...

Korean directors Im Sang-soo and Hong Sang-soo vye for the Palme d’Or award PARIS (AFP) ― Druggy roadtrips, soul-searching drama and stylish gangland flicks go head to head on the French Riviera next week as a galaxy of stars and directors converge for the Cannes film festival. David Cronenberg, Ken Loach and Michael Haneke headline the pick of 22 international filmmakers vying for the Palme d’...

A recently revealed photo of South Korean actress Son Ye-jin has fired up an online debate over whether her face has changed. 충격! 확 변한 손예진 얼굴, ‘도대체 왜?’ 배우 손예진의 달라진 외모가 네티즌의 관심을 사로잡았다. 최근 한 온라인 커뮤니티 게시판에는 ‘손예진의 변화 : 사진이 이상하게 나온건지, 아님 얼굴이 변한건지’라는 제목으로 사진이 올라왔다. 이 사진은 손예진이 최근 촬영한 한 의류 브랜드 화보다. 화보 속 손예진은 눈과 코 등 이목구비가 뚜렷해져 예전과는 다른 분위기를 자아내고 있다. 이에 일각에서는 “성형한 것 아니냐”는 등 의혹도 제기했지만, 메이크업과 촬영각도에 따라 얼...

“Mister K” gained attention when its production was announced by JK Film earlier this year. It was a 10 billion project involving investment by the movie industry behemoth CJ Entertainment. The film was to feature big-name stars Moon So-ri, Sol Kyung-gu and Daniel Henney. Cineastes and critics were especially excited about the rare collaboration between Lee Myeong-se and Yoon Je-kyoon ― two heav...

Top Hollywood stars in town for world premiere of ‘Men in Black 3’ As one of Hollywood’s top actors, it comes as no surprise that Will Smith can instantly turn a crowd of stern reporters into laughing fans during a press conference in Seoul on Monday. Once voted Hollywood’s most powerful actor, Smith is once again stepping into the comical and familiar shoes of Agent J in his upcoming sequel “M...

Hollywood celebrities Will Smith and Ewan McGregor visited Korea on Monday -- one to promote his new film the other for a department store event. After a press conference with local reporters at a hotel in the morning, he plans to meet his fans at an autograph-signing event and attend the department store’s evening party. ( yoonmi@heraldm.com ) 윌 스미스-이완 맥그리거 재치남 vs. 진지남 할리우드 스타 윌 스...