Korea's Big Screen Classics
korean films i've seen so far (working progress!)
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- DirectorBong Joon HoStarsSong Kang-hoKim Sang-kyungKim Roe-haIn a small Korean province in 1986, two detectives struggle with the case of multiple young women being found raped and murdered by an unknown culprit.what's a classic list without this one. based on a true case. there's no resolution at the end, only questions and what ifs.
- DirectorPark Chan-wookStarsChoi Min-sikYoo Ji-taeKang Hye-jeongAfter being kidnapped and imprisoned for fifteen years, Oh Dae-Su is released, only to find that he must track down his captor in five days.korean film at its finest. such a well thought out story. takes you on a ride with all the twists and turns that hit you when you least expect it.
- DirectorPark Chan-wookStarsKim Min-heeHa Jung-wooCho Jin-woongA woman is hired as a handmaiden to a Japanese heiress, but secretly she is involved in a plot to defraud her.my #1 in all category. plot, ost, cinematography, acting, everything. there's way more to it than you'd expect, but you're definitely not disappointed. just, brilliant.
- DirectorYeon Sang-hoStarsGong YooJung Yu-miMa Dong-seokWhile a zombie virus breaks out in South Korea, passengers struggle to survive on the train from Seoul to Busan.thriller done right. this movie gets your heart racing, even after watching it so many times. cgi effects and makeup are done so well. definitely not the zombies you wanna come face to face with. characters will definitely get you hooked!
- DirectorBong Joon HoStarsSong Kang-hoLee Sun-kyunCho Yeo-jeongGreed and class discrimination threaten the newly-formed symbiotic relationship between the wealthy Park family and the destitute Kim clan.
- DirectorKang Hyeong-cheolStarsYoo Ho-jeongShim Eun-kyungJin Hee-kyungSeven girls become good friends in high school, then events pull them apart for 25 years. When one of the friends lies dying in a hospital, she wishes to see each of them one last time.makes you think of a childhood you probably never had. story of friendship that lasts through time. literally fits its theme song "time after time." classic k-film.
- DirectorLee Jeong-beomStarsWon BinKim Sae-ronKim Tae-hoonA quiet pawnshop keeper with a violent past takes on a drug-and-organ trafficking ring in hope of saving the child who is his only friend.
- DirectorJoo-hwan KimStarsPark Seo-joonKang Ha-neulPark Ha-seonTwo friends who are students at Korean National Police University, find themselves in an endless race against time after they witness a kidnapping and decide to use their knowledge.cop-comedy film fave #1. right touch of comedy mixed with a serious case. acting is so well done in this one. a friendship that builds from, "are you gonna eat your sausage?" these two are gold.
- DirectorJung Da-WonStarsRa Mi-ranLee Sung-kyungYoon Sang-HyunMi-Young, who used to be considered the Major Crimes Unit's top cop, is stationed behind a desk after having a baby. She leads uneventful yet peaceful days at handling civil complaints and looking after her son and unemployed husband at home. One day, an overly enthusiastic detective Ji-Hye, is consigned to Mi-Young's team, and they bicker over every little thing from the moment they meet. In fact, they are sisters-in-law, and neither are happy about sitting next to each other all day in the same office. But differences are pushed aside when a woman who came to file a report gets run over in front of Mi-Young and Ji-Hye. They discover that the woman is the victim of 'spy cam porn' and was threatened it would go up on a community site in three days. The two cops take the case, but due to workload, no one can handle it in time. Ji-Hye's burning passion for justice rekindles Mi-Young's sense of duty, and the two decide to take matters into their own hands.cop-comedy film fave #2. another well done film despite what the ratings say. thought this was enjoyable and the case they're featuring is something that south korea is dealing with right now, so definitely a must watch!
- DirectorNa Hong-jinStarsJun KunimuraHwang Jung-minKwak Do-wonSoon after a stranger arrives in a little village, a mysterious sickness starts spreading. A policeman, drawn into the incident, is forced to solve the mystery in order to save his daughter.
- DirectorJuly JungStarsBae DoonaKim Sae-ronSong Sae-byeokA young police officer is sent to work in a small village and takes in a teenager to protect her from her abusive stepfather.
- DirectorSoon-rye YimStarsKim Tae-riRyu Jun-yeolJin Ki-jooA young woman grows tired of life in the city and returns to her hometown in the countryside.aesthetically pleasing? a chill back, no stress kinda film good for down time. so simple, but you don't need much to make a good film like this.
- DirectorHun JangStarsSong Kang-hoThomas KretschmannYoo Hae-jinA widowed father and taxi driver who drives a German reporter from Seoul to Gwangju to cover the 1980 uprising, soon finds himself regretting his decision after being caught in the violence around him.based on a true story. inspiring film about a revolution.
- DirectorLee Su-jinStarsChun Woo-heeJung In-sunKim So-youngHan Gong-Ju transfers to a new school to escape her past. It takes a long time for her troubled past to catch up with her but when it does, the revelation is devastating.thought-provoking. makes you wanna punch a wall or something kinda film.
- DirectorHae-Young LeeStarsJoo Bo-biPark Bo-youngKim Dong-hyeonA girl is transferred to a mysterious boarding school, where she is forced to discover its secrets to survive.confusing, dark, suspense. thought-provoking, scary at times. your heart breaks for the characters by the end.
- DirectorDeok-Soo KimStarsKang Ye-wonHan Chae-ahMin Nam-koongJang Young-shil, who couldn't get a full-time job no matter how hard she tried, finally is hired as a comment writer for National Security Office at 35. However, even in the job she realizes that she is on the top of the list of people who are soon to be laid off. One day, Mr. Cha, the manager of the department makes an irreversible mistake and loses the budget of National Security Office to voicei don't remember much of the film, but that it was pretty funny. gives me The Heat vibes?
- DirectorHyun-Sung MoonStarsHa Ji-WonBae DoonaHan Yeri"As One" is the cinematic retelling of the first ever post-war Unified Korea sports team, hastily formed to participate in the 41st World Table Tennis Championships in 1991. Following the North Korean mid-air bombing of Korean Air Flight 858 in 1987, a Summit was held between North and South Korea to defuse the extreme tension on the peninsula. The summit ended with the agreement to form a unified Korean sports team; and table tennis, being highly visible and world-class in both countries, was chosen as the symbolic unifier. Summarily, the first-ever unified North-South team under the simple aegis "KOREA" was formed to compete in the 1991 World Table Tennis Championships in Chiba, Japan. "As One" recounts these dramatic events where especially two world-class players who had only ever met across the table as die-hard opponents must suddenly become a true partners and teammates in time for the biggest stage of the World Championships. Putting aside their individual ambitions, these women have to summon every ounce of grit and grace to defeat a dominating Chinese team that is vying for its 9th consecutive World Championship title.heartwarming. based on a true story.
- DirectorChang Won JangStarsHyun BinYoo Ji-taeBae Sung-wooUnlikely allies from different sides of the law must work together to achieve a common goal -- trapping the world's most legendary con man.unexpected. twists you around when you thought you already know what's going on. not my fave out of all similar genre films, but certainly different.
- DirectorYong-hwa KimStarsJu Jin-moKim Ah-jungSung Dong-ilA talented but obese girl, who ghost-sings for a not-so-talented pop star, undergoes extensive plastic surgery to become a slender beauty with a new identity.classic k-comedy.
- DirectorJong-Yeol BaekStarsHan Hyo-jooPark Seo-joonJuri UenoA South Korean has a different person's body, changing every morning to a body "borrowed" for a day - man, woman, old, child and sometimes a foreigner. "He" works as furniture designer. He loves a girl. She loves him for the beauty inside.50 first dates vibes? kinda slow-moving film with not much drama, but still nice to watch for a chill night.
- DirectorHyun-ju LeeStarsLee Sang-heeRyu Sun-youngPark Keun-rokA fine arts student meets an attractive bartender, and the two women begin an intimate relationship.slice-of-life. a realistic kind of love story. the angst and romance hit you all at once.
- DirectorHyuk ByunStarsHan Suk-kyuEun-ju LeeSung Hyun-ahA detective, his 3 girls & a murder case. Complex emotional relationships and human nature's darker sides are explored in this captivating suspense drama about a cop whose lust for love threatens to get in the way of his professional life.
- DirectorHun JangStarsSong Kang-hoGang Dong-wonKo Chang-seokA fired South Korean agent and a deserted North Korean spy meet by chance after six years and start a business partnership, each with the intention of stealing information from the other.
- DirectorWon Shin-yeonStarsSol Kyung-guKim Nam-gilKim Seol-hyunA former serial killer with Alzheimer's fights to protect his daughter from her psychotic boyfriend.slow-burn film. gets you guessing as it goes on.
- DirectorJang Hang-junStarsKang Ha-neulYeon Je HyungKim Mu-yeolWhen his abducted brother returns seemingly a different man with no memory of the past 19 days, Jin-seok chases after the truth behind the kidnapping.the twists and turns in this one were unexpected until they hit. definitely different, need to re-watch.
- DirectorCheol-soo JangStarsSeo Yeong-hieJi Seong-wonMin-ho HwangA woman subject to mental, physical and sexual abuse on a remote island seeks a way out.whew. revenge gone wild. by the end, you'll just sit there and question wtf just happened.
- DirectorBong Joon HoStarsKim Hye-jaWon BinJin GooA mother desperately searches for the killer who framed her son for a girl's horrific murder.slow-burn. man, this really gets you. you don't what to believe until you get mind-blown when the truth hits you unexpectedly.
- DirectorDong-hoon ChoiStarsKim Yoon-seokLee Jung-jaeKim Hye-suAfter a heist in South Korea, a gang of 5+1 fly to Hong Kong to look into a heist, in a Macau casino, of a $30M diamond, planned by someone unreliable. He brings in HK thieves as well. Can anyone be trusted?
- DirectorTae-gyun KimStarsJang HyukJo Bo-ahSeon Woo-seonA high school student develops a crush on her gym teacher.
- DirectorLee Chang-dongStarsYoo Ah-inSteven YeunJeon Jong-seoJong-su bumps into a girl who used to live in the same neighborhood, who asks him to look after her cat while she's on a trip to Africa. When back, she introduces Ben, a mysterious guy she met there, who confesses his secret hobby.
- DirectorYeon Sang-hoStarsRyu Seung-ryongShim Eun-kyungPark Jeong-minAfter drinking water from a mountain spring, a bank security guard gains telekinetic superpowers, which he must use to save his estranged daughter from an evil construction company, as a superhero.
- DirectorHeung-sik ParkStarsHan Hyo-jooYoo Yeon-seokChun Woo-heeStory follows Jung So-Yool who dreams of becoming the best singer during the time of Japanese occupation of Korea.
- DirectorHwan-kyung LeeStarsRyu Seung-ryongKal So-wonOh Dal-suA story about the love between a mentally-ill father and his lovingly adorable daughter.
- DirectorKim Seong-hunStarsHa Jung-wooBae DoonaOh Dal-suA man is on his way home when the poorly constructed tunnel he is driving through collapses, leaving him trapped.
- DirectorIl ChoJo Il HyungMadeleine MartinStarsYoo Ah-inPark Shin-hyeJeon Bae-sooThe rapid spread of an unknown infection has left an entire city in ungovernable chaos, but one survivor remains alive in isolation. It is his story.