One of the most anticipated films this year was unveiled to the press last week: a tale about King Jeongjo, the well-known, hapless ruler of 18th-century Joseon.The period blockbuster is a film debut by prominent TV drama director Lee Jae-gyu, who is best known for period drama “Damo” (2003) and “Beethoven Virus” (2008), and actor Hyun Bin’s latest film in three years. The 10 billion won project has been drawing attention even since preproduction for its star-studded cast including Han Ji-min, J

“Captain America: The Winter Soldier” has blown the doors off theaters across the world. But it didn’t spring out of a screenwriter’s brow: A lot of it has happened before in comics, most of which has been collected in one form or another.Warning: Spoilers ahead. But, honestly, is that necessary? Boxofficemojo.com says “Winter Soldier” earned $317.7 million abroad and $159 million domestically by April 14; is there anybody who wants to see it but hasn’t yet? Well, if so, the 89 percent positive

After its season-opening gala “Thank You!” in February, Korea’s Universal Ballet Company is premiering a new piece choreographed by Spanish artist Nacho Duato. Titled “Multiplicity, Forms of Silence and Emptiness,” the dance features well-known Baroque compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach and aims to deliver the emotional essence of his music and important moments of the legendary composer’s life. Universal Ballet is the fifth troupe to perform the piece choreographed by Duato, following the Na

Two books written by Korean author Bok Geo-il have been published in English, the Literature Translation Institute of Korea said.One is Bok’s sci-fi novel “The Jovian Sayings,” which the author first penned in Korean in 2002. Bok translated the novel into English himself. The story is set in the 29th century, where robots and human beings live on a satellite near Jupiter called Ganymede.The other book, “The Unforgotten War,” is a play depicting the Battle of Jangjin Lake, also known as the Battl

When John Updike died in 2009 at the age of 76, followers of American literature could not quite comprehend it. Novels, criticism and poetry (60 books) had flowed like a river from Updike’s pen since his years as a Harvard undergraduate. It was as if the writer vanished midsentence.One of Updike’s last public appearances before his lung-cancer diagnosis was in 2008 at Seattle Arts & Lectures ― at the time Updike thought he had “walking pneumonia.”He appeared with Seattle novelist David Guterson,

Robert Wagner is in a reflective mood.“Movies last forever,” noted the veteran actor (“Broken Lance,” “The Pink Panther,” the “Austin Powers” series), but the Hollywood he once knew has all but disappeared.“I turned around, and it was all gone,” Wagner, 84, said recently in Beverly Hills.Known as R.J. to his friends and colleagues, he’s dapper, charming, handsome and very much cut from the same cloth as the suave characters he played in the TV series “It Takes a Thief” and “Hart to Hart,” in whi

As a child, jewelry designer Yoon Hye-rim loved playing with her magnifying glass. “I’ve always been an observer,” she said. “I would use it to observe flowers, insects and other things in nature.”The up-and-coming designer recently launched a brand named “Efluvi,” which offers magnifying glasses in different forms, including necklaces, handkerchiefs, and even paperweights. She is one of the artists-in-residence at Seoul Art Space Sindang, an artist residency program funded by the government at

The Korean Film Archive has rediscovered the original reel of a popular film from the 1960s based on a real-life diary kept by a child from an impoverished household. The film, titled “Sorrow Even Up in Heaven,” enjoyed enormous popularity when it was released in theaters in 1965, drawing 285,000 viewers in Seoul alone. It is the highest-grossing black-and-white Korean film of all time, according to KOFA.Despite its box-office success, the film went missing along with many others produced before

In Bong Joon-ho’s 2006 film “The Host,” its gigantic, amphibious monster ― which emerges after an American military pathologist dumps bottles of formaldehyde into Seoul’s Han River ― does not move forward. The ferocious creature stays by the river, as if it is trapped, even after kidnapping a teenage girl. Scholar and filmmaker Kim So-young thinks director Bong’s monster is a symbol of South Korea’s geographically isolated condition ― the country is practically an island as its division with Nor

“How you doin’, baby?” Marlon Wayans said, leaning down to kiss a doll on the lips.The toy, a prop from Wayans’ latest movie, “A Haunted House 2,” was propped up in a chair across the table from the actor at a stuffy Beverly Hills restaurant. The doll, named Abigail, was meant to resemble a creepy figurine from 2013’s “The Conjuring”: Both shared dead green eyes, sooty peasant dress and pigtail braids.Wayans, 41, has long been known for his outrageous comic taste. He dressed as a Caucasian femal

10 Minutes (Korea)Opening April 24Drama. Directed by Lee Yong-seung.Ho-chan (Baek Jong-hwan) takes an internship position at a state-run agency, while dreaming of becoming a TV producer one day. He works hard as an intern, just as much as full-time workers, volunteering to work overtime and even giving up his weekends to attend his senior colleague’s social gatherings. He gets conflicted when he is asked to work as a stable full-time worker, as he doesn’t know if the job offer is worth giving up

Three Korean films have been invited to this year’s Cannes International Film Festival, according to the movies’ local promoters.Actress Bae Doo-na’s latest drama film “A Girl at My Door” will be screened in the festival’s Un Certain Regard section, along with Ryan Gosling’s “Lost River” and Wang Chao’s “Fantasia,” and 16 others, while director Chang’s “The Target” has been included in the Midnight Screenings section. Chung-Ang University student Kwon Hyun-ju’s short “Breath” will be screened in

Peter Matthiessen, who died on April 5 at age 86 of complications from leukemia, was complex, even contradictory, in the most compelling sense. Born into privilege, he attended Hotchkiss boarding school and Yale and founded the Paris Review in 1953 with George Plimpton and Harold L. Humes. Yet he later became a Zen monk and in his own fashion was something of an ascetic.He was perhaps best known as a writer of nonfiction, particularly “The Snow Leopard,” the 1978 account of his trip to the Himal

Everything to LoseBy Andrew Gross (Morrow)Who hasn’t thought that a bag of money could solve a lot of problems? But it’s also prudent to remember that money can be the root of evil, as the adage goes.Hilary Blum knows that money can’t really buy happiness but it could buy her some peace of mind. She’s drowning in debt, taking care of her 7-year-old autistic son, Brandon, who is finally thriving at his progressive, but pricey, private school. She doesn’t receive any help from her ex-husband, who

Doing HarmBy Kelly Parsons (St. Martin’s Press)Kelly Parsons’ highly entertaining debut delves deep into the ethics and competitiveness of the medical profession while exploring why doctors choose their careers. “Doing Harm” starts strong and never loses its momentum throughout the energetic plot infused with an intriguing look at modern medicine without being overwhelmed by the intricacies of the profession.“Doing Harm” also will scare anyone who has to go to the hospital.Steve Mitchell, the ch

Kathy Kulig was out of town for a business trip when she texted her husband, Joe.“Don’t be worried,” she wrote. “I learned to use a flogger tonight and I have a few bruises.”“Why should I be worried?” he replied.Attending a conference on bondage and sadomasochism is just business as usual for Kathy, whose latest erotic romance is “Summer Sins” (Ellora’s Cave).Her second career ― she has a day job in a medical laboratory ― has created a few relationship challenges, the Kuligs say, but not because

Young professional Jeong So-hee was surprised when a coworker complained about “people who speak English when they are fluent in Korean.” The 26-year-old works at a company where she and her colleagues deal with foreign clients almost on a daily basis. Every employee has considerable knowledge of the English language, although not everyone has studied overseas. “I think it’s rude to speak to your coworkers in Korean when you have a foreign client sitting in front of you, who can’t understand Kor

It took Crown Prince Sado (1735-1762) eight days to die of starvation after his father King Yeongjo ordered him to be confined in a cramped wooden rice chest. Sado’s son, who later became King Jeongjo, was only 10 when his father was killed by his grandfather. Exactly 33 years after Sado’s death, Jeongjo threw a grandiose festival in 1795, which lasted for eight days ― the same number of days his father spent alone locked in the wooden box.KBS Media’s latest 3-D documentary, “Uigwe, the 8-Day Fe

Theater“Ophelia”: Local musical “Ophelia,” an interpretation of Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” is being staged in Seoul in May. Ophelia is a fictional character who appears in “Hamlet.” She’s a young noblewoman whose father is killed by her love interest, Hamlet, and eventually goes mad. The upcoming musical is centered around Ophelia, rather than Hamlet ― the protagonist in the original Shakespeare play. Composer Choi Woo-jeong, screenwriter and former Culture Minister Kim Myung-gon, and contemporary

“Draft Day” is a “ticking clock” thriller built around the NFL draft, a movie that counts down to the fateful decision that one embattled general manager (Kevin Costner) makes with his team’s first round pick.It’s a reasonably interesting ― to NFL fans, anyway ― peek behind the curtains at the wheeling, dealing and over-thinking that goes on as teams and managers and coaches try to avoid looking as if they don’t know what they’re doing. They’re nagged into making hasty or ill-advised decisions b