Korean Entertainment News 2012 - 2013

katt

July 25, 2013

Seven celebrity soldiers sent to military prison for scandalous outing

By Kim Eun-jung YonhapNews

SEOUL, July 25 (Yonhap) -- Seven celebrity soldiers who were caught on camera drinking and entering a massage parlor were sentenced to several days in a military prison for violating the military code of conduct, the defense ministry said Thursday.

   The soldiers faced unprecedented tough disciplinary actions after a local TV network last month secretly taped them. They included K-pop star Rain and Seven, drinking together in a private restaurant following a performance for a military event. Two of them were caught by a camera crew in front of a massage parlor late at night after failing to get service.

   The incident caused a fierce nationwide backlash in a country where the mandatory two-year military service for all males is taken very seriously, prompting the defense ministry to abolish the controversial celebrity recruiting system last week.

   The soldiers were serving for the Defense Media Agency (MDA), a unit that has provided programming for TV and radio broadcasts to promote a positive image of the military since 1997.

   Following a special audit, the ministry's disciplinary committee on Thursday announced disciplinary actions for eight soldiers who damaged the public image of the military and lowered the morale of other regular soldiers.

   Seven soldiers received a prison term ranging from 4-10 days, while one was grounded to his unit for 10 days. After the ruling, they were immediately sent to a military prison at the defense ministry compound, which is guarded by military police.

   "These disciplinary actions applied fair and thorough sentencing rules," the committee said in a statement.

   As the celebrity soldier unit was abolished, a total of 15 soldiers under the DMA will be relocated to other Army units.

   The military's alleged special treatment of celebrities has frequently been the subject of criticism as several celebrities serving military duty were seen enjoying more freedom than ordinary soldiers.

   Earlier this year, K-pop star Rain got in trouble when paparazzi photos showed him secretly dating top actress Kim Tae-hee. He was grounded to his unit for a week for violating the code of conduct.

   The military service is a highly sensitive issue in South Korea where political candidates lose elections because they or their sons have not served in the military. Some celebrities and athletes have been arrested and forced into near exile after getting caught evading the draft.

katt

July 25, 2013

Some celebs learn SNS the hard way

By Jung Min-ho The Korea Times


Baik Min-jung                                     Ki Sung-yeung

Celebrities use social media as effective marketing tools for maintaining their high media profiles. But it only takes a few careless mistakes on Facebook and Twitter for such sites to become the places where careers can crash and burn.
Football star Ki Sung-yeung and actor Choi Phillip recently learned the hard way that it’s probably not a good idea to rant at your coach on Facebook or broadcast supportive tweets about your pop singer friends caught slacking off from their mandatory military duty.

Two actresses also didn’t get the message early enough and ended up taking a hit to their incomes and perhaps an even bigger hit to their career prospects.

Baik Min-jung, part of the cast from the popular musical ''A Tale of Two Cities,’’ found herself under the guillotine of public opinion after she complained about signing autographs for fans on her Facebook page. And then co-star Lim Hye-young was foolish enough to press the ''like’’ button.

''I hate autograph events. I don’t want to smile and ask 'how was the performance?’ or 'what is your name?’ to fans after a show. It gives me muscle cramps,’’ Baik wrote, making the classic mistake of biting the hands that feed her.

After facing a torrent of criticism, Baik tweeted an apology and said that she was just trying to express how tired she was. Lim also apologized on her Facebook page, saying that she ''liked’’ the message without actually reading it.

''I 'liked’ it without reading it because it had a picture of me (and her). I planned to read the post after the show.’’

But it was too late. BOM Korea, the production company staging the show, decided to suspend Baik for six performances and Lim for three for disrespecting fans.

It could be argued that the punishments were harsh considering the severity of their actions. But while Baik and Lim are obviously talented, they are not front-line names who sell tickets. Perhaps, it’s not wise to give fans a reason to dislike you when you are easily replaceable.

A series of recent social media debacles highlight how powerful it can be, not only in a positive way, but also in a negative way. Social media was critical about the worldwide success of Psy, the ''Gangnam Style’’ rapper. And it could be said that Psy was smart to use social media as a promotional tool, but not as a personal diary.

Some celebrities such as Kang Ye-bin and Clara have also drawn positive reactions to their social media pages, which are abundant in sexy photos and economic in words.

After Ki’s comments aimed at former national team manager Choi Kang-hee were targeted by Internet users earlier this month, the team were given a special lecture about the ''dangers’’ of social media. National team striker Kim Shin-wook said afterwards that he wouldn’t go near social media at all.

And one can expect that many other celebrities will eventually follow Kim’s example.

katt

July 25, 2013

'Snowpiercer' amazes visually but story falls short

By CARLA SUNWOO Korea JoongAng Daily


Left: Rich children study in a classroom train car in “Snowpiercer.” Right: Song Kang-ho plays a security expert. Provided by CJ Entertainment

With opening day looming for Bong Joon-ho’s hotly anticipated “Snowpiercer,” Korean cinephiles are anxiously wondering how the big-concept, big-budget blockbuster will be received, both in Korea and abroad.

Bong is one of Korea’s top directors, and his last attempt at science fiction, the 2006 creature feature “The Host,” rewrote nearly all the country’s box office records.

Bong’s colleagues have recently tried their hands at Hollywood - Kim Jee-woon with “The Last Stand” and Park Chan-wook with “Stoker” - to lukewarm results, so many wonder how Bong compares.

“Snowpiercer” certainly has more substance than the projects of Kim and Park. Taken from the French graphic novel “Le Transperceneige,” Bong has spent nine years bringing this story to the big screen, and his dedication shows.

It is a postapocalyptic tale, set after an ill-fated attempt to prevent global warming, turns Earth to ice. All that is left alive on the frozen planet are the people traveling on a huge train circling the continents on a gigantic track, continually running to prevent it from freezing over.

The train is divided rigidly by class, with the rich and pampered in the front, and the poor and hopeless in the filthy back carriages.

The $40 million movie is also Bong’s “least Korean” work to date, and, while not an art-house movie, it’s not really your typical blockbuster either, which puts the film in a peculiar position.

“Snowpiercer” begins 17 years after the train started its endless journey. A team of heroic upstarts in the back - headed by Curtis (Chris Evans), who is joined by his friend Edgar (Jamie Bell) and desperate mom Tanya (Octavia Spencer) - have grown tired of being treated like dirt, so make a bid to meet the enigmatic commander of the train, Wilford (Ed Harris), to change things.

To help them on their difficult quest across compartments, they enlist the train’s security engineer, Namgoong Minsoo (Song Kang-ho), who’s been imprisoned in a coffin-like cell.

Opposing them is the pure-evil spokeswoman for the rich, Mason (Tilda Swinton).

As the group passes through each compartment toward the front, the film paints a clear picture of the ridiculousness of humanity, demanding class hierarchy even on a journey without an end, in a world that’s already ended. In some ways, the class divisions compare to “The Hunger Games,” with the filthy poor and the absurd flamboyance of the rich.

To be sure, the film’s criticisms of the divide between those with power and those without is a theme we’ve all seen before and can relate to.

But the high point of “Snowpiercer” is definitely its set design, which is incredibly detailed and just amazing. Each class on the train is a totally different world, from the dazzling opulence of first class - with its greenhouse, sauna and parties - to the “tail,” where people are treated like rats, are fed disgusting “protein bars” and have no showers.

The biggest problem with the movie is that the main characters just don’t come together as an ensemble. Character development is definitely not the film’s strong suit. Each bizarre individual sticks out and feels as disjointed as the carriages they are trekking through.

You do have to give props, though, for Bong’s choice of actors. Combining actors from around the world really helps give the sense that this train contains the last bits of humanity. However, given the material, it is frustrating that so much potential lies untapped.

The scenes between Song, who only speaks in Korean, and Evans, speaking in English, inject some humor into the story. But with their communications coming through Google’s Babel Fish-esque translations, it’s hard to feel empathy for or solidarity with the characters.

Both actors are excellent leads, but together with Evans’ melodramatic urgency and Song’s distanced attitude, they just don’t mesh.

Ironically, Bong’s portrayal of the two Korean characters in the story sometimes veers into Hollywood-like cliche - unintelligible, kooky Asians, who are far too much one-note characters.

The movie definitely has the power to draw viewers in with its display of strange and bizarre visuals, but as the characters move from one compartment to the next, the characters seem to act more like spectators than real people that you understand and feel for.

There is sense of urgency in all films like this that comes from focusing on the task at hand; the mystery that drives the story to its conclusion. But in “Snowpiercer,” this is where Bong comes up short. There are so many characters and events that could have benefited from a deeper examination, and movie leaves you with more questions than when you entered.

But even mediocre Bong Joon-ho is still Bong Joon-ho. And this is some visionary science fiction. Between those two elements, “Snowpiercer” is guaranteed to find itself a cult following around the world. Box office domination, however, is another matter.

The film opens Thursday all across Korea.

katt

July 25, 2013

Will 'Knee Drop Guru' end?

By Lee Sun-min Korea JoongAng Daily



Nine months after being brought back to the small screen, the MBC talk show “Knee Drop Guru” may be canceled, according to local media reports yesterday. The show came back as its original host, Kang Ho-dong, returned to the entertainment industry after it was revealed that he evaded paying taxes.

The rumors about the show’s cancellation rose after the broadcaster scheduled a pilot entertainment program, “Story Show Hwasubun,” in the same time slot when “Knee Drop Guru” airs on Thursday evenings.

An MBC official was quoted as saying that the talk show is provisionally decided to be canceled, although it has already recorded some interviews with local celebrities and athletes that have not been aired. The official added that the program was given until August to improve its ratings when it returned to the small screen in November.

The show, which began its run in 2007, was once one of the nation’s most popular talk shows, but it struggled after its revival due to fierce competition with other entertainment shows.

katt

July 25, 2013

Court: Lee must pay agency

By Lee Sun-min Korea JoongAng Daily

The Supreme Court of Korea ordered actress Lee Mi-sook of the KBS drama “You’re the Best, Lee Soon Shin” to pay 120 million won ($107,512) to her former management agency yesterday.

The Contents Media sued Lee, claiming that she breached her four-year contract that she signed in January 2006 by moving to another agency without any consent in January 2009. The Contents Media sought 200 million won in compensation.

The ruling settled Lee’s dispute with the agency. While the lawsuit was ongoing, the actress and the agency were also in hot water over Lee’s previous romantic involvement with a man 17 years her junior when the agency revealed the story. It was presumed that the agency paid a large amount of compensation to a young man to keep him quiet about the secret affair.

katt

July 26, 2013

'The Terror Live' offers ample entertainment
Actor Ha Jung-woo impressive as TV news anchor facing a terrorist threat

By Claire Lee The Korea Herald

After roles as a dorky man in “Love Fiction” and a hapless North Korean agent in “The Berlin File,” Ha Jung-woo returns as a driven, selfish news anchor who receives a terrorist threat during his live radio show in his latest film “The Terror Live.”

The film is an ambitious, thorough and highly entertaining project ― arguably one of the best local thrillers so far this year ― created by up-and-coming director Kim Byeong-woo.

Ha, whose previous collaborations with emerging directors including Na Hong-jin’s “The Chaser” and Yoon Jong-bin’s “Nameless Gangster” brought the filmmakers into prominence, once again proved his acting caliber.


A scene from “The Terror Live.” (Lotte Entertainment)

The film will likely prove his commercial viability as well, once it hits the local theaters next week. On top of his performance, the disaster flick is complemented by plausible, solid CG effects and a socially conscious script that touches on the issues of power, commercialization of journalism, and the socially marginalized.

The film’s protagonist, Yoon Young-hwa (played by Ha), is a highly flawed character. The former primetime TV news anchor has been demoted, and is now the bitter host of a current affairs radio show. While on air, he gets a call from a terrorist minutes before he blows up Mapo Bridge ― the bridge that connects Mapo and Yeouido, Seoul’s main business and investment banking district, just outside his studio building.

Thinking that doing an exclusive phone interview with the terrorist on television would help him regain his former position, he purposely does not call the police. Instead, he negotiates with his boss, Cha Dae-eun (played by Lee Kyung-young) and strikes a dangerous, unethical deal with the terrorist to talk with him on the phone on TV, live.

It is apparent that both Yoon and his boss don’t really care about the victims. For Yoon, whose previous marriage to a fellow reporter ended in a bitter divorce, the attack is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to rise back to the top. His boss’ main interests, on the other hand, are ratings and commercial profit.

“Use words such as ‘TERROR’ and ‘SHOCKING’ as many times as possible,” Cha advises Yoon through the teleprompter.

As the live show progresses, Yoon faces a series of unexpected and terrifying situations. The terrorist, who claims to be a 50-something construction worker who lost his coworkers in a senseless industrial accident, reveals to Yoon only that he has set a bomb in the anchor’s earphone for the show. He threatens Yoon that the bomb will explode in his ear, live on air, if he does not get what he wants: a public apology from the president for the deaths of his colleagues.

Not knowing what is in Yoon’s ear, Cha advises him not to talk about the president on air. The newsroom is a scene of chaos as the police force joins the broadcasters. All those involved ― Yoon, Cha, the police, other broadcasters and the Blue House ― exploit terrorism for their own interests. The police want to chase down the terrorist as soon as possible, while the broadcasters want the opposite to maximize its profits.

The only exception is Yoon’s ex-wife and reporter Ji-soo, who volunteers to report from the site of the terrorist attack despite the obvious dangers. Meanwhile, the president doesn’t appear at all in the film.

As the movie progresses, Yoon’s illegal deeds committed in the past are revealed. Viewers learn more about the terrorist toward the end of the film ― why he chose Yoon to be his messenger. By the end of the film, Yoon’s world view is completely shattered by the horrific experience.

Actor Ha’s performance of the character’s transformation ― a bitter, ambitious man to the disillusioned, regretting soul ― is deeply nuanced, vulnerable and well crafted.

“The Terror Live” is a well-made commercial film that thoroughly entertains the audience from the beginning to the end.

A Lotte Entertainment release, “The Terror Live” opens in local theaters on Aug. 1.

katt

July 26, 2013

Hallyu Line
Jung, Oh to join 'Medical Top Team'

The Korea Times


Jung Ryeo-won


Oh Yeon-seo

Actress Jung Ryeo-won will team up with hallyu star Kwon Sang-woo in the upcoming drama series “Medical Top Team.”Directed by Kim Do-hoon, who shot the popular epic “The Moon Embracing the Sun,” the drama will be aired in October on MBC.

Renowned for her supporting role in “My Lovely Samsoon” in 2005, Jung will take the lead role of Seo Ju-young, a cardiothoracic doctor, with a strong charisma and humanity.

“The character Jung will play is a perfectionist who overcomes difficult situations and finally becomes a top cardiothoracic surgeon. She has decided to take the role as she can learn many things from the character,” her agency said.

Also, Oh Yeon-seo will join the drama in the role of Choi Ah-jin, the youngest cardiothoracic surgeon in the hospital.   

Meanwhile, Kwon will play the role of Park Tae-shin, a lead character who is a specialist in cancer surgery.

katt

July 26, 2013

Hwang, Ji may join drama

By Lee Sun-min Korea JoongAng Daily

Will actress Hwang Jung-eum of the MBC drama “Golden Time“ and actor Ji Sung of MBC drama “Royal Family” work together in a drama?

After the two celebrities showed great harmony in a commercial for a local retailer last year, many are excited to hear that they are now considering roles in the upcoming KBS drama, tentatively named “Secret.”

If they take the offer from the broadcaster, Hwang will play a cheerful character who takes the blame for a hit-and-run accident that was caused by her boyfriend in the drama scheduled to start in September.

The boyfriend, a designated heir of a local conglomerate, may be played by Ji, who later leaves Hwang despite her courageous act.

The drama will replace “The Blade and Petal,” in which actors Uhm Tae-woong and Kim Ok-bin play roles, when it ends its run in September.

katt

July 26, 2013

Shinhwa keeps leading way

By Lee Sun-min Korea JoongAng Daily



The boy group Shinhwa has been introduced in the monthly magazine The Atlantic as an example of an idol group with lasting power.

In the story titled What the Backstreet Boys Could Learn from K-Pop, the magazine said each and every member of Shinhwa is still active in the entertainment scene in their 30s - 15 years after their debut - unlike members of the Backstreet Boys, who have not been active in the scene or popular among the younger generation since the group debuted in 1993.

It said there is hope for the American idol group, saying, “Luckily, they have a model to imitate: Shinhwa, the Korean equivalent of the Backstreet Boys.”

Shinhwa, which debuted five years after the American group, released its 11th album, “The Classic” in May to show they can still coordinate a powerful and serious performance while each member shows a more comical or down-to-earth character on talk shows or other programs.

“What the Backstreet Boys can learn from Sinhwa is to get over the awkwardness of being grown men in a boy band and embrace the jokes thrown their way,” said the magazine.

“They over-rely on puns that only older fans would get, or worse yet, puns that will only serve to trigger sneers from younger pop fans.”

The group is scheduled to perform at the 2013 Shinhwa Grand Finale “The Classic” concert in Seoul for two days starting Aug. 3 at Seoul Olympic Park in Songpa, southern Seoul.

katt

July 26, 2013

7 celebrity soldiers jailed

By Lee Sun-min Korea JoongAng Daily

The Ministry of National Defense has ordered singer Se7en, whose real name is Choi Dong-wook, Sangchu, whose real name is Lee Sang-chul, and five other celebrity soldiers who were serving their military duty in a special entertainment unit to confinement in a military jail.

Se7en and Sangchu have been given 10 days as they were caught visiting a massage parlor late at night in June, as reported by SBS TV channel’s program “Scene 21.”

The other five, who had been carrying unapproved cell phones at the military unit, received four days in prison.

Many netizens have criticized the punishment imposed on the soldiers for being too light. They say that the ministry are just trying to prove that they are taking some action regarding the issue.

However, others argue that the punishment carries some significance as it is the first time the ministry has acknowledged the problems surrounding entertainment soldiers.

After the controversial media report, the ministry announced last week that it will dissolve the Defense Media Agency’s public relations support unit, which is composed of 15 celebrity soldiers, by Thursday.

katt

July 26, 2013

Show focuses on Lee's roles

By Lee Sun-min Korea JoongAng Daily


The recent works of actor Lee Byung-hun, who became a Hollywood star after acting in movies produced in the United States, including the “G.I. Joe” series and “Red 2,” will be shown in a documentary explaining how he was able to become a world star and how this opened the door for other domestic celebrities to participate in overseas movie production.

Broadcaster SBS produced the documentary about Lee and will air the show tomorrow on “SBS Special” at 11:15 p.m.

The actor, who became popular across Asia after the 2003 drama “All In,” did not settle for being a Hallyu (Korean wave) star, instead aiming for Hollywood and receiving a role in 2009 movie “G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra.”

After achieving fame in this role, he was cast for the movie’s sequel, and later “Red 2,” acting alongside big-name stars Bruce Willis and Catherine Zeta-Jones in the film that opened in Korea last week.

Lee was also able to get his roles in the movies, which were originally set as Japanese or Chinese, changed to characters of Korean heritage so that global movie fans could discover more about Korea and its culture.

Meanwhile, the broadcaster has also made a special documentary on veteran singer Cho Yong-pil, who recently created a buzz when he came back to the entertainment scene. It will be aired on Aug. 4.

katt

July 26, 2013

Celebrity Soldiers to Be Put in Brig

The Chosun Ilbo

Seven celebrity soldiers will be put in brig for going AWOL to visit an adult massage parlor and bringing private mobile phones into barracks.

The Defense Ministry on Thursday announced the findings of a special investigation of the entertainment corps that had been started early this month.


Sangchu (left) and Se7en Sangchu (left) and Se7en

Lee Sang-cheol, known as Sangchu, and Choi Dong-wook, the pop star more commonly known as Se7en, will be locked up in brig for 10 days for leaving their motel to visit an adult massage parlor after a performance in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province on June 21.

Five others will be put in brig for four days for illegally bringing their mobile phones into barracks. And a corporal will be confined to his barracks for 10 days for going AWOL to watch a movie after the same performance in Chuncheon.

The soldiers will be taken into custody after a court procedure and their period of military service extended in proportion to the number of days in custody. But their penalties will not be recorded as criminal offenses on their military service documents.

The measure is widely seen as a sap to growing public discontent with the coddled existence of the entertainment corps.

Earlier, Jung Ji-hoon, better known by his stage name Rain, was released from the military on July 10. He had been confined to barracks for seven days for going on dates with his girlfriend, actress Kim Tae-hee (33), while on official duty.

The ministry on July 18 abruptly announced it is shutting down the entertainment corps, which was established for singers and actors drafted into mandatory service. Of the current 15 celebrity soldiers, three who have fewer than three months to serve will be allowed to finish their service with ordinary soldiers in the ministry compound. The others will be reassigned to frontline units in Gyeonggi and Gangwon provinces.

katt

July 29, 2013

'Grandpas Over Flowers' a ratings hit

By Moon Gwang-lip Korea JoongAng Daily



A reality show about four veteran actors has emerged as a surprising hit in this country obsessed with good-looking youths.

According to Nielsen Korea on Saturday, the fourth episode of “Grandpas Over Flowers” on Friday recorded a 5.3 percent average viewing rate. The rate for the hour-long show on tvN peaked at 7.3 percent at one time on Friday. In Seoul and the metropolitan area only, the viewing rate of the show hit 8.9 percent at one time.

This amounts to a blockbuster for Korean cable channels, where the threshold rate to be a popular program is 1 percent. Most of hits on cable channels record a viewing rate of between 1 percent and 3 percent.

Aired at 8:50 p.m. every Friday, “Grandpas Over Flowers” features four actors whose average age is nearly 74 - Lee Soon-jae (77), Shin Gu (76), Park Geun-hyung (73) and Baek Il-seob (69). On the show, the four television fixtures, who often play austere family patriarchs on television dramas, elicit humor with their self-inflicted troubles during their group backpack trip overseas. In the first season, they went to France and many of the episodes are about their tolerance, or lack thereof, of foreign foods.

During Friday’s episode, they visited a French restaurant in Paris known for fig trotters, a dish that is also popular in Korea. They tasted it, but obviously it was a different taste from what they expected, and they had to “detox” with budae jjigae, or a Korean style spicy meat stew, along with a cup of soju as well as Korean cups of noodles.

katt

July 29, 2013

Minho to star in new medical drama

By Lee Sun-min Korea JoongAng Daily



Minho of the boy group SHINee will be taking on an acting role in the MBC drama “Medical Top Team.”

He will play a cardiovascular surgeon named Kim Sung-woo, the youngest member of the medical team.

The character is set to be loved by other team members because he pays attention to things that happen to them.

Minho’s character will try to steal the hearts of young women, and he will play a guardian angel to one fellow doctor who is played by actress Oh Yeon-seo, best known from her work in the MBC drama “Oh Ja-ryeong is Coming.”

“It is an honor to work with other actors and actresses,” he said, according to local media reports.

“I’ll do my best to learn a lot, so that I can show a more mature side of myself through this drama.”

The drama is scheduled to be aired in October.

katt

July 29, 2013

Girls' Generation roots for baseball players in LA

By Lee Sun-min Korea JoongAng Daily



Members of Girls’ Generation visited Los Angeles to cheer on two Korean baseball players having a match against one another with their respected Major League teams on Sunday.

Korea’s Ryu Hyun-jin from the LA Dodgers played against Choo Shin-soo of the Cincinnati Reds in Dodger Stadium in California, and Taeyeon, Tiffany, and Sunny visited the stadium to cheer for the players.

Prior to the game’s start, Tiffany sung the U.S. national anthem, while Taeyeon sung the Korean one. Sunny threw the ceremonial first pitch.

Other Korean celebrities came out to the game to support the two players, who are working in the U.S.

Singer Psy and actor Song Seung-hun of the MBC drama “When A Man Loves” were caught watching the game by local broadcasters’ cameras.
LA Dodgers beat the Cincinnati Reds four to one.

katt

July 29, 2013

'Cold Eyes' Hits 5-Million Mark in Cinema Attendance

The Chosun Ilbo

"Cold Eyes," which was released on July 3, drew 5.07 million moviegoers as of Saturday, according to the Korean Film Council.

Expectations are building that it could become one of a select group in Korean cinematic history to draw 10 million viewers.

"Red 2" topped the daily box office on the same day, followed by "The Wolverine" and "Turbo."

"Cold Eyes" is an action movie that revolves around a group of detectives who track down high-profile criminals.

katt

July 29, 2013

Shinhwa's longevity introduced in US magazine

By Huh Yoon-jin The Korea Times


Longest-surviving K-pop group Shinhwa

“The Atlantic,” an American literary and cultural commentary magazine, has introduced K-pop band Shinhwa as a representative example for its longest-lasting popularity in Korea.

Titled “What the Backstreet Boys Could Learn From K-Pop Two Decades Old,” the article compared and analyzed the two-decades-old bands, Backstreet Boys and Shinhwa in its online edition on Tuesday.

Backstreet Boys is a five-member American boy band that is also known as the best-selling boy band in history, which sold over 130 million records worldwide since their debut in 1993.

Shinhwa is a six-member Korean boy band which made its debut in 1998 and is still enjoying popularity both at home and abroad.

The magazine pointed out one of the biggest reasons for the decline of the Backstreet Boy’s popularity was a failure to adapt to a new music market. It claimed, “to attract new fans, the boy group of yesteryear (Backstreet Boys) may need to readjust its strategy” and suggested Shinhwa, the Korean equivalent of the Backstreet Boys, as a model to imitate.

The article introduced a couple of secrets on Shinhwa’s long-lasting popularity. It wrote “an integral part to the group's longevity is smart self-awareness” and gave an example of the group coming out on a TV program, SNL Korea, in which they poked fun at themselves.

In one episode, the group sarcastically described how ridiculous it is for people of their age to be performing synchronized routines to pop songs aimed at teens. Here, they recalled the importance of self-awareness as a senior group in the Korean hierarchical music industry.

The article also suggested that the Backstreet Boys should overcome the awkwardness of being grown men in a boy band and embrace the jokes thrown their way, which Shinhwa has done successfully.

After Shinhwa’s successful comeback with their 11th studio album, the group is holding “2013 Shinhwa Grand Finale: The Classic in Seoul” concert at the Olympic Gymnastics Arena, Seoul, Songpa-gu in Aug. 3-4.

katt

July 30, 3013

T-ara to Release Summer-Themed Single

The Chosun Ilbo

Girl group T-ara is hoping to continue its fame with the digital single "Bikini," an upbeat summer song that will be released on Aug. 1.


T-ara /Courtesy of Core Contents Media T-ara /Courtesy of Core Contents Media

Due to the band's scheduled promotional tour of Hong Kong and Japan, the girls won't be able to appear on TV programs in Korea, but will instead promote the song through fun-loving music videos.

katt

July 29, 2013

Psy's latest project in works

By Lee Sun-min Korea JoongAng Daily

Global star Psy is getting ready to surprise the world once again. He is aiming to release another album in September, said his agency, YG Entertainment, according to local media reports.

The singer is working with composer Yoo Gun-hyung, whom he collaborated with on with his global hit song “Gangnam Style” and “Gentleman.”

One of the officials at the agency was quoted as saying that he will put together multiple songs together instead of releasing just a single song, according to reports.

“As far as I understand, [Psy] already has some songs that he likes,” said the official.

It has been said that it is about time for him to produce an album for a solo performance as he needs more songs to perform at the major events he gets invited to across the world.

katt

July 29, 2013

Tilda Swinton: Making 'Snowpiercer' was like 'being in kindergarten'
British actress shares her experience starring in Korean director Bong’s latest thriller

By Claire Lee The Korea Herald

What was it like to work with Korean director Bong Joon-ho in making a dystopian sci-fi thriller?

According to famed British actress Tilda Swinton, it was like “being in a kindergarten.”

“What made me decide to be in a Bong Joon-ho film? Bong Joon-ho,” the actress said in a press conference promoting their latest collaboration, “Snowpiercer,” in Seoul, Monday.

“Not only his work, but really, the person. We met maybe two years ago and we became friends instantly. And we wanted to play together. I can’t say anything more complicated than that. We wanted to play together like a pair of children and it was like a kindergarten for us.”


Tilda Swinton (left) and Chris Evans look at each other during a press conference to promote their sci-fi thriller “Snowpiercer” in Seoul on Monday. ( Yonhap News)

This is Swinton’s (“I Am Love,” “The Chronicles of Narnia,” “We Need to Talk about Kevin”) first time working with Bong ― who jokingly called her an “elf” during the press conference ― and her respect for the director was obvious.

“He knows exactly what he wants,” the 52-year-old actress said when asked about Bong’s directing style.

“But what’s really surprising is that (Bong is) someone who knows so clearly what he wants and yet in the heart of the working process, he remains free. So he has everything planned, but there is still some possibility of free range for the actors. And that I think is really original. And that’s why his films have the human heart in middle of all the complex things in this film; the action sequences, this very precise mise-en-scene, the credible cinematic frame. There is always this possibility in the heart of it.”

Director Bong’s (“Mother,” “The Host”) latest work takes place in a post-apocalyptic world after a failed attempt to halt global warming. The manmade failure precipitates another Ice Age that kills every living thing on the planet, except those who live on the Snowpiercer, a train powered by a perpetual motion engine.

Each of the train’s cabins is labeled by social class. The farther away from the “eternal” and “sacred” engine ― which is located at the very front of the train ― the more dire the poverty and the more harrowing the living conditions. The plot of the film develops as the destitute inhabitants of the last railcar organize a revolution for a dignified life.

In the film, Swinton plays Mason, the dictatorial prime minister of the ruling front section of the train. The character is abusive and controlling in the beginning, and gradually becomes disturbingly obsequious to the angry working-class revolutionaries. For the role, whose gender is, according to Swinton, ambiguous ― “who is it to say Mason is female? Maybe Mason is an elf,” she said ― the actress put on some funky makeup. In the film, she wears a prosthetic nose, a set of false, crooked teeth and artificially-protruding lips. In fact, creating Mason was one of the most fun parts of their “kindergarten,” it seems.

“When I first met director Bong, which was in Cannes, I had decided I didn’t want to make any more films,” the actress said.

“This is the decision that I make after every single film that I make. And I said to director Bong, well, of course, I’d love to work with you, but I don’t want to make any films. And that one (and only) condition in which I will make another film is that I will have some fun. So we started to play with the idea of what would amuse us about this.

“And honestly, practically, I’ve always had this fantasy of playing a character who has a nose like Mason’s,” she continued. “And I shared this with director Bong, expecting him to may be saying, ‘Well, this would be inappropriate for this character.’ But he said, ‘No, let’s do it, let’s go for it.’ And then I continued with my fantasies. The fantasy about his teeth and the fantasy about his voice. We played like children. It was no more sophisticated than a 6-year-old dressing up as an old lady or a dog. It was unsophisticated and sophisticated as that.”

The actress seemed rather weary of the series of questions asking about her experience working with the film’s international cast and crew.

“It’s very curious for me to hear constantly the references to the nationality of filmmakers,” she said. ‘I am personally a great respecter of the idea of nationality in art. I believe that cinema, in particular, is kind of a free range opportunity for all of us to be human. So in that spirit, this particular crew of people was a family. They were under the leadership of Bong, who is the big child, and it was a family of really inspired and playful individuals. For me, it felt really, really natural. Let’s face it. It felt like I was in Scotland. That’s enough of nationality conversation.”