Kim Yun-jin
- 2008
A lawyer takes on a difficult case under risky circumstances in this thriller from South Korea. Yu Ji-yeon (Kim Yun-jin) is a successful defense attorney and the mother of an eight-year-old girl, Eun-yeong (Lee Ra-hye). Ji-yeon attends a school event with her daughter and becomes distraught when Eun-yeong goes missing. After twenty-four hours, Ji-yeon receives word that the girl has been abducted by kidnappers, and in exchange for Eun-yeong's freedom, the kidnappers demand an unusual ransom. Jeong Cheol-jin (Choi Myeong-su) has been accused of murder, and has little hope of being found innocent given the evidence stacked against him; if Ji-yeon will represent him in court and he goes free, Eun-yeong will be released to her. Desperate to see Eun-yeong returned to safety, Ji-yeon begins looking into Cheol-jim's case with the help of Kim Seong-yeol (Park Heui-sun), a longtime friend who is also a police detective. But given Eun-yeong's health and Seong-yeol's spotty relationship with his fellow officers, Ji-yeon fears she may not be able to crack the case in time to save her little girl's life. 7 Days (aka Sebeun Deijeu) began production in 2006 with Yun Je-gu as director and Kim Seon-ah playing Ji-yeon before Kim Yun-jin was recast in the lead and Won Shin-yeon took command of the director's chair. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kim Yun-jin, Kim Mi-suk, (more)
- 2007
A Bloody Aria director Won Sin-Yeon follows up that FanTasia Film Festival hit with this breathless thriller about a strong-willed underworld attorney whose steely resolve withers after her young daughter is kidnapped and threatened with death should she fail to secure the release of a convicted murderer. Ji-yeong (Lost star Kim Yun-jin) is deeply admired in the underworld for her fierce efforts in keeping some of the city's most notorious criminals from serving serious time. Though despite the fact that Ji-yeong has a near-perfect success rate when it comes to keeping criminal scum on the streets, maintaining such a high profile among such a lawless set can be as much a burden as it is a benefit. Thanks to her hectic schedule, single mother Ji-yeong has precious little time to spend bonding with her young daughter. When the opportunity for a mother-daughter field trip arises, the overworked lawyer decides to make the most of a rare day together. A day of bonding quickly gives way to tragedy, however, when in the blink of an eye, Ji-yeong's daughter vanishes without a trace. The following day an unidentified caller phones to confirm Ji-yeong's worst fears: her daughter has been kidnapped, and in order to ensure her safe return Ji-yeong must ensure that a certain convicted murderer regains his freedom before heading into court for his second trial. That trial comes in just seven days, giving the frantic mother precious little time to make a successful case for the murderer's release, or lose her precious little girl forever. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kim Yun-jin, Kim Mi-suk, (more)
A passenger jet breaks apart in mid-air, crash-landing on a tropical island somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. Left without the creature comforts and basic necessities of civilization, the 48 survivors are forced to rely upon one another to stay alive -- and given the personality quirks of these survivors, this won't be easy during the first season of the ABC hit series Lost. Generally with the help of flashbacks, viewers learn a number of deep dark secrets about the castaways on a need-to-know basis, especially the demons plaguing Dr. Jack Shephard (Matthew Fox) and one-hit-wonder rock star Charlie Pace (Dominic Monaghan). Every so often, a crisis arises for the principal purpose of revealing a hitherto unknown and unsuspected aspect of one of the characters. Inevitably, hostilities both minor and serious arise from the basic fundamental differences among the survivors: Korean couple Jin and Sun Kwon (Daniel Dae Kim, Yunjin Kim) are unable to uphold their family traditions under the circumstances, while their inability to speak English creates an additional barrier between themselves and the others; and the MacGyver-like resourcefulness of former Iraqi Republican Guard Sayid (Naveen Andrews) is not enough to overcome the racism of some of his fellow passengers. Then there is the unfriendly aura of the island itself, with its inscrutable topography, and the bizarre menagerie of wild animals, ranging from a polar bear to a (possible) dinosaur! Also, the discovery in one episode of two long-dead bodies certainly does nothing to uplift the rescue hopes of the hapless survivors. And finally, there seems to be someone else on the island...someone not on the passenger list...someone who kidnaps two of the castaways and threatens to kill off the rest one by one. The one overriding question near the end of season one is: who among the "major" characters will not make it to season two? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Matthew Fox, Emilie de Ravin, (more)
Renowned Korean director Im Kwon-Taek (Chunhyang) tells the story of legendary iconoclastic Chosun Dynasty artist Oh-won (Choi Min-Sik). With little reliable documentation of the artist's life, the director (along with co-writer Kim Young-Oak) used dramatic license to fill in the details of the man's life. Born a peasant named Jang Seung-ub in 1843, the artist used his talents to escape a life of poverty. A wealthy nobleman, Kim Byung-Moon (Ahn Sung-Ki), recognizes Jang's talent, and takes him in at an early age. Master Kim recommends Jang to a respected art teacher, and his career path begins. As a young man, Jang grows in stature for his ability to flawlessly copy well-known Chinese paintings. He also falls in love with a noble's daughter, Mae-Hyang (You Ho-Jeong). Because of the class difference, he can never be with her, and he's heartbroken when she marries another man. This sets him on the path he follows for much of his life -- that of a drunken wanderer. Despite his self-destructive hard drinking, his penchant for consorting with prostitutes, his impoverished background, his refusal to follow anyone's rules, the political turbulence of the times in which he lives, and the fact that he rarely signs his own work, Oh-won rises to prominence as an artist. Director Im shared the Best Director prize (with Paul Thomas Anderson) at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival, and Chihwaseon was also featured in the 2002 New York Film Festival. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Choi Min-Sik, Ahn Sung-ki, (more)
- 2002
The debut feature of South Korean director Byeon Yeong-ju, Milae (Ardor) follows Lee Mi-heun (Kim Yun-jin), a thirtysomething housewife whose Christmas is ruined when an unexpected guest drops in to reveal that she has been having an affair with Mi-heun's husband, Hyo-gyeong (Gye Seong-yong). After months of marital strife, Mi-heun and Hyo-gyeong move to the country in hopes of a more peaceful atmosphere. However, things are complicated further when Mi-huen is assisted by a handsome stranger after her car runs out of gas. Though the good samaritan (Lee Jong-weon) turns out to be a married doctor, Mi-huen agrees to a strictly sexual relationship between the two. At first, she treats not falling in love with him as a game, but quickly finds herself having a hard time with the rules. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kim Yun-jin, Lee Jong-weon, (more)
- 2000
Korean filmmaker Moh Ji-eun makes her feature film debut with the 2002 romantic comedy A Perfect Match, a tale about a matchmaker at a dating service who could use a bit of matchmaking in her own personal life. Kim Hyo-jin (Shin Eun-gyeong) is an extremely gifted matchmaker whose 100% success rate is simply mind-boggling. Unfortunately, Hyo-jin's own relationship is an entirely different matter; her own boyfriend tends to prefer hanging out with his friends than spending time with her. Meanwhile, Hyo-jin discovers that one of her male clients, Park Hyeon-su (Jeong Jun-ho) is nearing the end of his 12 allotted dates without a successful match having taken place. However, when the two accidentally meet away from Hyo-jin's office, Hyo-jin finds she wants to learn a little more about her client in a nonprofessional sense. The film's original title, Joheun Saram Isseumyeon Jogae Shikyeojweo, roughly translates to English as "If you know someone nice, please introduce me." ~ Ryan Shriver, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shin Eun-gyeong, Jeong Jun-ho, (more)
Billed as Full Metal Jacket meets Heat meets Nikita, Kang Je Gyu directs this wildly popular action-thriller about tensions between North and South Korea. The film opens with agents in North Korean spy school T19 engaged in an unbelievably difficult rigorous training regime. The school's fanatically committed leader, Park Mu Young (Choi Min Sik) singles out the beautiful and sinewy Lee Bang Hee (Kim Yun Jin), an ace student and a deadeye shot, for a top-secret mission. A couple of years later, South Korean intelligence agents are baffled by a spate of murders of scientists working on a top-secret defense project. Agents Yu Jong Won (Han Suk Kyu) and Lee Jang Gil (Song Kang Ho) suspect the North Korean Lee but cannot locate her. One day, Yu finally spots Lee Bang Hee icing an arms dealer with a sniper rifle. At the same time, North Korean spy Park Mu Young and his fellow commandos take out a military convoy and swipe a top-secret substance called CTX, an explosive that is completely undetectable. Park and Lee's plan slowly becomes horribly apparent: to blow up a North and South Korean friendship soccer game, launching a war that will bring South Korea under the North's hegemony. At the same time, South Korean intelligence is starting to suspect a mole in their midst and evidence seems to point to Yu's girlfriend. This film was screened at the 1999 Pusan Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Han Suk-Kyu, Choe Min-sik, (more)
- 1999
Screenwriter turned director Lee Chang-dong, who scripted the acclaimed A Single Spark, creates this tale of personal evolution and national history. Told backwards, the film opens in the spring of 1999 where a family outing is spoiled by a raggedy old man, Yeong-ho, who threatens to throw himself in front of a train. Rewind to three days earlier, Yeong-ho is seen buying a gun to off himself. Recently ruined by bad stock deals, terrorized by loan sharks, and dumped by his adulterous wife, Yeong-ho is a typical victim of the Asian financial meltdown. He pays his dying ex-girlfriend a visit in the hospital and, though she is unconscious, he gives her the same peppermint candy that she used to send him. Rewind further to the summer of 1994, Yeong-ho hires a detective to tail his philandering wife, though he is involved with a pretty office assistant. Rewind to 1987, which reveals Heong-ho as a thuggish policeman known for dispensing horrific amounts of brutality. This film was a critical favorite at the 1999 Pusan Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sul Kyoung-Ku, Mun So-ri, (more)
- 1998
In this South Korean comedy/drama, three very different 29-year-old Korean girls meet to discuss sometimes graphic details about their love lives. Hojeong is an up-and-coming executive at a design firm, and though she has a steady lover, she doesn't hesitate to sleep with any other man she fancies. It is at her apartment where the girls hold their gab-fest. Yeon, Hojeong's roommate, works as a lounge waitress. Her ultimate goal is marriage, but according to her beau, her lack of lovemaking skills make her prospects of finding a husband unlikely. Graduate student Sun is a virgin and waits to find her dream man. After their evening, a series of segments run the gamut from humorous to tragic, describing important moments in their subsequent lives. This comedy was one of the most popular films at the 1998 Pusan Film Festival. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kang Soo-Yeon, Jin Heui-kyeong, (more)
