One thing that many people do not know about is the thriving Korean movie industry. Korea is know around Asia for producing and exporting mass media. Whether it is through music (no matter how much I complain about the stuff it is catchy), television, or movies, Korean mass media is in demand. I have talked several times about the music, ok I'll be honest. I have complained several times about the music here. However, in my defense I complained about Brittney Spears and company back in high school also. Today I'm going to take some time to talk about Korean movies.
Korea has a thriving movie industry. Not only is it thriving, but the production values are not far below those of Hollywood. No, they don't have the money or financing to produce something as technologically stunning as Hollywood did in Avatar. The big budget special effect flick is not something that happens often in Korea. It comes down to simple cash. Hollywood studios have far more of it then Korean studios. Even with this lack of cash, Korean studios are producing movies that rival those being made in the United States. Now granted for every Shawshank Redemption there are numerous Battlefield Earth's, but the following movies are excellent examples of Korean cinema.
The Good, The Bad, The Weird: Sure, the title is a complete rip-off. Yet, this movie sets a high bar for the emerging genre of Asian Westerns. Copyright issues aside, this movie is just fun. It has humor that translates across cultures. There is enough action, shooting, and backstabbing to make Clint Eastwood blush. You don't have to be Korean, speak Korean, or have ever lived in Korea to enjoy this movie.
Thirst: A Korean vampire movie. I was intrigued by this movie after it showed up on a list of good movies that you probably missed. This movie puts a new spin on the traditional vampire story. Gone are the sharp teeth and the sucking of blood from the neck. However, the desire for blood is nowhere near extinguished. In fact, the desire for blood is not because of hunger. I won't say anymore less I give away parts of the movie. The movie is kind of like Twilight without all the emo teen angst. That and if you include some awkward sex and serial killing. All in all the movie was a fun and unique look at the traditional vampire story.
Haeundae: This is one of the movies that violates what I talked about earlier. This movie was a big budget special effects spectacular. These movies don't come out every summer because the Korean film industry cannot afford to produce them. However, I felt it important to note that even though they don't happen often, they do happen.
Tae Guk GI: This movie is honestly one of the best war movies I've ever seen. Had this movie been produced by an American studio, and in English it would be challenging the likes of Saving Private Ryan, Band Of Brothers, The Pacific, Black Hawk Down, etc. It is an entirely engrossing film. It successfully shows how brutal and horrific the Korean war was. Most Americans do not understand the Korean war. All we know about it is what we saw on M.A.S.H. Here are the simple facts about how brutal this war was. South Korea suffered: 137,899 soldiers killed, 450,742 soldier wounded, 373,599 civilians killed, 229,625 civilians wounded, and 387,744 civilians abducted or missing. I want you to stop and think about those numbers, because that was only on the South Korean side. The North Korean and Chinese casualty figures are well over 1,000,000 dead. I highly, highly recommend this movie. You don't have to live in Korea, you don't even have to like history.
No comments:
Post a Comment