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K-Movie

[K-Movie] Aviation Disaster Film ‘Emergency Declaration’ To Land in Singapore This August

Emergency Declaration is an intensely thrilling and highly-anticipated big budget aviation disaster film that is set to hit the cinema screens this August. A 2021 Festival de Cannes Official Selection, this movie stars a major line-up of cast which includes several household names such as Song Kang-ho, Lee Byung-hun, Jeon Do-yeon, Kim Nam-gil, Yim Si-wan, and more.

Song Kang-ho is no stranger to the k-movie scene. He plays the character of In-ho, a veteran police detective who works on his own to avert disaster.

After canceling a trip to Hawaii with his wife because of work, In-ho reports to the station as usual. He comes across a hard to understand video message in English threatening a terrorist attack on a plane, and he prays to himself that the suspect didn’t board the same plane as his wife. However, his worst fears came true, and with the plane already in the air, he devotes everything he has to solving the crisis so that the plane and his wife can return safely.

Another character to look out for in the movie would be Jae-hyuk played by movie & drama star Lee Byung-hun. Having displayed his acting ability in all genres, Lee Byung-hun will be taking on the role of a somewhat ordinary father in Emergency Declaration, who boards the plane for the sake of his daughter’s treatment.

Having experienced a fear of flying himself, the actor used this experience to better express the emotions of Jae-hyuk in this moment of chaos on the plane. This character who shows fear and panic but also a resolve to save other passengers, is sure to leave a strong impression on viewers.

A critical character not to be missed in this aviation disaster film, Kim Nam-gil plays Hyun-soo, the co-pilot who must land the plane safely at all costs. After preparing as usual to take on his responsibilities as a co-pilot, a sudden death on the plane sends Hyun-soo going back and forth from the cockpit to the cabin, trying to resolve the crisis.

Keeping in close contact with the crisis management center on the ground, he tries his best to keep the plane aloft, but with no solution in sight he finds himself having to make an ‘emergency declaration’. Kim Nam-gil will give a memorable performance as a co-pilot who must carry out his duties while managing the emotions of the passengers.

This film also stars one of South Korea’s beloved actors, Yim Si-wan as Jin-seok, the man who comes to the airport with no fixed destination. After loitering about Incheon International Airport and asking for a flight with the most number of passengers, Jin-seok is seen by Jae-hyuk’s daughter as he is carrying out something in secret. Annoyed, he finds out Jae-hyuk’s destination and buys a ticket for the same flight.

With his innocent looking face, Yim Si-wan gives an eye-opening performance in which he seems to be playing a game with the passengers. In this film, the actor will bring his own style to this complicated character, keeping the anticipations high for audiences.

Other prominent characters to look out for in Emergency Declaration are Sook-hee (played by Jeon Do-yeon), the transport minister who must remain calm in the most chaotic situation possible, Hee-jin (played by Kim So-jin) the head flight attendant, and Tae-su (played by Park Hae-joon), Chief of the presidential crisis management center.

“I wrote this screenplay, completed casting, and prepared to start shooting in a world in which COVID-19 did not yet exist. I couldn’t help but be shocked to see the events which I had imagined in my mind become reality. Disasters always strike when we least expect them. Those of us living in this era are already accustomed to the way in which people easily lose strength and become self-centered during a disaster or crisis. But despite the turmoil faced by humanity during this pandemic, the situation is slowly improving.

I hope that this film can provide a small measure of comfort and hope to those who suffered in this tragedy, to those who bravely fought against it, and to all of us who at this moment are exhausted from dealing with the pandemic.” – Director Han Jae-rim

Movie Synopsis:
‘Emergency Declaration’: If an aircraft faces a potential disaster, and normal flight can no longer be maintained, the pilot calls for an unconditional landing.

Veteran chief police detective In-ho (Song Kang-ho) receives a tip about a man threatening a terrorist attack against a plane. While investigating, he discovers that the suspect has boarded flight no. KI501.

Despite his phobia of flying, Jae-hyuk (Lee Byung-hun) decides to go to Hawaii for the sake of his daughter’s health. At the airport, he is distracted by a strange man who hangs around, speaking to them in a menacing way.

Flight no. KI501 departs Incheon Airport for Hawaii, but soon afterwards a man dies for mysterious reasons. Fear and chaos spread quickly, not only inside the plane, but also on land. Hearing this news, Transport Minister Sook-hee (Jeon Do-yeon) sets up a counterterrorism task force and calls an emergency meeting to find a way to land the airplane.

Title: Emergency Declaration
Genre: Action, Thriller, Suspense, Drama
Cast: Song Kang-ho, Lee Byung-hun, Kim Nam-gil, Jeon Do-yeon, Yim Si-wan, Kim So-jin, Park Hae-joon
Directed by: Han Jae-rim
Singapore Release Date: 4 August 2022
Runtime: 140 minutes
Language: Korean (with English & Chinese subtitles)


(Movie Stills: Encore Films)

Categories
K-Movie

[K-Movie] Cannes Winning Film ‘BROKER’ To Hit Singapore’s Big Screens This June

From the Director of the 2018 Palme d’Or award winner, BROKER is a movie that relays the story of an unexpected and special journey by people who form a connection through a baby box.

Starring a stellar line-up of cast including Song Kang Ho, Gang Dong Won, Bae Doona, Lee Ji Eun (IU) and Lee Joo Young, the film revolves around two brokers who aim to find new parents for a baby and to exchange him on good terms, and two detectives who pursue them in hopes of catching them in the act.

Veteran actor Song Kang Ho plays the character Sang-hyun, a self-described benevolent broker who during the day runs an old laundry shop. Along with his partner Dong-soo (played by Gang Dong Won), an employee in the facility that houses the baby box, they look for the right people to raise the baby who was abandoned there.

This film recently won the Ecumenical Jury Award for Best Film at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival, with Song Kang Ho bagging home the Best Actor award simultaneously. It’s also the first Korean film directed by globally acclaimed director Kore-Eda Hirokazu, who aims to capture the process of gradual intimacy and change among people who have each suffered and been hurt in their own way through BROKER. Audiences will be presented with a sharp yet insightful look at a cross section of society, and its warm humanism that emerges from an unexpected place.

Movie Synopsis:
Sang-hyun (Song Kang Ho) runs a laundry shop, but is constantly saddled with debt. Dong-soo (Gang Dong Won), who grew up in an orphanage, works in a baby box facility. One night in the pouring rain, they secretly carry off an infant who was left at the baby box. But on the following day, the mother So-young (Lee Ji Eun) unexpectedly returns for her son Woo-sung. Realizing that her baby has been taken, she is about to call the police when the two men tell her everything. Their claim that they stole the baby in order to find him a good home seems outrageous, but So-young ends up joining Sang-hyun and Dong-soo on a journey to find new parents for Woo-sung.

Meanwhile, the police detective Su-jin (Bae Doona) and her younger colleague Detective Lee (Lee Joo Young) are witnessing all of this as it unfolds. They silently tail the group, hoping to catch them in the act at all costs to wrap up their half-year investigation. Brought together by chance through a baby box, the five individuals embark on an unusual and unexpected journey.

Title: BROKER
Genre: Drama
Cast: Song Kang Ho, Gang Dong Won, Bae Doona, Lee Ji Eun, Lee Joo Young
Directed by: Kore-eda Hirokazu
Singapore Release Date: 23 June 2022
Runtime: 129 minutes
Rating: PG13


(Movie Stills: Golden Village)

Categories
K-Movie

[K-Movie] Cannes Award-Winning Film, “Parasite” opens in Singapore Cinemas 27 June

The first ever Korean film to snag the grand prize of Palme d’Or at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, “Parasite” officially opens in Singapore cinemas from 27 June, with sneak previews available from 21-23 June. Directed by award-winning director Bong Joon Ho, who is most famous for the internationally acclaimed films Snowpiercer (2013) and Okja (2017), this film is a national achievement that is completely unpredictable in its story development.

Parasite is about the state of today’s society, and the impossibility of people of different classes living together in a symbiotic relationship. The two families in this story have some things in common, both being made up of four members with a son and daughter. But in terms of their everyday lives, they occupy two different extremes. Still, they are brought together in a relationship of employment, leading to an unpredictable outcome.

The film does not fit into any established genre, yet its mix of black humor, social commentary, satire and suspense is what differentiate and characterize Director Bong Joon Ho from others.

Starring an incredible line-up of cast including veteran actors Song Kang Ho, Lee Sun Kyun, Cho Yeo Jeong, Jang Hye Jin and more, each character is distinctive in their own role. While the plot unfolds, several of the characters adopt alternate roles and personae in order to achieve their goals.

What Parasite provides is a complex, honest allegory about the challenges we all face in a world where co-existence is an increasingly difficult ideal to achieve.

Film Synopsis:

Ki-taek’s (played by Song Kang Ho) family of four is close, but fully unemployed, with a bleak future ahead of them. The son, Ki-woo (played by Choi Woo-shik), is recommended by his friend, a student at a prestigious university, for a well-paid tutoring job, spawning hopes of a regular income.

Carrying the expectations of all his family, Ki-woo heads to the Park family home for an interview. Arriving at the house of Mr. Park (played by Lee Sun Kyun), the owner of a global IT firm, Ki-woo meets Yeon-kyo (played by Cho Yeo Jeong), the beautiful young lady of the house. But following this first meeting between the two families, an unstoppable string of mishaps lies in wait.

Title: PARASITE
Genre: Drama
Cast: Song Kang Ho, Lee Sun Kyun, Cho Yeo Jeong, Choi Woo Shik, Park So Dam, Lee Jung Eun, Jang Hye Jin
Directed by: Bong Joon Ho
Singapore Release Date: 27 June 2019
Runtime: 131 Minutes
Rating: TBA

 


(Photos: Golden Village)