#146 – Sopyonje, (서편제), 1993, Im Kwon-taek
Dong-ho, a pansori performer, travels the country in search of Song-hwa, a fellow orphan who also studied under the same strict master.
Tag: South Korea
#148: Secret Sunshine
#148 – Secret Sunshine, (밀양), 2007, Lee Chang-dong
Sin-ae moves with her son Jun to Miryang, the town where her dead husband was born. As she tries to come to herself and set out on new foundations, another tragic event overturns her life.
#151: Joint Security Area
#151 – Joint Security Area, (공동경비구역 JSA), 2000, Park Chan-wook
In the DMZ separating North and South Korea, two North Korean soldiers have been killed, supposedly by one South Korean soldier. But the 11 bullets found in the bodies, together with the 5 remaining bullets in the assassin’s magazine clip, amount to 16 bullets for a gun that should normally hold 15 bullets. The investigating Swiss/Swedish team from the neutral countries overseeing the DMZ suspects that another, unknown party was involved – all of which points to some sort of cover up. The truth is much simpler and much more tragic.
JUMBO CACTUAR APPROVED FILM
#152: The Power of Kangwon Province
#152 – The Power of Kangwon Province, (강원도의 힘), 1998, Hong Sang-soo
Recently separated lovers have a series of close encounters at a popular mountain retreat.
#154: Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance
#154 – Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, (복수는 나의 것), 2002, Park Chan-wook
This is the story of Ryu, a deaf man, and his sister, who requires a kidney transplant. Ryu’s boss, Park, has just laid him off, and in order to afford the transplant, Ryu and his girlfriend develop a plan to kidnap Park’s daughter. Things go horribly wrong, and the situation spirals rapidly into a cycle of violence and revenge.
JUMBO CACTUAR APPROVED FILM
#202: The Host
#202 – The Host, (괴물), 2006, Bong Joon-ho
Gang-du is a dim-witted man working at his father’s tiny snack bar near the Han River. Following the dumping of gallons of toxic waste in the river, a giant mutated squid-like appears and begins attacking the populace. Gang-du’s daughter Hyun-seo is snatched up by the creature and he and his family are taken into custody by the military, who fear a virus spread by the creature. In detention, Gang-du receives a phone call from Hyun-seo, who is not dead, merely trapped in a sewer. With his family to assist him, he sets off to find Hyun-seo.
JUMBO CACTUAR APPROVED FILM
#204: The Handmaiden
#204 – The Handmaiden, (아가씨), 2016, Park Chan-wook
1930s Korea, in the period of Japanese occupation, a young woman is hired as a handmaiden to a Japanese heiress who lives a secluded life on a large countryside estate with her domineering uncle. But, the maid has a secret: she is a pickpocket recruited by a swindler posing as a Japanese count to help him seduce the heiress to elope with him, rob her of her fortune, and lock her up in a madhouse. The plan seems to proceed according to plan until the women discover some unexpected emotions.
JUMBO CACTUAR APPROVED FILM
#372: Save the Green Planet!
#372 – Save the Green Planet!, (지구를 지켜라!), 2003, Jang Joon-hwan
A traumatized young man abducts Korean leaders, believing they’re toxic reptilian aliens – a fifth column launching a takeover of beloved Earth. Stumped law enforcement geniuses half-seriously hire a disgraced, disheveled private detective with a long-ago history of super-crime solving. The alienated South Korean youngster Lee Byeong-gu builds an isolated basement command post/torture chamber/film studio to force the awful truth out of the slimy, uncooperative politicians and businesspeople, then alert the public. Byeong-gu is helped by his devoted girlfriend, who buys his theories, but wonders if his horrible childhood has colored his thinking.
#389: Mandala
#389 – Mandala, (만다라), 1981, Im Kwon-taek
The lives and interactions of two Buddhist monks living in South Korea.
#423: Memories of Murder
#423 – Memories of Murder, (살인의 추억), 2003, Bong Joon-ho
1986 Gyunggi Province. The body of a young woman is found brutally raped and murdered. Two months later, a series of rapes and murders commences under similar circumstances. And in a country that had never known such crimes, the dark whispers about a serial murderer grow louder. A special task force is set up in the area, with two local detectives Park Doo-Man and Jo Young-Goo joined by a detective from Seoul who requested to be assigned to the case.
JUMBO CACTUAR APPROVED FILM
Jumbo Cactuar Film Index 