Warchild : Genre : R

Theatrical: 2005

Studio: Panorama

Genre: Romance

Duration: 105

Summary: "April Snow," directed by Heo Jin-ho, adopts the same melodrama formula of "Winter Sonata," a runaway television hit series that touched off the boom for Korean pop culture, and, more importantly, catapulted actor Bae Yong-joon into almost mythical fame in Asia. The original Korean title of the movie is "Oechul," roughly translating into "Outing." Its English title "April Snow," however, is much more closely related to the movie's core idea. In Korea, it's quite rare to see snow falling in April, so the title suggests a hopeful message that something miraculous might soothe an ill-fated couple and consummate their Forbidden Love.

Theatrical: 1998

Studio: Tai Seng

Genre: Romance

Duration: 97

Summary: Christmas in August marks director Jin-Ho Hur's first feature length film debut, armed with limited budget but top notch actors. His filmmaking style is often compared to great Yasujiro Ozu -- most shots are long with deliberate pacing and rarely moving camera with careful framing that let us observe the action as if we are eavesdropping. Most major events are suggested but not shown. We are left to fill in the blanks using our own experience and thoughts.

The film takes place in early 80's on the outskirts of Seoul, Korea. It is a classic dying boy meets a girl story. Jung-won (Suk-Kyu Han) is in his mid-30's working at a family photoshop, living his remaining days in quiet dignity. When he meets Da-Rim (Eun-Ha Shim), a young parking meter controller, he is compelled to love. Will he allow love to consummate? The answer is not immediately apparent.

Although the subject matter is depressing, the story unfolds in very frank and honest ways. No emotional buttons are pushed. Words are rarely spoken. Yet through amazing performances, we know exactly what each character is thinking and what they want to say. At times, such restraint seems wrong, but eventually leads to something beautiful. Although the final scene is hopeful, it is sad at the same time, particularly as the end credit rolls in (accompanied by an epilogue song sung by the lead character).

Many scenes are as memorable as photographs -- school children arguing over who the most beautiful girl is in their class, old woman posing for her own funeral portrait, lead characters offering ice cream (happens three times and each marks an important milestone). There are amazingly edits, particularly the key "camera timer" scene.

Theatrical: 2007

Studio:

Genre: Romance

Summary:

Theatrical: 2008

Studio:

Genre: Romance

Duration: 105

Summary: Young music-loving Eun-gyu falls in love with energetic Jeong Won but rival Hee-won strives to drive a wedge between the two

Theatrical: 2004

Studio: Uri Movies Inc.

Genre: Romance

Duration: 112

Summary: Sang-hyon (Lee Beom-su) is a bus driver working the late shift in a quiet suburban area of Seoul. An avid vinyl fan with little ambition for much else, Sang-hyon is content to spend his free time at home, DJ’ing mix tapes of old rock songs, which he then plays on his bus route.
While some yearn for passionate or instant relationships, simple-minded bus driver Sang-hyon (Lee Bum-soo) is overly shy and merely manages to peek at the blind woman passenger he falls for.

Theatrical: 2008

Studio:

Genre: Romance

Duration: 113

Summary: Although civil servant Yun Woo is 30 years old, he's green and naive when it comes to love. Like many single men his age, he's thinking about marriage, but all his blind dates flop. He's just moved to a new apartment above quirky high school girl

Theatrical: 2006

Studio: Widemedia

Genre: Romance

Duration: 117

Summary: Korean Special 2 Disc Set. English Subtitled. Region Code:3, Only Viewable on Code-Free Players. Bonus Disc is Korean Subtitled Only.

Theatrical: 2000

Studio: Tai Seng

Genre: Romance

Duration: 96

Summary: My disappointment isn't in the movie itself, as I was VERY excited to find this film available in the US! I've been wanting a copy since I had the opportunity to watch it a few years back... however, the fact that it is for some reason DUBBED IN CANTONESE just ruins it for me :( It takes out a lot of emotion from the talented cast of Korean actors and actresses in this film. It doesn't even have an option for the original Korean audio track.

POOP!

... now if you can go find a used rental that has the Korean audio in tact, I TOTALLY recommend this film!

Theatrical: 2000

Studio: Criterion

Genre: Romance

Duration: 98

Summary: Winner of numerous awards including Best Actor at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival, "In the Mood for Love" confirmed that Hong Kong director Wong Kar-wai is a major figure in world cinema. As passionate as it is politely discreet, his film takes place in 1962 Hong Kong, where neighboring apartment dwellers Mr. Chow (Tony Leung) and Mrs. Chan (Maggie Cheung) discover that their oft-absent spouses are having an affair. This realization parallels their own mutual attraction, but fidelity and decency ensure that their intimate bond remains unspoken though deeply understood. With a stealthy, eavesdropping camera style and a screenplay created through spontaneous on-set inspiration, Wong Kar-wai crafts an intricate, finely tuned platonic romance, enhancing its ambience with a kaleidoscope of color (most notably in Cheung's dazzling wardrobe of "cheongsam" dresses) and careful attention to character detail. Deservedly placed on many critics' top 10 lists, this elegant film should not be missed. "--Jeff Shannon"

Theatrical: 2003

Studio: Tai Seng

Genre: Romance

Duration: 109

Summary: Cecilia Cheung (Running On Karma), Lau Ching Wan (Running Out Of Time) and Louis Koo (The Suspect) are the ill-fated lovers in this heartbreaking romance directed by Derek Yee (C'est La Vie, Mon Cheri). Siu Wai (Cheung) is a newlywed who suddenly finds herself widowed when her husband was killed in a car accident. Realizing that she still has to go on living and raise her son, Siu Wai decides to inherit her late husband's job as a mini-bus driver. She finds comfort in Dai Fai (Lau), a fellow driver who took pity on her. As Dai Fai falls in love with Siu Wai, however, he also begins to doubt whether his love for her and her son is just an act to compensate for his own wrong doings in the past.

Theatrical:

Studio: Art Service Korea

Genre: Romance

Summary: One couple marries out of love, then falls out of love. Another couple marries without love, then fails to find love. Enter seduction. Love Now (a.k.a. Changing Partners), directed by Jung Yoon Soo (My Girl and I), revolves around the infidelities of two married couples who inadvertently engage in couple swapping. The film features the all-star casting of Uhm Jung Hwa (Seducing Mr. Perfect), Park Yong Woo (World Of Silence), Han Chae Young (Wild Card), and Lee Dong Gun (My Boyfriend Is Type B).



Yoo Na (Uhm Jung Hwa) is a sexy fashion consultant who demands perfection in her work and marriage. Her husband of three years, Min Jae (Park Yong Woo), is a sensitive hotel manager with a gentle charisma. They share a connection more as friends than as a couple. So Yeo (Han Chae Young) is a sophisticated lighting designer who feels dissatisfied with her passionless marriage to workaholic Young Joon (Lee Dong Gun). Their marriage is nothing more than a legal contract. Their relationships take an unexpected turn when Young Joon meets Yoo Na during a fashion consultation, and Min Jae and So Yeo run in to each other in Hong Kong. All four become both victims and offenders in this deceptive game of love and seduction. Will they ever find out the truth about each other?

Theatrical: 2006

Studio:

Genre: Romance

Duration: 116

Summary: Baekmanjangja-ui cheot-sarang

Theatrical: 2006

Studio: PMP Entertainment

Genre: Romance

Duration: 97

Summary: One of the most common plots in Korean film is the traumatic tearing apart of a young couple because of a terminal disease. Most of these films start off bright and happy enough, but most of the time after the first hour or so one of the lovers learns of or reveals his or her disease and the film goes on until the sick partner dies and the other lives with the memories of his or her dead lover and tries to get on with life. My Girl and I is a bit different in the fact that from the outset that Su Ho's girlfriend dies at the young age of eighteen and that even after ten years he has not come to terms with her passing. This key feature, like reading a long flashback sequence in a novel in which the reader already knows tragic outcome, adds a tinge of melancholy to the early parts of this film because the viewer already knows that the young couple is going to be separated. However, it also makes these parts more touching as well, because it was within this brief period of time that Su Ho and Su Eun came to love each other.



While out for a swim with three of his friends, an unconscious Su Ho is rescued by the beautiful Su Eun. However, before Su Ho regains consciousness, Su Eun runs off and realizes that she lost her beeper while rescuing Su Ho. At school, Su Ho soon notices that for some reason or another Su Eun is making eyes at him and that she is taking every opportunity to be close to him. After a mild scuffle with the captain of the judo team, Su Ho and Su Eun escape the scene and begin to become closer. Because her father is quite scary, Su Eun gives Su Ho her messenger service number so they can listen to each other's messages. Through this unusual way of communication, and other methods as well, they are able to build a romantic love for each other that will seemingly last for years...



A Korean remake of Isao Yukisada's Crying Out Love in the Center of the World, Jeon Yun-su's My Girl and I really does not add much to the plethora of Korean romantic tragi-comedies, but it does take this sometimes vapid genre and breathe some new life into it with some truly great acting by the two leads. Another thing that struck me about the film was the attention to detail. Some of the most moving scenes take place within the hospital when the viewer listens to a voice over of the couple's messages, such as when Su Eun is pricked for yet another I.V. Also such attention to things like the bruises left on Su Eun's hands are hearybreaking because they are evidence of her fraility and the fleetingness of her life.

Theatrical: 1989

Studio:

Genre: Romance

Duration: 90

Summary: Sha shou hu die meng

Theatrical: 2006

Studio: CY Films

Genre: Romance

Duration: 104

Summary: This time, Choi Seong-gook comes out as the Taxi company's heir and gets into many troubles. Lee Young-eun is the passenger who falls in love with Choi where the comic romance begins.

Theatrical: 2002

Studio: Sidus Pictures

Genre: Romance

Duration: 114

Summary: Suk-won, a trader who loses all of his money (and his wife) in a market downturn is left homeless until Dae-shik, a homeless loner, rescues him. Together the two travel across the country and Dae-shik falls in love with Suk-won. Joining them in their journey is Il-joo, a wacky hooker who falls in love with Dae-shik.

Theatrical: 2007

Studio: Toei

Genre: Romance

Duration: 114

Summary:

Theatrical: 1940

Studio: Warner Home Video

Genre: Romance

Duration: 97

Summary: One of the most charming and romantic films around, this 1940 comic romance finds James Stewart ("Vertigo", "It's A Wonderful Life") working in a small shop in Budapest and longing for a girl to call his own. His coworker, Margaret Sullavan, feels the same, and soon they are both corresponding and falling in love with their respective pen pals. What they don't realize is that they are writing to and falling in love with each other, but the problem is that they can't stand each other in person. The beguiling nature of the mistaken identity formula that influenced countless films is done to perfection here, and the wry combativeness and delightful banter between the two leads makes this a very special film. "--Robert Lane"

Theatrical: 2004

Studio:

Genre: Romance

Duration: 102

Summary:

Theatrical: 2003

Studio: Warner Home Video

Genre: Romance

Duration: 95

Summary:

Theatrical:

Studio:

Genre: Romance

Summary:

Theatrical: 2001

Studio: Home Vision

Genre: Romance

Duration: 122

Summary: An impossible tale. Taro, an old man who dies homeless in Tokyo has told Yosuke, a weak-willed out-of-work salaryman about a golden statue that he left years ago in a house by the sea in Noto. Yosuke goes and he's captivated by Saeko, a young women who lives in the house where Taro left the statue. She has a strange affliction: water builds up in her and she can only vent it by wicked acts, such as shoplifting, or, more powerfully, through orgasm. Yosuke obliges, the water gives him life, as well as the plants and fish it reaches. Saeko feels shame, and she has a past. Taro's ghost urges Yosuke to fulfill his desires, but can the relationship survive?

Theatrical: 2005

Studio:

Genre: Romance

Duration: 121

Summary:

Theatrical: 2004

Studio: Sony Pictures

Genre: Romance

Duration: 93

Summary: Every so often, the convoluted love story "Zhou Yu's Train" seems to stop in its tracks and succumb to rapture, gazing on the disarmingly beautiful face of actress Gong Li. A young painter named Zhou Yu (Gong Li, "Raise the Red Lantern", "Shanghai Triad") falls headlong in love with a painfully shy poet, Chen Ching (Tony Leung Ka-Fai, "The Lover"). Twice a week she takes the train to his town to be with him, even though he's bewildered by her near-obsessive passion. On the train, a wise-cracking veterinarian (Sun Honglei) pursues Zhou Yu, but she resists his emotional directness. "Zhou Yu's Train" bounces back and forth, not only between these two romances but also in time, to confusing effect. But there's something compelling about Zhou Yu's need to love the version of her lover that she holds in her mind, and that sustains the movie through its muddled moments. "--Bret Fetzer"