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Korean Cinema
Celebrating the vibrance and immediacy of South Korean cinema.
Bong Joon-ho's Oscar-winning Parasite (2020) may have been many people's first exposure to South Korean cinema, but the celebrated film in fact represented a culmination of two decades' development for a prodiguous generation of cinematic talent.
Here we present a selection of modern Korean classics, including works from established directors like Park Chan-wook; but also films that were big homegrown box-office successes yet less widely seen outside Korea. All of them as deserving of wider appreciation as that achieved by Parasite.
The collection is complementary to the survey of Korean cinema presented in BFI Southbank’s two-month season of Korean cinema in partnership with Korean Cultural Centre UK (KCCUK) and Korean Film Council. The selection of films here is intended to follow on directly from the New Korean Cinema (1996-2003) strand presented in our BFI Southbank season, to highlight the cinematic achievements of the past twenty years.
OldboyOldboy
Thriller2003120 minsDirector: Park Chan-wook
Park’s wilfully grotesque fable about an abductee trying to fathom the mysteries of his past.
SleepSleep
Horror202394 minsDirector: Jason Yu
A recently married couple find their lives turning upside down as a result of the husband’s nocturnal behaviour.
A Bittersweet LifeA Bittersweet Life
Action and Adventure2005120 minsDirector: Kim Jee-woon and Doo Hong Jung
A hitman becomes the target in this ultra-stylish neo noir from Kim Jee-woon.
The HandmaidenThe Handmaiden
Period drama2016146 minsDirector: Park Chan-wook
Park Chan-wook (Oldboy, Stoker) channels Sarah Waters’ novel Fingersmith, to create a sumptuous twisty psychological thriller full of erotic intrigue.
The HousemaidThe Housemaid
Thriller2010107 minsDirector: Im Sang-soo
An enigmatic housemaid and her wealthy, totalitarian employer begin an affair that will have disastrous consequences for them both.
Memories of MurderMemories of Murder
Detective drama2003131 minsDirector: Bong Joon-ho
A pair of detectives clash trying to solve the brutal murder of two women, in Bong Joon-ho’s masterful blend of true crime and dark social satire.
Barking Dogs Never BiteBarking Dogs Never Bite
Comedy2000111 minsDirector: Bong Joon-ho
A professor takes drastic action to silence a barking dog in this superb debut feature from Bong Joon-ho, the Oscar-winning director of Parasite.
Lady VengeanceLady Vengeance
2005115 minsDirector: Park Chan-wook
Following Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance and Oldboy, Park Chan-wook completes his thematically linked trilogy of revenge.