who is the guy Jang Dong Gun?! i like the plot

"who is the guy Jang Dong Gun?!"

That's the Johnny Depp of Japan, Odagiri Joe, graduate of Fresno State University!!

"He’s an eclectic person and kind of reminds me of a Japanese version of Johnny Depp."

Mm hmm!! Odagiri (still fondly remembered for his sentai debut) and Na Young are both stunning people who built film careers out of disappearing into interesting, quirky characters. It's really a match in heaven.

Na Young playing a cipher suffused in Odagiri's beautiful sadness. It writes itself.

thanks belleza and jolee...i'll definitely watch this film when i have the chance you guys sold me on "the Johnny Depp of Japan" ^_^

"i’ll definitely watch this film "

Because this is a Kim Ki Duk film, it will probably see a limited release in the States. South Korea hates his stuff, but the West eats it up! ;)

I am excited to see this one. I love KKD's work. I recently saw Breath. It was good. I will watch Time soon.

Odagiri Joe is the Johnny Depp of Japan?? Woah. I gotta look him up. lol

omgahhh joe odagiriii!! & lee na young :)

All I gotta say is : Quirky + Surreal = Awesome! ^_^
Plus it reminds me of that spanish film about a guy falling in love with a girl in his dreams and then finding out his fate when he wakes up to find the girl. (If anyone knows which movie I mean, that'll be great because I totally forgot the name, LOL)

This is definitely a must for me... I've seen only a few of KKD's works, but Joe and LNY cant be missed.

just curious Belleza, y does S Korea hate KKD's stuff?! At least many of his movies r nth like stories we've seen before....

I've fallen for JH in 3 Iron and it was such an interesting movie!

"just curious Belleza, y does S Korea hate KKD’s stuff?! "

Both 3 Iron and "Spring Winter . . . " were blasted to hell by South Korean critics; this was actually mentioned in a LA Times Article some years ago, while doing a review of the Korean New Wave. "Pretentious", "boring," etc. KKD often remarks, bemusingly, how the West loves his films more than his own country. I loved both movies though.

This, however, is not unusual between domestic Asian audiences and Western cineastes, and quite a few culture critics have accused the Western muso status quo for merely reinforcing "Orientalization" biases in how they choose praise certain decorous auteurs (Wong Kar Wai) over more agitprop directors (Takashi Miike.) Most Chinese critics find the Western love of wuxia melodramas like Crouching Tiger and House of Flying Daggers (i.e. news reports of HK audiences actually laughing at the end of Daggers) somewhat baffling. I'm not sure how I feel about Park Chan-wook. I love his work as a writer, but as a director (and so-called auteur), I think he's more Sodenberg than Gondry. (And, though the comparison is often made, I don't think he is even in Miike's league as a pure genre technician.) I'm a Robot But It's Okay recieved lukewarm reviews in South Korea, but I actually think it's right up there with his best work. The way he pretzels the narrative around two disconnected points of view (i.e. her view of the world, his view of the world, same sandbox, real connection) was formatively wonderful authoring.

I think this one will be more appealing to their domestic audience because KDK will probably weave in melodrama and ghost story into his contemplative tone. And Odagiri Joe is a genuinely fun actor to watch (anybody see Azumi?) And, this is a opportunity for KDK to objectify Lee Na Young in a way she's kinda resisted all her film career. In other words, Na Young gets to play "beautiful" as well as "quirky."

Wow, no joke, belleza - your comment was epic.

I feel like I've been waiting forever for this film to come out ever since I read the official news, so count me in as one of the excited fans for its release.

On a side note, if America has its Johnny Depp and Odagiri Jo is Japan's, then who's S. Korea's Johnny Depp? Sorry, completely off-topic but I'm curious.

ah icic, thanks for the marvelous explanations, javabeans and belleza!

However, across the board denounced and 'hated' is baffling. I honestly dont see anything too “Orientalizational” in his works that I've seen. If they just didnt do well in the box office, that's totally understandable, but still....

I mean for Wong Ka Wai, he has his haters in HK, but many still revered his works. Wuxia is always best appreciated in prose, nobody has mastered the craft to translate it into this medium, but I think most Chinese literate audiences understand the Western appreciation of just a taste of the 'exotic', if we grew up on it, we prefer our worn novels anytime. (and I'm one of those who scoffed at Crouching Tiger though I think Ang Lee is a genius in many of his works)
Miike works r usu too gory/scary for me to appreciate. I'm a wimp.

I did brave through Azumi for Joe's sake, and Shinobi (which I don't really like)

My vote for Korea's Depp will be Jang Dun Gun, just the eerie resemblance in the looks department, I'm sold.

"I honestly dont see anything too “Orientalizational” in his works that I’ve seen. If they just didnt do well in the box office, that’s totally understandable, but still…."

Orientalization in the sense that if a film has lots of opulent, "Eastern exotic" signifiers (i.e. see Zhang Yimou's pageant films or Wong Kar Wai's In the Mood for Love) or if it makes vaguely mysterical allusions or if the Asian actresses are made "real pretty" for the (mostly white male) critics, the film is treated as uniquely "art" or "deep." But, okay, have Wong Kar Wai actually do a kind of true American film, and same critics blast him for self-indulgent, vapid "poetifications" using actors and non-actors as pretty, pitiful Objects for yet another narcissistic/quaint exercise in "all memories are tracks of tears" perfume-ad melancholy.

I don't necessarily agree with that viewpoint. (I like House of Flying Daggers and Hero.) But I think it's valuable to say that, in any intersection between East and West, there would be funny misunderstandings about where are the best places to meet.

"I mean for Wong Kar Wai, he has his haters in HK, but many still revered his works. "

I think, like Kubrick, most of his works generate mediocre-to-even hostile reviews in HK. And, then, they're re-evaluated as classics. 2046 was probably the most notable exception, since a long parade of rumour, expectation and circumstance did precede its debut(s) The cool thing about WKW is that most people pretend to admire In the Mood for Love most, but there's a great *personal* passion for his pretty much all of his other work. And usually it's that one or two movies which you really connect with, and say that's *my* WKW movie. Favorite individual moments and all that. On a meta-continental-idol level, Kimura Takuya romancing Faye Wong -- misfits, robots, lovers as a stalemate across another writer's unresolved millenniums -- was pure *squee* for me! Perfect perfect perfect!!

I'm very excited to see this film. Thanks for the info and poster pic!

sounds interesting...I really liked 3-Iron, so I definitely wanna watch this. Also, Joe Odagiri is cute:)

One of the most anticipated films for us this year.

Joe is absolutely the Johnny Depp of Japan. He actually may be even cooler than Johnny. Cho Seung Woo is my Korean Johnny Depp,
Lee Na Young is how an actress should be. Not only beautiful but completely intriguing.

"I think, like Kubrick, most of his works generate mediocre-to-even hostile reviews in HK. And, then, they’re re-evaluated as classics. 2046 was probably the most notable exception, since a long parade of rumour, expectation and circumstance did precede its debut(s) The cool thing about WKW is that most people pretend to admire In the Mood for Love most, but there’s a great *personal* passion for his pretty much all of his other work. And usually it’s that one or two movies which you really connect with, and say that’s *my* WKW movie. Favorite individual moments and all that. On a meta-continental-idol level, Kimura Takuya romancing Faye Wong — misfits, robots, lovers as a stalemate across another writer’s unresolved millenniums — was pure *squee* for me! Perfect perfect perfect!!"

So so true, perfect is the word. I don't passionately love half of WKW's , but in each of his movie there's sth striking some chords in me. His movies r all worthwhile to sit through or rewatch even if it's just for that ONE genius scene he can create. In the Mood had an almost nonexistant plot, but just to see Maggie and Tony blasting their electric glances walking back and forth that dingy alley for some wonton noodle soup was magic already. To blatantly show my age, I was a teen when ChungKing was out, sneaked in to watch it in our school uniforms and that scene of Tony talking to Garfield/soap was the cutest scene ever. 2046 understandably will be bigger than big in production that went on for years (my cousin did her whole college education whilst) AND kimura + Faye (their scenes in 2046 r so magical with a pure innocence I've never seen fr Kimura , must be the presence of Faye's aura) and all the big intriguing names in a HK movie, too bad it had boring Miss ZYZ being herself....still I think to many appreciative movie goers, it filled its hype.

So sort of back to topic, again what did the S. Korean critics say of DWar~ compared to their disdain for Mr KKD?!? lol

"So sort of back to topic, again what did the S. Korean critics say of DWar~ compared to their disdain for Mr KKD?!? lol"

Oh, South Korea and the States agree on D-War. It's extremely not good.
Actually I think D-War is the equivalent of Creed or full-bore mullets. And it probably led to mad cow disease too. ;)

D-War was so bad it was good.

Love the discourse here about films.

I love Chung King Express. I love how Tony talks to the soap about wasting away. I've always wondered if that part was improvised. In the mood for love was visually stunning and had great acting but the pace can make you want to drive nails through your eyes. I have rewatched it and though it is still slow going as the first time I saw it in the movie theater I had an opportunity to observe how gorgeous the movie is.

I enjoyed 3 iron as well and films like this as well as films like sympathy for lady vengeance makes me so excited to see these types of movies coming out of Korea. Not surprised if broad korean audience can't appreciate. These are not mass oriented films.

My personal favorite Johnny Depp film has to be Ed Wood. The acting is unbeatable. Johnny Depp plays Ed Wood with non-ironic earnestness and sweetness.

Another yay for Chungking Express! That awesome scene with the dishsoap is what came to my mind whenever my high-school English teacher would start ranting about anthropomorphism in class.

Oh dear, I googled Odagiri's Sad dreams and this popped up...

Gosh, how could he be sooooo hot?