Tale of Cinema (2005)

In Seoul, the paths of two men and one woman intersect and move apart from one another, centering around their love for cinema. A suicidal student meets a young woman who decides to follow ... See full summary »

Director:

Sang-soo Hong

Writer:

Sang-soo Hong

Stars:

Kim Sang-kyung, Ji-won Uhm, Ki-woo Lee

2 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Kim Sang-kyung	...	Kim Dong-soo
Ji-won Uhm	...	Choi Young-shil
Ki-woo Lee	...	Jeon Sang-won
Kyung-jin Lee
Kim Myeong Su	...	(as Myoeng-su Kim)
Jo Han-Chul	...	Boy's Older Brother (as Han-Cheol Jo)
Seung-ah Lee
Moo-Seong Choi	...	Gyeongsang Province PD
Joong-hyeon Bang
Seong-Yong Kye	...	Gentle Alumnus
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Moonsu Bang
Jung-in Choi	...	Female Alumni 2
Ju-Yeong Jang	...	Gentle Classmate's Daughter
Min-Young	...	Female Alumni 1

Storyline

In Seoul, the paths of two men and one woman intersect and move apart from one another, centering around their love for cinema. A suicidal student meets a young woman who decides to follow him in his fatal gesture. Coming out of a cinema, Tongsu, an unsuccessful filmmaker, spots a beautiful young woman, and recognizes her : she is the main actress in the film he has just seen. The life of this wavering and distressed young man strangely echoes the one of the young man from the beginning...

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Plot Keywords:

neon sign | actress | university student | snow | sleeping pills | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Connections

References A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004)

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Soundtracks

Radetzkymarsch
Music by Johann Strauss Sr.

User Reviews

A tale of woe, peppered with Marlboros and Hite beer

I got the opportunity to see this at the NYFF-the director was both mysterious and shy in the Q&A so he did not shed much light on this seemingly simple film in concept which becomes complex in the execution(no pun intended). A better name for this film should have been "Sex and Death" as that are its two central subjects. I can't say I "got it" while watching it, but it had a resonance that sneaked up on me later. There is so much smoking and drinking in this film that my chest and head hurt by the end-I felt like I could smell the smoke and the beer. I was not familiar with the director's other films, but I might seek them out at this point, as this film did perplex and fascinate me, exactly what world cinema should do. Seoul looks like a beautiful and ugly place, all at the same time, and the meandering shots added greatly to the film's New Wave-like look.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [South Korea]

Country:

France South Korea

Language:

Korean

Release Date:

27 May 2005 (South Korea)

Also Known As:

Tale of Cinema

Filming Locations:

South Korea

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$5,695

Company Credits

Production Co:

Arte France Cinéma, Centre National du Cinéma et de l'Image Animée, Eonwonsa

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1