Comments on: Another consummate revenge film from Korea, you say?

Another consummate revenge film from Korea, you say?

elkevelvet — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 08:57:06 -0800

Night in Paradise is recent to Netflix, and if you like your revenge flicks served in the Korean style this one is pretty great. I am definitely in the shallow end of the pool when it comes to Korean cinema, but so much of what I have seen has been so great.. "Space Sweepers" would have been a groaner if produced in Hollywood, but somehow it was just darn entertaining.. and put Kang-Ho Song in any film and it cannot be a bad film.. Exhibit A: The Drug King. I imagine some of you have additional recommendations? Please share. And no, I am not a Netflix shill but what is up with their Korean content? I am not complaining!

By: forbiddencabinet

forbiddencabinet — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 09:32:10 -0800

I'd also hazard a guess that Korean content is cheaper for Netflix to license and the growing interest in Korean television among western audiences means that the properties do pretty well for them. I don't Netflix anymore so no recommendations specific to that platform, but there are oodles of great Korean films. Anyone after high octane revenge action should check out The Villainess. For a dumb comedy I recommend Extreme Job, which is about undercover police officers that start a fried chicken shop and accidentally become the most popular fried chicken place in the city. For more serious drama/thriller then Burning is fantastic and has maybe Steven Yuen's best performance. If you're after artier fair then Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring is not to be missed. For drama/romance then Right Here, Wrong Now is really quite something and kind of reminds me of Certified Copy. Some others I recommend are Castaway on the Moon, The Wailing, and Memories of a Murder. Honestly, there is so much. Just going through Bong Joon-ho, Park Chan-wook, or Kim Ki-duk's filmographies is going to get you an overwhelming number of great movies to check out.

By: elkevelvet

elkevelvet — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 09:55:52 -0800

Many thanks, forbiddencabinet! I think my introduction to the Korean revenge film was "I Saw the Devil" and I had to keep picking my jaw up off the floor. I also credit "The Host" for providing me with some lasting memories, there was a period where a lot of the stand-out films for me were all Korean.. "Thirst" introduced me to Kang-Ho Song and turned out to be one of the very good vampire films I've seen.. I am sure to follow up on your suggestions, again: thanks!!

By: rivenwanderer

rivenwanderer — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 10:54:55 -0800

Space Sweepers is so great! It was pitched to me as "like Firefly/Serenity but not made by a white dude, and also the bad guy is basically Elon Musk" and when I watched it I thought it definitely delivered :)

By: Bryant

Bryant — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 11:29:10 -0800

I second forbiddencabinet's recommendation for filmographies. Those are great directors. Also on Netflix: Snowpiercer is very good. Weird but good; it's highly allegorical SF, so if you expect hard SF you'll be sad. No, the train doesn't make sense. Hm, looks like Netflix has lost a few of the really good modern ones this year. You might also check out Kanopy, since it's free with most library cards -- they have Save the Green Planet (weird conspiracy comedy, very good), Lady Vengeance, and Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance (both those two from Park Chan-wook's Vengeance trilogy, somewhat rough to watch but well made).

By: charlesminus

charlesminus — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 11:45:31 -0800

Kanopy also has some really good Korean action although my memory for film titles is poor. Some are just too violent for my taste but I have been very impressed.

By: ardgedee

ardgedee — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 11:47:05 -0800

> I'd also hazard a guess that Korean content is cheaper for Netflix to license... Netflix has vastly increased its investment in South Korean productions (from an average of $140M per year to $500M per year) in 2021, and might have less to do with whether South Korean content is cheap and more with trying to strengthen Netflix's catalogs in Asian markets.

By: thefoxgod

thefoxgod — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 11:51:24 -0800

On Netflix --- their best point is they are almost everywhere. This means they produce content in a ton of countries/languages [you can find Netflix originals filmed in so many countries], and also support subtitles/audio for most languages. Basically all other streaming services are terrible at this (as someone in a mixed language household, when we watch TV together Netflix is pretty much the only option). Combine that with Korean licensing and marketing and you seem to get a ton of Korean shows and movies on Netflix (compare to Japan, which has some non-animated content but is MUCH more restrictive about licensing in general and it shows). And of course Korean drama and music has been having a really good time the past 10+ years --- while the US popularity has risen, it's nothing compared to the popularity of Korean media in other East and Southeast Asian countries.

By: oulipian

oulipian — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 12:04:01 -0800

Just FYI, Kanopy's catalogue will differ depending on your university or library. It's not the same for everyone.

By: furnace.heart

furnace.heart — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 12:35:50 -0800

Space sweepers was fine and entertaining, but like maybe an hour too long. A good, ruthless edit would've made it much much better.

By: kurumi

kurumi — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 12:35:56 -0800

There are also some great K-drama/comedy series on Netflix (some of them covered in Fanfare). The series with SF/supernatural material we've enjoyed include: * Hi Bye Mama (aka "cry bye Mama", you'll find out why) - supernatural but generally not spooky * Sisyphus / the Myth - time travel * Mystic Pop-up Bar - supernatural, comedy * Uncanny Counters - supernatural, violence * Sweet Home (misleading title, we stumbled into this one) - monsters/apocalypse. Based on a manhwa, which seems to have better reviews than the show * Nurse School Files - supernatural; good creature design

By: gottabefunky

gottabefunky — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 12:38:13 -0800

The first season of The Kingdom was interesting.

By: thebots

thebots — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 12:53:14 -0800

Tons of amazing recommendations above. A Tale of Two Sisters is another excellent one.

By: juv3nal

juv3nal — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 13:23:31 -0800

Night in Paradise was a bit too grim for me but I liked The Man from Nowhere and The Witch: Part I - The Subversion.

By: chrominance

chrominance — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 13:27:12 -0800

+1 for Burning, it can be a tough watch at times but it's a really good slow-burn thriller. And now, for something completely different: if you want a fun, Oceans Eleven-esque heist movie but with more backstabbing and in three different languages, might I recommend The Thieves?

By: any portmanteau in a storm

any portmanteau in a storm — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 13:49:28 -0800

My wife and I watched the first two episodes of Itaewon Class over the weekend and they were quite good. We can only watch a couple of episodes on the weekend so it'll take us some time to finish it but hey, there's no rush right?

By: duoshao

duoshao — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 13:51:27 -0800

Strangers from Hell (on Netflix) was deeply weird but fun.

By: i used to be someone else

i used to be someone else — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 14:26:35 -0800

Space Sweepers is so great! It was pitched to me as "like Firefly/Serenity"... like the movie serenity, the korean title for space sweepers is the ship's name: victory. also, i think that movie might be the first big-budget korean film to "obliquely" even reference transitioning.

By: i used to be someone else

i used to be someone else — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 14:27:21 -0800

Criterion also has several Korean movies; Hulu is streaming BONG Joon-ho's The Host.

By: turbid dahlia

turbid dahlia — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 15:15:28 -0800

Only one I'm really familiar with is Oldboy but, man, is it good!

By: zsh2v1

zsh2v1 — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 15:28:23 -0800

i always expect Cha Seung-won to break out in little giggles every time i see him, but that's probably just because i've watched too many of his dramas where he's the main lead.

By: doctornemo

doctornemo — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 16:00:13 -0800

Earlier today I was recommended a recent South Korean movie which starts off as a heist or similar crime, then gets strange. Does this ring any bells?

By: soundguy99

soundguy99 — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 16:10:07 -0800

The Witch Part 1 is GREAT! Soooo fucking creepy. I immediately went on a rampage trying to find part 2, only to discover they were still shooting in 2020, so it'll be out this year sometime hopefully.

By: storybored

storybored — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 16:12:51 -0800

The Handmaiden. Mother. Count me as someone who was a little let down by Burning. It's good but nowhere as good as Parasite.

By: ovvl

ovvl — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 17:07:26 -0800

Space Sweepers eats up tropes but wins with unforced enthusiasm. It's true, Hollywood would have bungled it. Also on Netflix: Start-up is a quirky series about young entrepreneurs in the tech industry. Hello My Twenties is a series about roommates starting college that starts off breezy but gets more complex and serious as it goes on.

By: jabah

jabah — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 17:30:13 -0800

I enjoyed watching Choi Kang-hee in the light-weight time travel drama "Hello, Me" on Netflix. She's captivating. Korean time travel dramas, of which there are many, are unique in that they virtually never deal with cause and effect, but are rather focused on how people from one time would interact with people from another time. I loved the time travel dramas Rooftop Prince and Queen In-hyun's Man too. But it seems like that golden era, which produced those shows, Secret Garden, etc. is now in the past.