Just finished watching Kang Woo-suk’s “Hanbando,” and all I can say is that it was the most atrocious Korean film I’d seen since “A Night on the Water.”
And “A Night on the Water” at least had the lone redeeming quality of Lee Sung Hi getting naked.
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20 Comments
Unlike you, none of the 140 minutes I spent watching the German film “The Lives of Others” were wasted. A highly recommendable, humane introspection of people in an inhumane system, East Germany in 1984. I guess the chances of it opening in Korea are equal to nil.
why do you torture yourself? I learned my lesson after watching “Lost Memories” starring Jand Dong Geun. Did Darcy over at Koreanfilm.org ask you to do some reviews? I guess you might have held false hopes with the pretty impressive casting. Silmido was alright, Ahn Sung Ki, is always ahn sung ki, and Seol gyung gu is pretty good. But the trailer reminded me too much of Choi Hyun seh’s sheizza which is “Nam Bul.” Korean film makers have just really really crappy “McGuffins.” In this the McGuffin is a stupid stamp. In Shiri, it’s a “liquid” bomb. Except for the guy who did Old Boy, Korean film makers don’t know how to make action movies. They just won’t stop with really really poorly made CGI.
The best recent Korean film I’ve seen has to be “King’s Man”. Even this one has some crappy CGI moments though.
Worse than Saving Private Kim aka Taeguki?
Kang Woo-suk SUCKS!
“Hanbando” is a perfect example of the kind of goofy rationalization being used to spread anti-Japanese propaganda in Korea. The story is simply idiotic.
“McGuffin”: hah hah, I never knew that term! You learn something new every day.
Silmido is probably a cut above the other Korean big-budget action flicks. At least the story was focussed.
If “A Night on the Water” features Ms. Lee in the buff, does that count as an “action” picture? (Don’t know anything about the movie.)
I hope you illegally downloaded it and did not pay for it.
Well, there’s “A Night on the Water” bad, and then there’s “Yellow Hair 2″ BAAAAD…..
I’m sure you knw “Hanbando” was a steaming turd before you saw it, so it’s your own damn fault for watching it anyway, El Gran Jefe Marmot.
Shakuhachi—No. Unfortunately, I rented it.
iheartblueballs—Much worse than Saving Private Kim. Actually, I thought Saving Private Kim wasn’t that bad. Flawed, yes, but still watchable. Probably by default the best Korean War film ever made.
virtual wonderer—Well, I kinda expected a stinker—the Korean critics had given us plenty of warning. But still, I liked “Silmido” (also questionable history, but at least it was entertaining to watch), and figured it couldn’t be all that bad. I was wrong. It was actually a lot worse than I expected. It wasn’t even in the same league as “Lost Memories” as a crime against humanity—”Lost Memories,” truth be told, had some fun moments. “Hanbando” was about as much fun as a 2 hour, 27 minute dental procedure.
> Probably by default the best Korean War film ever made.
I prefer some of those 1960s films, like Lee Man-hee’s MARINES NEVER RETURN or 0400-1950. MARINES is available on DVD, too (although it is pretty hard to find these days).
I guess that means Seoul Selection won’t be showing it.
Haisan, what other Korean War movies do you know about that might be on DVD (or even video)? And even earlier (1960s and earlier) Korean movies in general that are out on DVD? I really like early movies and haven’t seen many Korean ones.
Korean movie directors in the “386″ age group are hard-core Uri and pro-Roh, which explains all the anti-US and anti-Japanese movies(garbage) that have been churned out lately.
“Hanbando” as gbevers stated is nothing but anti-Japanese propaganda garbage, the reason it lost the top place to “The Host”, is because it opened at a time when the Dokdo crisis was over and the FTA negotiations were starting. Put it simply, Koreans were more interested in anti-US garbage than anti-Japanese garbage.
I hope the screen quota is brought down real soon, because there is a lot of garbage in the Korean movie industry that needs to be thrown out.
IMO,
silmildo > taegukki > hanbando
while i think the political subtext is ok (free speech), the hanbando plot is just full of improbable logic flaws.
They are looking for a stamp? The symbolism of it seems rather trite. Totally uninspiring.
In any case, I wouldnt’ jump to conclusions about his political views. It’s a work of fiction, after all. For example, I’m acquainted with one of the biggest authors of Korean nationalistic fiction, and I gotta tell you that this movie’s premise is pretty tame when compared to the stuff he writes about Japan and the US. Funny thing is, he’s a pretty mild-mannered guy…and, get this, he’s not in any way xenophobic.
I am not surprised. Films that or use the medium for propaganda never any good. I’m sure the public yawned as well.
This suggests the real reason behind promoting a film quota in Korea is to preserve the stranglehold upon the market enjoyed by such bad Korean movies and directors; directors who are clearly politically motivated.
R. Elgin wrote:
“Films that use the medium for propaganda are never any good.”
Not exactly. I can think of at least two outstanding examples right of the top of my head: “Triumph of the Will” and “The Battleship Potemkin”. Yes, I know both these films are in the service of the Twentieth Centuries two most heinous ideologies but you’d have to be a philistine to say that these films are by any means trash.
While the messages they espouse makes one cringe, that doesn’t mean one isn’t or can’t be amazed at the awesome display of technical bravado and visual flare.
Star Wars and the Lord of the Rings were clearly propaganda too. It was just very well packaged and entertaining propaganda.
It’s true–Star Wars III made me join the dark side.
I wonder if anyone else noticed the misogyny of the film. The only present-day female characters are either airheaded housewives unable to appreciate the tragic majesty of Korean history, or coffee girls. We’re not even given a token love interest.
In historical flashbacks, we see the Empress and her entourage, typical objects of chivalric male protection. And that’s it for female characters. Anyone inclined to view contemporary Korean nationalism as an overgrown boys’ tree-house club would find ample support for that view in this film.