The depiction of brutal female abuse in Korean films has become a hotly debated topic. Noir-thriller “V.I.P.,” which opened in theaters last week, has come under heavy fire for its excessively lengthy and detailed depiction of the sexual abuse and murder of a female character. In one long take, the camera dwells on several male characters, including Kim Kwang-il, a ruthless serial killer from North Korea played by Lee Jong-seok, caressing, torturing and choking a naked female victim lying on a t

Actor Park Si-hoo is returning to the small screen with the new drama “My Golden Life” for the first time since a scandal four years ago. He plays Choi Do-kyung, who is from an affluent family and is studying how to run a business in his family’s company. The show marks Park’s return to the Korean drama scene after he was embroiled in a sex scandal in 2013.  Actor Park Si-hoo speaks at a press conference for KBS’ new drama series “My Golden Life” in Yeongdeungpo, Seoul, Tuesday (Herald DB)Park w

How many more stories of gruesome serial killings and smiling psychopathic murderers are left to tell in Korean cinema? “Memoir of a Murderer,” as is evident from the title, is yet another film that presents a killer as its lead. Unfortunately, it neither recounts a probing memoir nor delivers the terror of murder. 　It opens with an emaciated elderly man trudging along an empty railroad track. The air around him is as misty as his foggy memory -- he cannot remember where he is or what he is doin

Actress Ha Ji-won is set to return to the small screen with the new MBC medical drama series “Hospital Ship.” 　Ha previously played lead roles in hit K-dramas such as the 2011 “Secret Garden.” She made her last drama appearance in “The Time We Were Not in Love,” which aired in 2015.　“The doctors on this show personally seek out patients who do not have medical benefits. It’s a different premise from many other medical dramas,” Ha said at a press conference for the show Monday in Seoul. 　The sett

Jang Dong-gun and Hyun Bin will star in an action blockbuster described as a Joseon-era zombie flick. 　The film, tentatively titled “Outbreak,” tells the story of vicious night creatures that threaten to overtake a Joseon royal palace.　Hyun will play Lee Chung, a character who struggles to protect the palace from the attack. 　The film is directed by Kim Sung-hoon, who worked with Hyun for last year’s action flick “Confidential Assignment.” Kim debuted in 2012 with the drama film “My Little Hero.

Rapper Tablo appeared on the live music program “Yoo Hee-yeol’s Sketchbook” Saturday, announcing the upcoming return of his rap trio Epik High. 　“We’ve continued to make music. Now, I think we’ve completed an album that we can let you hear,” Tablo said on the KBS show. 　“After three years, it will be an album that will make you feel ‘autumn’ for certain.” 　 Rapper Tablo appears on “Yoo Hee-yeol’s Sketchbook” (KBS)Epik High’s new album will drop in October. 　YG Entertainment announced Friday that

Yeolmu is young summer radish greens. It’s a variety of white radishes with tender, long greens, and a thin, small root. It’s not the top leafy part of mature white radishes or chonggak mu (young radish), which is much tougher. 　Very commonly, young napa cabbage, called putbaechu or eolgari, is also added to yeolmu kimchi, giving it a different texture and flavor. I like the ratio of radish greens to young cabbage to be 2:1. You can use only the radish greens without any young cabbages. 　 Yeolmu

V.I.P.(Korea)Opened Aug. 23Crime, drama. Directed by Park Hoon-jungSouth Korean intelligence agent Park Jae-hyuk (Jang Dong-gun) is tasked with overseeing North Korean criminal Kim Kwang-il (Lee Jong-suk), a psychopathic serial killer who has tortured and murdered dozens of women. Police investigator Chae I-do (Kim Myung-min) seeks to capture Kim and bring him to justice. Chae is blocked, however, by an insurmountable wall of international powers who seek to protect and retrieve information from

Ha Ji-won will be attending the 74th Venice International Film Festival, taking place from Aug. 30-Sept. 9 this year.Ha stars in “Manhunt,” an upcoming film directed by Chinese-born Hong Kong film director John Woo. The film is a joint project by Chinese, Hong Kong, Taiwanese and Japanese crew members. It stars Chinese actor Zhang Hanyu and Japanese actor Fukuyama Masaharu.Ha plays an enchanting killer and will be showing off an action-ridden performance.  Ha Ji-won in ”Manhunt“ (Asia Media Grou

To say the upcoming historical flick “The Fortress” is star-studded would be an understatement. The king of Joseon is played by Park Hae-il. His two loyal advisers are played by Korean cinema heavyweights Lee Byung-hun and Kim Yoon-seok. Also starring are Go Soo and Park Hee-soon. The film’s director is Hwang Dong-hyuk, whose 2013 comedy “Miss Granny” and 2011 drama “Silenced” were well-received. The film is based on a novel by writer Kim Hoon, one of Korea’s most acclaimed novelists. 　“If these

Iconic French director Luc Besson’s recent film “Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets” showcases his own brand of space adventure, but the epic sci-fi flick ultimately aims to deliver a message of diversity and humanity, the director says.“I’m sorry to be so naive and not cynical, but I think if we put money first and humans second, we are all going to go to war and die,” said the acclaimed filmmaker, best known here for “Leon: The Professional” (1994), “The Fifth Element” (1997) and “Tax

Actor Lee Jong-suk has very pale skin. It’s so milky white that for his television drama roles, his makeup artist uses a darker foundation to give him more color, Lee says.　But in the new thriller “V.I.P,” which opens in local theaters Wednesday, director Park Hoon-jung decided that Lee’s pearly complexion would suit his role as the chilling North Korean serial killer Kim Kwang-il. “I was filming a Chinese drama when I came across the script for ‘V.I.P.’ I wanted the role so badly that I sought

When Jang Dong-gun made his acting debut in 1992 on “Our Paradise,” a TV drama about campus romance, he caused a stir in the Korean entertainment industry. Every country has an iconic actor who represents the epitome of attractiveness in a certain period. In modern Korea, it seemed that position would be filled by Jang, whose chiseled looks have since become synonymous with handsomeness. Jang Dong-gun poses for a photo before an interview in Palpan-dong, Seoul, on Aug. 17. (Hohoho Beach)After 25

The flagship store of makeup artist Jung Saem-mool’s cosmetics brand is like a sun-soaked garden of colors. Nestled in a corner of the trendy Garosu-gil in southeastern Seoul, the three-story building, opened in June, boasts white walls with multi-colored decorations. It’s like a palette, a playground where customers can fiddle with makeup to their hearts’ content, an employee there explains.　On the store’s second floor, a library space stacked with beauty books and surrounded by plants, sits ar

It started out with cabarets and discotheques in the 1980s, when Korea saw an unprecedented economic boom. Seoul’s nightlife has been growing and thriving ever since, giving birth to a myriad of clubs with different themes.(D.Bridge)Back then, nightclubs were places for people to dance and performers to put on shows. Cabarets were home to the middle-aged, usually featuring a live band and bluesy tunes. Dubbed “colatheques,” some venues would offer upbeat music and a lively social atmosphere with

The Mimic(Korea)Opened Aug. 17Mystery, thriller. Directed by Huh JungHee-yeon (Yeom Jung-ah) has left the city and moved to the mountainside, where she meets a mysterious young girl (Shin Rin-ah) ridden with fear and living in hiding in the forest. Hee-yeon‘s husband (Park Hyuk-kwon) grows suspicious of the stranger, who mimics the voice of their daughter. People in the town begin to disappear one by one following the girl’s appearance. War for the Planet of the Apes(US)Opened Aug. 15Science fic

Director Park Hoon-jung rose to acclaim in Korea for depicting the dark, jaded world of men in his 2013 crime flick “New World.” The film’s production company, called Sanai Pictures (“sanai” literally meaning “men” in Korean) has gone on to produce a number of movies tracing the lives of angst-ridden men in the Korean justice system and criminal underworld. One such film is director Kim Sung-soo’s “The City Of Madness,” a bloodstained feature about a corrupt cop, a corrupt mayor, and a corrupt p

Chinese shows are absent from the eclectic selection of global drama series that have been nominated for this year’s Seoul International Drama Awards.It is the first time that Chinese shows are not being considered for the awards since its inception in 2006.“Although cultural exchange with China has become more difficult, a record number of shows from around the globe have been submitted,” said Kim Hye-song, secretary-general of the awards organization, at a press conference in Seoul Thursday.“W

On Sunday evening show “My Ugly Duckling,” Kim Gun-mo crouches down on his kitchen floor to make kimchi. His mother watches through a screen in a broadcasting studio. Like any parent, she is full of affectionate criticism for her son, chastising the veteran singer as if he were still a young boy. On SBS’ “Single Wife,” another reality program that kicked off this month, comedian Park Myung-soo’s wife Han Soo-min embarks on her first backpacking trip to Thailand. Enjoying an escape from her life

The animation film “The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature,” which was financed by a Korean company, will be hitting local theaters on Oct. 3.The film was co-produced by Canada-based ToonBox Entertainment and Korean production company Redrover. It is currently screening at over 4,000 theaters in North America.The film is also set to screen in South America, the UK and Russia. Directed by Cal Brunker and written by Brunker, Bob Barlen and Scott Bindley, the film centers on the story of a squirrel named S