But there's also Korean actors who are challenging themselves to learn new languages, or at least enough to be able to handle their roles. The same Soo Ae added Russian to North Korean Dialect for 'Wedding Campaign', and Jang Dong-Gun will speak Mandarin in Chen Kaige's 無極 (The Promise). They're not alone: Jang Jin-Young and Kim Ju-Hyeok will speak Japanese in the upcoming 청연 (Blue Sparrow), while Park Jin-Hee and Bae Jong-Ok tried - albeit with average result, apparently - English in Lee Yoon-Gi's 러브토크 (Love Talk). And of course there's Jeon Do-Yeon speaking Czech in 프라하의 연인 (Lovers in Prague).

But is this a mere fad, just like the re-emergence of Cinderella Dramas? It doesn't seem like it. The two top films of the year - 웰컴 투 동막골 (Welcome To Dongmakgol) and 가문의 위기 (Marrying The Mafia 2) - are Saturi-heavy, whereas the current Top rated Drama of the year 내 이름은 김삼순 (My Name is Kim Sam-Soon) featured many scenes in English (and a little - badly spoken - French too!). If anything, it shows how the popularity of the Korean Wave is changing Koreans' taste as well: some opt to 'Internationalize' themselves watching Dramas with western leads, some go back to their roots and ask 'Saturi' and more entertainment targeting local tastes.

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The nominations for the 4th annual Korean Film Awards have been announced. As expected, the 'Dongmakgol syndrome' swept through these awards as well, but the great technical achievement pushed up 'Blood Rain' as well. The awards will be presented on December at the Sejong Cultural Center, and shown on MBC.

최우수작품상 (Best Picture)
말아톤 (Marathon)
너는 내 운명 (You Are My Sunshine)
연애의 목적 (Rules of Dating)
웰컴투 동막골 (Welcome To Dongmakgol)

감독상 (Best Director)
Kim Dae-Seung, 혈의 누 (Blood Rain)
Ryu Seung-Wan, 주먹이 운다 (Crying Fist)
Im Sang-Soo, 그때 그 사람들 (The President's Last Bang)
Park Jin-Pyo, 너는 내 운명 (You Are My Sunshine)
Park Gwang-Hyun, 웰컴투 동막골 (Welcome To Dongmakgol)

남우주연상 (Best Leading Actor)
Hwang Jung-Min, 너는 내 운명 (You Are My Sunshine)
Jo Seung-Woo, 말아톤 (Marathon)
Park Hae-Il, 연애의 목적 (Rules of Dating)
Jung Jae-Young, 웰컴투 동막골 (Welcome To Dongmakgol)
Ryu Seung-Beom, 주먹이 운다 (Crying Fist)

여우주연상 (Best Leading Actress)
Kim Mi-Sook, 말아톤 (Marathon)
Jeon Do-Yeon, 너는 내 운명 (You Are My Sunshine)
Kim Hye-Soo, 분홍신 (The Red Shoes)
Kang Hye-Jung, 연애의 목적 (Rules of Dating)
Lee Young-Ae, 친절한 금자씨 (Sympathy For Lady Vengeance)

남우조연상 (Best Supporting Actor)
Hwang Jung-Min, 달콤한 인생 (A Bittersweet Life)
Kim Young-Cheol, 달콤한 인생 (A Bittersweet Life)
Lee Gi-Young, 말아톤 (Marathon)
Im Ha-Ryong, 웰컴투 동막골 (Welcome To Dongmakgol)
Park Yong-Woo, 혈의 누 (Blood Rain)

여우조연상 (Best Supporting Actress)

Na Moon-Hee, 너는 내 운명 (You Are My Sunshine)
Kim Soo-Mi, 마파도 (Mapado)
Kang Hye-Jung, 웰컴투 동막골 (Welcome To Dongmakgol)
Na Moon-Hee, 주먹이 운다 (Crying Fist)
Choi Ji-Na, 혈의 누 (Blood Rain)

신인남우상 (Best New Actor)
Jang Sun-Woo, 귀여워 (So Cute)
Park Geon-Hyung, 댄서의 순정 (Innocent Steps)
Yoon Gye-Sang, 발레교습소 (Flying Boys)
Lee Tae-Sung, 사랑니 (Blossom Again)
Ryu Deok-Hwan, 웰컴투 동막골 (Welcome To Dongmakgol)

신인여우상 (Best New Actress)
Seo Young-Hee, 마파도 (Mapado)
Jung Yoo-Mi, 사랑니 (Blossom Again)
Kim Ji-Soo, 여자, 정혜 (This Charming Girl)
Jo Yi-Jin, 태풍 태양 (The Aggressives)
Yoon Se-Ah, 혈의 누 (Blood Rain)

신인감독상 (Best New Director)
Im Pil-Sung, 남극일기 (Antarctic Journal)
Jung Yoon-Cheol, 말아톤 (Marathon)
Lee Yoon-Gi, 여자, 정혜 (This Charming Girl)
Han Jae-Rim, 연애의 목적 (Rules of Dating)
Park Gwang-Hyun, 웰컴투 동막골 (Welcome To Dongmakgol)

각본상 (Best Original Screenplay)
말아톤 (Marathon) - Jung Yoon-Cheol, Yoon Jin-Ho, Song Ye-Jin
연애의 목적 (Rules of Dating) - Go Yoon-Hee, Han Jae-Rim
웰컴투 동막골 (Welcome To Dongmakgol) - Jang Jin, Park Gwang-Hyun, Kim Joong
주먹이 운다 (Crying Fist) - Ryu Seung-Wan, Jeon Cheol-Hong
혈의 누 (Blood Rain) - Lee Won-Jae

미술상 (Best Art Direction)
Ryu Sung-Hee, 달콤한 인생 (A Bittersweet Life)
Im Hyung-Tae and Jang Bak-Ha, 분홍신 (The Red Shoes)
Jo Hwa-Sung, 친절한 금자씨 (Sympathy For Lady Vengeance)
Min Eon-Wook, 혈의 누 (Blood Rain)
Lee Hyung-Joo and Jo Geun-Hyun, 형사 (Duelist)

촬영상 (Best Cinematography)

Kim Ji-Yong, 달콤한 인생 (A Bittersweet Life)
Choi Sang-Ho, 웰컴 투 동막골 (Welcome To Dongmakgol)
Jung Jung-Hoon, 친절한 금자씨 (Sympathy For Lady Vengeance)
Choi Young-Hwan, 혈의 누 (Blood Rain)
Hwang Gi-Seok, 형사 (Duelist)

조명상 (Best Lighting)
Shin Sang-Ryeol, 달콤한 인생 (A Bittersweet Life)
Lee Man-Gyu, 웰컴투 동막골 (Welcome To Dongmakgol)
Park Hyun-Won, 친절한 금자씨 (Sympathy For Lady Vengeance)
Kim Sung-Gwan, 혈의 누 (Blood Rain)
Shin Kyung-Man, 형사 (Duelist)

편집상 (Best Editing)
Moon In-Dae, 내 생애 가장 아름다운 일주일 (All For Love)
Choi Min-Young, 웰컴투 동막골 (Welcome To Dongmakgol)
Nam Na-Young, 주먹이 운다 (Crying Fist)
Kim Sang-Beom and Kim Jae-Beom, 친절한 금자씨 (Sympathy For Lady Vengeance)
Shin Min-Kyung, 태풍태양 (The Aggressives)

시각효과상 (Best Visual Effects)
EON, CG for 남극일기 (Antarctic Journal)
Jung Doo-Hong, Action for 달콤한 인생 (A Bittersweet Life)
Jo Yi-Seok, CG for 웰컴투 동막골 (Welcome To Dongmakgol)
Shin Jae-Ho, make-up for 혈의 누 (Blood Rain)
Mopack, CG for 형사 (Duelist)

음향상 (Best Sound Effects)
Choi Tae-Young and Lee Seung-Yeob, 가발 (The Wig)
Choi Tae-Young, 남극일기 (Antarctic Journal)
Kim Seok-Won and Kim Chang-Seob, 여고괴담4 (Voice)
Kim Seok Won and Kim Chang-Seob, 혈의 누 (Blood Rain)
Park Joon-Ho, 형사 (Duelist)

음악상 (Best Music)
Dalparan and Jang Young-Gyu, 달콤한 인생 (A Bittersweet Life)
Lee Byung-Woo, 연애의 목적 (Rules of Dating)
Hisaishi Jo, 웰컴투 동막골 (Welcome To Dongmakgol)
Jo Young-Wook, 친절한 금자씨 (Sympathy For Lady Vengeance)
Jo Young-Wook, 혈의 누 (Blood Rain)

FINAL COUNT
13 - Welcome To Dongmakgol
11 - Blood Rain
7 - A Bittersweet Life
6 - Marathon, Rules of Dating, Sympathy For Lady Vengeance
5 - You Are My Sunshine, Crying Fist, Duelist
3 - Antarctic Journal
2 - The Red Shoes, Mapado, Blossom Again, This Charming Girl, The Aggressives

OTHER MOVIE NEWS

Taking a look at films under pre-production, writing and casting, there seems to be a rebirth of the 무협 (Muhyeop, Korean equivalent of Wuxia) genre in the country right now. Several projects are either about to enter principal photography or being planned. One of them just started it shoot, last October 25th in Beijing. 중천 (Zenith) stars Jung Woo-Sung and Kim Tae-Hee - making her film debut after a few big hits on TV - and will shoot there until next February, for an Autumn 2006 release.

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Another film starting its shoot is 사생결단 (死生決斷, Dead or Alive), the new action noir from Choi Ho, director of 우아유 (Who Are You). The film began filming in Busan last October 23, and stars On Ju-Hwan, Hwang Jung-Min and Ryu Seung-Beom - working together in a film after 4 years.

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Not content with making 도마 안중근 (Ahn Joong-Geun), entertainer turned producer Seo Se-Won is at it again, announcing his next project. In an interview with Star News in Samsung-Dong (where the Seo Se-Won Media Group offices are located), Seo revealed they're preparing a film about Kim Gu, one of the most respected nationalists in Korea's history. Although their previous film - an obnoxious mess wasting Yoo Oh-Seong's talents, and enough nationalistic fervour to make Leni Riefenstahl look like Michael Moore's older sister - didn't reach too many people, perhaps a sign of its quality, Seo vowed to continue to make films portraying some of the country's national heroes, and let the masses know about their feats. Although he didn't reveal any other info about the film - including any title - looking at his previous production it's not that hard to expect another potboiler wearing 'Korean pride' on its sleeves. Seo Se-Won was the genius who brought us 긴급조치 19호 (Emergency Act 19). Yes, that's the flick with all those singers, Gong Hyo-Jin and very little else...

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From eloquent shrink in 내 생애 가장 아름다운 일주일 (All For Love) to cruel serial killer in 오로라 공주 (Princess Aurora), Eom Jung-Hwa showed how much range she possesses as an actress, but doesn't seem to be content with those films. Her next project will show her in a new light once again. The film, entitled 호로비츠를 위하여 (Hurrah For Horowitz), will feature the sexy star as a lecturer in a Piano 학원 (Hakwon, Academy) in the outskirts of Seoul, called Kim Ji-Soo. Ji-Soo is a very selfish person, who blames everything on outside influences, and keeps dreaming of becoming a famous pianist (just like Vladimir Horowitz, the legendary pianist of the title). She's lost all passion for teaching, but will find it again when she meets an extremely talented student who enrolls in the academy. Eom's partners in crime will be debutant Shin Ui-Jae and Park Yong-Woo, who recently was praised for his acting in Kim Dae-Seung's 혈의 누 (Blood Rain). The film marks the debut of Kwon Hyung-Jin, who directed the Internet film MOB 2025, starring Lee Jung-Jae and Yoo Ji-Tae. The film will start shooting on November 1, to release next Spring.

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Better known as Sai Yoichi - his Japanese name - Zainichi director Choi Yang-Il will make his first film entirely in Korea. The director of クイ-ル (Quills) and 血と骨 (Blood & Bones) will direct 더블 캐스팅 (Double Casting), based on a manhwa by Shin Young-Woo. The 'hardboiled action' film will start shooting next March.

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Although we will cover it in depth in one of our next '2006 Korean Cinema Previews', one of the most potentially interesting films of 2006 has to be 가족의 탄생 (The Birth of a Family). The film stars ultra-veteran Go Doo-Shim, and Eom Jung-Hwa's brother, the up and coming Eom Tae-Woong - who received a ton of attention from producers thanks to his masterful performance in the TV Drama 부활 (Rebirth). No, not as mother and son, but as lovers! Go, one of the best mother figures in Korean TV Drama history will make a surprising transformation in the film, another 'omnibus melodrama' showing different angles of the same family. What's even more interesting is that the director of said film will be Kim Tae-Yong, co-director of 여고괴담 두 번째 이야기 (Memento Mori), making his return to the directing chair after a long time. The film also has a superb supporting cast, with Moon So-Ri, Bong Tae-Gyu and Gong Hyo-Jin. It's kind of ironic that Min Gyu-Dong and Kim Tae-Yong, who at the time of 'Memento Mori' were considered like brothers or even lovers, spent years apart preparing their first 'solo' film, and ended up with works that have a similar structure.

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He's known as a very funny actor, with quick wits and peculiar ad-libs, but Kim Hae-Gon is more than that. The man who played the weapon dealer in 달콤한 인생 (A Bittersweet Life) actually wrote a couple of scripts - one of them being 파이란 (Failan) - and will now make his debut as a director, in 보고싶은 얼굴 (The Face I Miss). The leading couple of the film will be Kim Seung-Woo and Jang Jin-Young, whose latest drama 청연 (Blue Sparrow) will open next December 15. Remember Kang-Jae, played by Choi Min-Shik, from 'Failan'? The character played by Kim Seung-Woo in this film will be quite similar, although Jang Jin-Young's role will be much - MUCH - less innocent than Cecilia Cheung's Failan. The two Kim's (Hae-Gon and Seung-Woo) are longtime friends, first meeting together in Im Kwon-Taek's 1990 film 장군의 아들 (The General's Son). The film had already its 고사 (Sacrificial Ceremony, you know when they put money inside the pig's head on many DVD extra features? That's the one. It always precedes the first day of shooting), and will release in the first half of 2006.

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Ji Hyun-Woo, who became quite popular thanks to his role in the Sitcom 올드미스 다이어리 (Old Miss Diary) [as JiPD], will make his film debut in Kwak Ji-Gyun's 사랑하다 (I Love You). The film, which will start shooting next month and plans to release next Summer, is technically Ji's second, since he shot a 7 seconds cameo for Takahata Hideta's ホテル ビ-ナス (Hotel Venus). This marks a return to the big screen for director Kwak, responsible for melodramas like 겨울 나그네 (The Winter Wanderer) and 깊은 슬픔 (Deep Blue). His last film was 2000's 청춘 (Plum Blossom).

TV DRAMA NEWS

Talented up and comer Lee Da-Hae has been cast as a lead in the upcoming SBS Wednesday/Thursday Drama 마이 걸 (My Girl), written by Hong Jung-Eun and Hong Mi-Ran, and produced by Jeon Gi-Sang. The 16 Episodes show, starting after the completion of 사랑은 기적이 필요해 (Love Needs a Miracle), stars Lee as a beautiful but coy conman who tries to get herself a nice, comfortable wedding with the son of a Chaebol president. Yes, you probably guessed, it's a kind of 그녀를 믿지 마세요 (Too Beautiful To Lie) for TV consumption. The romantic comedy will start shooting next week.

TV DRAMA WRAPUP

The biggest story of the week was the introduction to the press of Jung Ji-Hoon's (Singer Rain's real name) latest TV Drama, 이 죽일 놈의 사랑 (A Love To Kill). Jung, who is a hugely popular R&B singer and acted in a couple of successful TV Dramas so far, will play a K-1 fighter who tries to get revenge on the woman - played by Shin Min-Ah - who betrayed his brother. Obviously, they fall for each other!

Of course anything starring the bulky singer-turned-actor would attract attention, but - in another sign that Trendy Drama are starting to follow the trend nowadays, rather than setting new ones up - the fact he's playing a K-1 Fighter says a lot about the kind of marketing techniques that go behind making Trendy Dramas like this popular. Who's the hottest sportsman in the country right now - other than the usual suspects Park Ji-Sung, Lee Young-Pyo, and female golfers? 'Techno Goliath' Choi Hong-Man, the gigantic former Ssirum champion who left the traditional sport to pursue a career in the popular Martial Arts event. He beat sumo legend Akebono in the most boring fight I've ever seen, and went to bigger success in the competition, becoming a sort of national hero.

But pitfalls of the genre aside, the show does sound interesting, for a change. Of course Rain doesn't have much of an acting talent (I'd say he doesn't have much singing talent either, but mainstream K-Pop doesn't require much in the way of singing skills. You just need to be bulky, sexy, and dance well), but he does have quite the amount of screen presence. And if directed REALLY well, he can deliver in certain roles, like the conman in 상구야, 학교가자! (Sang-Doo, Let's Go To School). Plus the idea of seeing the guy getting beat up left and right by fighters twice his size sounds kind of entertaining.

But seriously, there's some decent talent in front and behind the camera. For starters, the cast. Shin Min-Ah has improved by leaps and bounds in the last 3 years, and she's beginning to show a little acting range as well. Of course she was probably picked for her youthful beauty, but the recent success - no huge hits, but no flops either - of her films are moving her up the ladder in Chungmuro and Yeouido (the TV Drama equivalent of Chungmuro, the district in Seoul which hosts the HQ of two of the major three TV stations). Then there's Lee Gi-Woo, the incredibly tall newcomer who might not have much range, but has good screen presence, as he showed in Hong Sang-Soo's 극장전 (Tale of Cinema). The other two main leads are just pretty faces whose potential (or lack thereof) is all to be discovered. But veterans like Park In-Hwan and capable supporting leads like Kang Rae-Yeon and Kim Sa-Rang make things a little better.

Plus, writer Lee Kyung-Hee is one of the better (or should I say 'lesser evil') writers in the Trendy Drama sphere. Of course she's never written any classic, but has made good works with good frequency, like one episode of the omnibus 떨리는 가슴 (Six Love Stories, MBC 2005), last year's super hit 미안하다, 사랑한다 (I'm Sorry, I Love You) and PD Park Sung-Soo's 나는 달린다 (Running After a Dream). She has interesting ideas not always conforming to Trendy Drama tropes, and tends to keep the tearjerking shenanigans in check. The PD is more of a question mark, but I trust Kim Gyu-Tae could go back to his great work in 노란 손수건 (Yellow Handkerchief, KBS 2003), quickly forgetting that mess he partaked in called 러브홀릭 (Loveholic, KBS 2005). 'A Love To Kill' debuts on KBS next November 7.

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The 'Bad Girls' are back! No, I'm not talking about those black and white characters who populate the worst TV Dramas out there, with actresses who think all a bad girl needs to do to be convincing is frown a little and create a collection of disturbing and enraged stares. No, I'm talking real villains, the ones who are so real you feel like throwing a brick at the TV. Since this is mostly something confined to Trendy Dramas, very few of the best TV Dramas ever feature any character that's particularly 'evil' for reasons other than their living conditions.

With that in mind, the prototype of the 'perfect' bad girl, the one you dislike but also understand, the one who sometimes ends up stealing the show from the 'good' heroine, has always been Kim So-Yeon's performance in 이브의 모든 것 (All About Eve). Yes, the Drama might be nothing special, but her portrayal there is of such quality that she completely steals the show from leading 'Princess' Chae Rim. I remember some netizens back then (2000) were threatening to boycott every single one of the writer's future dramas if she didn't give Kim's character some kind of redemption (which certainly came, although in ways that still highlighted how goody two shoes Chae Rim's character was).

Well, finally, characters similar to that one are on the rise in a lot of today's Korean TV Dramas. Although Yoon Jung-Hee's role in 하늘이시여 (Dear Heaven) is strong, it's Choi Ji-Na - the shaman in 혈의 누 (Blood Rain) - who takes the cake. Her role in 장밋빛 인생 (Life in Pink) is starting to become one of the reasons to tune in, next to Choi Jin-Shil's great leading performance. Here you have a career woman, seemingly adored by her rich husband, supposedly oblivious to his love affair with another woman, living like a Princess thanks to all that money. But she's actually smarter than she looks: she knows already her husband is cheating on her, and plans revenge by catching him red handed, and leaving him to rot in prison for a few hours, forcing him to kneel down and beg for mercy later. She indirectly attacks the woman who caused the affair, and gets her way until... well, until next week's episodes.

But that's not all. Choi's character also has some kind of humanity, a kind of inner pain you can understand. Although you might not completely agree with what she does, her reactions and the way she deals with things is not entirely uncalled for. I confess I felt more sympathy for her than the role played by Lee Tae-Ran, who acts all mighty and 'empowered career woman' then falls in the same traps she criticizes her sister (Choi Jin-Shil) for. Although the best Dramas are always those where the line between 'good' and 'bad' is blurred - because such is reality - the return of 'bad girl' characters like this is just a welcome event.

TV DRAMA RATINGS
From 10/23~10/29

01. 43.2% 장밋빛 인생 (Life in Pink) - Wed/Thu Drama - KBS2
02. 30.7% 슬픔이여 안녕 (Goodbye To Sadness) - Weekend Drama - KBS2
03. 29.2% 프라하의 연인 (Lovers in Prague) - Special Project - SBS
04. 26.2% 별난여자 별난남자 (Weird Man, Weird Woman) - Daily Drama - KBS1
05. 19.3% 하늘이시여 (Dear Heaven) - Weekend Drama - SBS
06. 16.9% 서동요 (The Ballad of Seo Dong) - Historical Drama - SBS
07. 15.4% 다이아몬드의 눈물 (Tears of Diamond) - Friday Drama - SBS
08. 14.9% 고향역 (Hometown Station) - TV Novel - KBS1
09. 14.9% 들꽃 (Wild Flower) - Daily Morning Drama - SBS
10. 13.9% 웨딩 (Wedding) - Miniseries - KBS2

Sources

Star News - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

Yahoo Korea - 1
Film2.0 - 1, 2, 3
nKino - 1