| an_apple | 2007-11-30 08:20 |
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A Japanese Wave in Korean Movie Theaters? Two Japanese films are quietly but surely making their presence feltin Korean theaters. “We Shall Overcome Someday”and “La Maison deHimiko”are enjoying unprecedented popularity among movie lovers hereeven as the gray men from both sides continue to scowl at each otheracross the East Sea. “Love Letter” was among the movies that enjoyed some measure ofpopularity here after the country partly opened its door to Japanesepopular culture in 1998. Some fear that a “Japanese Wave” to rival theKorean Wave elsewhere in Asia — not least in Japan itself — could sweepthe country’s cinemas. Not yet, movie critics say. The fact that some Japanese movies arenow drawing the crowds does not mean all movies from the islandcountries will. But they do point to a change in Korean tastes. Thus“La Maison de Himiko”, which opened in a mere five cinemas nationwide,has attracted as many as 70,000 viewers by word of mouth alone despitethe fact it is an art film and there have been no extra promotionalefforts. The same is true of “We Shall Overcome Someday”, which hasseen 90 percent of seats occupied, an equally unexpected success.  Takaoka Sosuke, Sawajiri Erika and the director Izutsu Kazuyuki(from left), pose at a press conference to promote “We Shall OvercomeSomeday” in Seoul on Sunday. The film tells the story of young ethnicKoreans in Japan in the late 1960s. The Japanese movies that have drawn crowds in Korea recently haveone thing in common: they are good at mixing serious themes and associal issues with a zesty, original imagination. The film critic ShimYoung-seop says until a few years ago it was melodramas appealing to afeminine sensibility like those of director Iwai Shunji orphilosophical anime movies, most of them produced by Miyajaki Hayao,that were popular here. But today young Korean people favor Japanesemovies that exhibit a kind of cheerfully bizarre view of the world notunlike comic books. “These movies are on the same wavelength with theyoung generation in the country, who are allergic to overt emotions andcan’t stand anything ordinary,” he adds. While “La Maison de Himiko” deals with the taboo topic du jour,homosexuality, it succeeds in making viewers laugh by offering a freshlook at the issue. “We Shall Overcome Someday” tells a seriouspolitical story about ethnic Koreans in Japan in the 1960s but lightensthe tone with its depiction of the stumbling efforts of young people.Both are pointedly non-mainstream. This newfound affection for Japanese films has not gone unnoticed bytheir makers, who are trying to have more contact with Korean fans.Korea has become an important test market for them. “Japanese movieproducers pay a lot of attention to promoting their movies in Korea.They themselves take care of schedules of Japanese actors or actressesvisiting Korea. It seems that they want to take reverse advantage ofthe Korean Wave,” said a staffer with the distributor of “Swing Girls”,a Japanese film scheduled to be released next week. Lee Ae-suk of CineQua Non Korea said, “The Korean market isn’t big, but as Korean moviesimprove in quality, so do the tastes of the nation’s moviegoers.” As aresult, she adds, the market is becoming more important to Japanesefilmmakers. Written by Chosun Ilbo - Seoul,South Korea Sawajiri Erika China: http://sawajiri-erika.cn/2007/11/a-japanese-wave-in-korean-film-theatres.html |
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