Tag Archives: Korea

My PS Partner

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My PS Partner

aka 나의 P.S. 파트너 aka Naui P.S. Pateuneo aka Whatcha Wearin’?
My PS Partner
2012
Written by Byun Sung-Hyun, Kim Min-Soo, and Kim Soo-A
Directed by Byun Sung-Hyun
My PS Partner
Filthy talk with no filter mixed in a romantic comedy package gives us My PS Partner. But don’t be fooled, this film doesn’t lean on its frank sex talk, that’s just icing on the total package. The male character Hyun-seung is suffering from a recent breakup after seven years with the girl, complete with the mental trauma from all the highs and lows. Yoon-jung is coasting her way through her long relationship with a boyfriend who can’t be bothered to even propose after five years, and spends all his time at work (work sometimes being a female coworker’s vagina!) Her malaise as she follows the trajectory everyone and society has set for her is heartbreaking, and her fantasy sequences of actually standing up for herself just compound the sorrow.

Korean romantic comedies are one of my favorite genres, because they never just stick to romance and comedy, but their emotions run across the entire map. It’s not unusual for characters to be dealing with deep emotional trauma in between scenes of slapstick comedy. My PS Partner was on my radar while still filming thanks to the rumors it was going to be raunchy. It’s that in spades, but the portraits of the two damaged souls that are united by a simple misdial are vivid.
My PS Partner
In an attempt to spice up her love life (or at least get her boyfriend to stop spending all his time on spreadsheets), Yoon-jung calls him for some phone sex (the PS of My PS Partner) and demands he not talk, just listen. Thus some full-fledged sensual phone sex action takes place, except thanks to a misdial (Yoon-jung was unable to transfer her addressbook into her new phone and had to do them all manually) she instead dials Hyun-seung, who is confused and then thinks it is some sort of phone sex line.

What starts out as a misdialed phone call turns into much more as the two begin talking. Soon they become more connected, freed by the semi-anonymity afforded by the phone. Eventually they meet and get closer, but both of them are still on their own paths. It becomes apparent the two are meant to be together, but will that happen or will Yoon-jung sleepwalk her way into a terrible marriage and Hyun-seung live with regret? Also what color panties are you wearing?
My PS Partner

Hyun-Seung (Ji Sung) – Hyun-Seung first appears as strangely angry, though we quickly learn he’s recently broken up from a 7 year relationship with So-Yeon, and is not taking the fact she has a new (and successful!) boyfriend so fast very well. Hyun-Seung hits his bottom soon after getting the misdial from Yoon-Jung, and with her help begins putting his life in order.
Yoon-Jung (Kim A-Joong) – Yoon-Jung is first a voice on the phone, sexing up Hyun-Seung while mistaking him for Seung-Joon. But disappointment in her own personal life (as well as virtually being cut off from anyone to talk and share with) causes her to open up to Hyun-Seung during his drunk redial. The two bond over the shared pain of disappointment and frustration. But Yoon-Jung still stays with her man, who does nothing except the wrong thing, because she feels some sort of societal obligation.
So-Yeon (Shin So-Yul) – Hyun-Seung’s ex-girlfriend. The two dated for seven years, with So-Yeon often supporting Hyun-Seung and his unsuccessful singing career. The fights became too frequent, but the pair had real feelings and their relationship looms as a shadow over them both.
Seung-Joon (Kang Kyeong-Jun) – Yoon-Jung’s terrible boyfriend, who is too busy working, too busy being controlling, too busy cheating, and too busy not proposing. He’s a successful businessman and what Korean society says is an A+ choice, but he’s a real D – dull and a dick!

My PS Partner
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Hwarang-V Trio (Review)

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Hwarang-V Trio

aka 화랑브이삼총사 aka Hwarangbeu-i samchongsa
Hwarang V Trio
1987
Written and directed by Kim Yeong-han
Hwarang V Trio
With Hwarang-V Trio, we return again to the world of Korean children’s film, a hive of scum and villainy that makes Mos Eisly look like a church choir. Previously, we got stuck on this detail with Super Batman & Mazinger V and Alien Lightning Dragon, and you can expect many more soonter than later. Because if I have to suffer, YOU have to suffer, dear readers! I’m also going to reveal my ignorance in anime robots, so forgive me if I don’t immediately identify popular robots I don’t know anything about if they’ve been ripped off for the cartoon robots in Hwarang-V Trio. Which is highly likely. The main robot is off his animation model so much they might not have even been using the same model.

Hwarang-V Trio features a whole host of enemies each with a ridiculous costume culled from the finest props left over from the dozens of other Korean kiddie films. Or maybe some of these costumes are even new, it’s not like we’d be able to tell the difference, and they’re surely used again in later films.

With that in mind, I’ve dubbed the villainous crew the Evil Circus, because their colorful costumes and presence of an evil Clown lend that thought to mind. I’ve tried to list all of the villains I could, but many just are standing around doing nothing in the background before their untimely death by cartoon robot, so don’t expect much!
Hwarang V Trio
Both the Evil Circus and the heroic band of random children suffer from the same affliction – their numbers randomly increase and shrink, often during the same scene. Characters never seen before join up for an important search of fight sequence and then are never spied again. It’s almost as if the filming was as haphazard as the watching. Despite all the confusion, there is a sort of basic plot of a space princess, annoying children, an evil space queen, and giant robots murdering people. This is why you never get involved in space royalty, the body count racks up so high in the sky that you can’t go twice as high as a butterfly. Because you’re dead!
Hwarang V Trio
Director and writer Kim Yeong-han was involves in several Korean kiddie films, including directing/writing duties on Robotstar Zanga and it’s sequel, Star Zanga Z Mazinga V Super Betaman – which we know as Super Batman & Mazinger V! Besides him, the cast list is impossible to connect names to faces without some outside help, so unless that help shows up in the comments, everything will remain a mystery…

As usual, there are no subtitles (and at TarsTarkas.NET, we don’t need no stinking subtitles!) so everything that happens ranges from conjecture to confusion. But it’s not like things here will make much sense even with pop-up annotation.
Hwarang V Trio

Sky, Earth and Typhoon (???) – These three knuckleheads “inherit the spirit of Hwarang” – which means they get powers from the space Princess Lanka and her weird Helper Guy. They eventually get around to being heroes and then fight the villains with their Power Ranger costumes. They also may or may not have control over the three-part vehicle that shows up at the end of the film to kill everyone bad.
Ae-ri and Princess Lanka (???) – Ae-ri is the girl in the group who also gets super powers, except she doesn’t get to use them as much because she’s a girl. Princess Lanka is the reason everyone is fighting, the villains want her for reaons unknown, so she uses the heroic children that she puts in harm’s way to help defend her life of space princess privilige. Since Ae-ri is supposed to be Air, that makes the four kids the four elements, even though this film is about a trio. That is the caliber of writing quality you can expect from Hwarang-V Trio.
Dr. Baeng-deok (???) – A scientist guy who spends far too much time around a group of children. The only adult in the film who isn’t dressed up as a villain, Dr. Baeng-deok turns garbage into science equipment and helps fight the Evil Circus.
Helper Guy (???) – The Princess’s former bodyguard, who lost the job after he dies. But he does manage to give the Earth kids super powers before he croaks. I am not sure if he is supposed to be a robot or an alien.
Robot (???) – Princess Lanka’s space robot who comes to kick butt and kick more butt. May or may not be named Hwarang-V.
Gorilla Guy (???) – He’s a gorilla guy with skull shirt!
Gorilla Guy #2 (???) – He’s a gorilla guy with bat mask and vampire fangs and skull shirt! Obviously this means a higher rank…
Space Alien Lizard Guy (???) – Hangs out in the cave. Barely moves despite being cool.
Fly Guy (???) – A wicked cool fly costume is used on this goon, who barely does anything and disappears soon after.
Green Guy (???) – He’s a guy in robes with weird skin color!
Evil Clown (???) – An evil clown (is there any other kind?) with a lavender curly wig and black makeup on his eyes and mouth. Is repeatedly beaten up by children.
Evil Stongman (???) – An evil strongman (is there any other kind?) with the required jungle-themed outfit. Is repeatedly beaten up by children.
Wolf Guy (???) – He’s a wolf guy in a skull shirt!
Evil Lady (???) – This evil lady has bats on her outfit and appears to be just below the Evil Queen Serius in power.
Evil Queen’s Many Handmaidens (???) – Some of Queen Serius’s many handmaidens, who mostly stand around looking evil and then get shot.
Evil Queen Serius (???) – The plot description says Serius is the King of Evil. They either meant Queen of Evil or this is the most progressive children’s movie ever! Queen Serius dresses like she’s a Disney villain, and has a skull staff that is the most realistic skull you ever did see. She controls the Evil Circus, desires Princess Lanka for reasons unknown, and controls Two Cartoon Robots.
Two Cartoon Robots (???) – The aforementioned Two Cartoon Robots that Queen Serius controls. They fly and have no legs.

Hwarang V Trio
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The Thieves

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The Thieves

aka 도둑들 aka Dodukdeul
The Thieves
2012
Written by Choi Dong-Hoon and Lee Gi-cheol
Directed by Choi Dong-Hoon
The Thieves Jeon Ji-hyun
Crosses, double-crosses, and triple-crosses in the midst of teamwork is the template of The Thieves. Not only is there a group of thieves who are all looking out for themselves while planning a heist, but there are TWO groups of thieves working together (and trusting no one) while working each other and planning bigger plots. This is the kind of film a flow chart would help, but it’s designed so well that things rarely get confusing. The various characters are fleshed out and the backstabbing becomes more personal. It helps that The Thieves is not a short movie, but it keeps the game going even after the heist and the eventual fallout. Things become really deadly, and the question of who will live, who will win, and who will die will be answered.

Sprawling across much of Asia, from Korea to Hong Kong to Macau, The Thieves sports an impressive cast of faces and names that will be familiar to anyone with even a passing interest in Asian cinema. The Thieves manages to build on the concept of the Ocean’s 11 film (which is the obvious starting point of comparison due to the heist and big cast angles) while instead being more about the twists and turns and secret motives of the various participants in the crime. The big score, while a central action piece, is nothing but a stepping stone for one character’s true motivation. And everything revolves around his eventual plan, that doesn’t go according to plan at all.
The Thieves
Partnerships are forged by desperation and motive, but easily fall apart as soon as the winds change. Some characters are more loyal than others, and some betrayals are clear from the start. The con artists will each try to stack the deck in their favor, and the fun is watching how everything plays out. So let’s deal…

Popeye (Lee Jung-jae) – A local boss of a theft ring who gets his crew attached to a potential big score, but has his own motivations for becoming involved.
Macau Park (Kim Yoon-seok) – A bigger boss who used to work with Popeye and now runs a crew based out of Hong Kong, he gets Popeye involved in a huge score.
Pepsi (Kim Hye-soo) – A safecracker fresh out of jail, was part of Popeye’s crew and is welcomed in again just as they head off to their mission, breeding mistrust as some members don’t know her at all, and others had previous relationships.
Yanicall (Jeon Ji-hyun) – A swindler and con artist who uses her beauty to separate rich men from their money. Immediately doesn’t like Pepsi. Has a sort of mother/daughter relationship with Chewing Gum.

The Thieves
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Vote for Links!

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Vote For Rowlf
[adrotate banner=”1″]it’s that time again to give you the good stuff, in handy clickable link format!

**FourDk hunts for The Stolen Airship!

**Pre-Code gets Illicit!

**TurbanDecay discusses Popeye and Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp!

**SoftFilm drops some facts about Daisy Joe and Chinese in Hollywood!

**3 Guys 1 Movie plays some games in the Carnival of Souls!

**The Cultural Gutter discusses dreams and Adventure Time!

**BluePrint Review meets The Girl From Rio!

**the motion pictures races against Hot Rods to Hell!

**Xsmarkthespot discuss retronerds and geek culture!

**Stephen Chow is rumored to star in a sequel to the latest Journey to the West film. Of course, he was rumored to start in the last one that he directed, and he doesn’t show up in it. There will also be more horror elements, and as the first one is sort of 50-50 horror-comedy, the new one might be scare-inducing. I’ll still watch…

**There will be a GI Joe 3. No word on how long this will get randomly delayed mere weeks before it’s set to open.

**The Biker Warrior Babe vs. The Zombie Babies From Hell made enough off IndieGoGo to get distribution online.

**If you like weird movie titles like that, remember there is also a Steampunk Samurai Biker Chick that filmed last year!

**The world needs more programs where a heroic white guy saves Asia, and we’re getting that again thanks to a remake of the Shogun tv miniseries (based on the novel by James Clavell). If heroic white guys saving the day aren’t your thing, you can also watch a heroic black football player get away with murder with an OJ Simpson miniseries. What company is giving us these gems? Fox, of course!

**Christina Applegate is rumored to be up for the role of Rusty Griswold’s wife in the new generation of National Lampoon’s Vacation films. Ed Helms is already cast as the new Rusty, who will be the one taking his family on vacation. And if you are wondering if Chevy Chase and Beverly D’Angelo will appear, they are in talks now!

**Sex.Violence.FamilyValues is a 47 minute Singaporean flick banned in Singapore (until some scenes were deleted), but it just scored a US distribution. I’m not keen on paying to see such a short movie, though the fact it was banned/censored makes it more appealing. Though I’ll still wait for it on video.

**The Pete’s Dragon remake that has been rumored for ages has hit the point where they hired someone to make a script. David Lowery is the lucky ducky, and this Pete’s Dragon will ignore most of the story except the “core” and not be a musical. Will Disney drop the abused kid creating an “imaginary” dragon guardian angle and make this just a randomly dumb film? Or will they keep all that and make it all gritty? Considering Pete’s Dragon is the first film I remember seeing at a drive-in theater, it holds a special place in my heart. Which means I’ll burn down Disneyland if they fuck it up!!!

**Dwayne Johnson’s Luke Hobbs character from the Fast and Furious films will be getting his own spinoff movie. No further details at this time.

**We mentioned a movie called Orc Wars long ago, now it’s on Kickstarter with a few days left to hit its goal. So if you are into that sort of thing….

**But if you would rather give money to a film about a musical puppet fairy tale, that is also a choice thanks to The Princess Knight:

**Norigae is a movie about the scandal of Korean actresses being pimped out by their managers that lead to the suicide of actress Jang Ja-Yeon. AsianWiki has the trailer

**Here is a kick butt article about things in the Peruvian rain forest, including spiders that make huge decoy spiders, macaws licking clay, very hairy caterpillars, and a moth that uses a basket as a cocoon.
Caterpillar Peru

Until next time, remember to vote early and vote often!

Chilling Romance

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Chilling Romance

aka 오싹한 연애 aka Ossakhan Yeonae aka Spellbound

2011
Written and directed by Hwang In-ho
Chilling Romance
Seeing dead people is not just a job for kids who will grow up to have DUIs, but also women in Korea! Yeo-ri has isolated herself from her family and her life because she’s tormented by continual visits from the recently deceased, especially the visits of a particular ghost, her former best friend, Joo-hee. Joo-hee blames Yeo-ri for her death, and constantly harasses Yeo-ri’s family and friends have forced the drastic measures. But can such a woman find love? Because Chilling Romance isn’t just a horror film, it’s a romantic comedy! Yes, two genres that shouldn’t go together at all suddenly pull a peanut butter and chocolate moment for Chilling Romance.
Chilling Romance
The ghosts aspects are a mishmash of Sixth Sense and the long-hair ghost films. Some of the Sixth Sense imagery is copied directly, from the dead wanting help to the tent scene. The tone of the scenes are stark and depressing, a lot of quiet standing around and pointing, or looking at people in pain or sorrow. But when Joo-hee is around, the tone changes to more shock jumpcuts, almost as if the movie knew it had to become something different for the different type of ghosts…

To counter all of that, we got a bunch of magician things going on. The razzle dazzle of the spectacle is a complete contrast to the morose Yeo-ri. Jo-goo makes his living from being charismatic and a showman, the opposite of the quiet and reserved Yeo-ri, who doesn’t want to attract attention from people who will end up ultimately hurt. Jo-goo originally wants her to join his troupe because he finds her interesting, but as they spend more time together their chemistry grows, much to the annoyance of the ghost Joo-hee and Jo-goo’s girlfriend.
Chilling Romance
Chilling Romance was also released as Spellbound. Director Hwang In-ho wrote the script, and this is his first feature film.

Kang Yeo-ri (Son Ye-jin) – miserable looking girl She almost died during a school trip where her best friend did die, and ever since has been visited by ghosts, especially Lee Joo-hee’s ghost. Because of Lee Joo-hee’s anger, she avoids all human contact to protect them from her. Yeo-ri now spends her life with a different outlook, knowing how easily life can slip away and a general sense of dread, but is terribly depressed and not a stranger to the bottle. She sleeps in a tent.
Ma Jo-goo (Lee Min-ki) – a street magician who gets inspired by seeing the miserable Yeo-ri and develops a horror magic act that makes him a super star. Having hired Yeo-ri into the troop, his efforts to get to know her better turn into unexpected chemistry and learning of her true secret.
Lee Joo-hee (Hwang Seung-eon) – Ghost. Best friend of Yeo-ri who died in an accident when Yeo-ri barely lived. Her ghost has been following Yeo-ri ever since. Filled with anger over the incident.
Min-jung (Kim Hyun-sook) – Yeo-ri’s best friend, but one she only contacts via phone and hasn’t seen in years.
Yoo-Jin (Lee Mi-do) – Min-jung’s friend that she brings into the phone conversations with Yeo-ri to help with her love life. Yoo-Jin wrote Bitches – the romantic comedy about three bitches. She also explains the 5 types of kisses: hamburger, sliding, air cleaning, candy, and wrestling.

Chilling Romance
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The Huntresses gets trailerized!

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[adrotate banner=”1″]A lot of news happened while we were on break. One thing was The Huntresses (조선미녀 삼총사 – Joseonminyeo Samchongsa, which translates to The Joseon Beautiful Three Musketeers) picked up a trailer that popped up on AsianWiki, which was then reblogged on every site that gets it’s news from AsianWiki (or from sites that copy news from sites that get news from AsianWiki. But take it from Tars, it’s much better to get the water directly from the source!) As we’ve been covering this flick since filming began, it’s only fair that the trailer get a view here as well!

Set in the Joseon Period, three beautiful musketeers fight against a powerful group who tries to overturn the royal family and gain absolute power. The leader of the Beautiful Three Musketeers is Jin-Ok (Ha Ji-Won), a smart and righteous woman. Hong-Dan (Kang Ye-Won) is the only married woman among the three women. Ga-Bi (Son Ga-In from Brown Eyed Girls) is the youngest among the musketeers and excels at fighting.

The Huntresses