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Cheerleading may primarily be an American activity, but it has permeated its way into Asian territories, with Japan and Korea especially adapting it quite effectively into their sporting events. However, barring a few mostly failed Japanese productions, it hasn’t really been represented in Asian cinema quite as well as it has in its American counterpart.“Red Carpet” director Park Beom-su‘s latest, the 1999-set “Victory”, aims to change that.

Victory is screening at San Diego Asian Film Festival

Best friends Pil-sun and Mi-na love hip-hop dancing and are pretty good at it, but being in the small and remote town of Geoje holds them back. Their teachers want them to focus on their studies, even taking away their practise room, and their parents want them to stay in Geoje and quit thinking about Seoul. But when their school brings in exchange student Dong-hyun as the star striker for their terrible soccer team,...

I’ve been a massive fan of Kim Woo-Bin since The Heirs way back when. Sure, we all love a good bad boy, but soon I discovered his film Twenty, which completely shattered that image and made him one of the top Korean actors in my eyes back in the day (I’m talking a decade ago). The model-turned-actor is a gem, especially when playing roles that are more rooted and, for the lack of a better word, kind. And I think that’s the whole basis of Officer Black Belt. The film opens with a man in his mid-late twenties expressing his love for sports and how it’s the one thing that makes him truly happy. So it seems a bit odd when we realize that though he’s basically got the Midas touch when it comes to any sport he plays, his regular job is delivering chicken for his dad’s shop.

When the opening credits of Seoul Busters looked like something that would fit perfectly in the 90s, I was intrigued, because I imagined this would be something like the Reply series. Somehow, specifically, my mind went to the best of the lot in Reply 1988, and so I should’ve known I would be up for disappointment. Of course, the themes of the two shows are completely unrelated, but they’re both comedies, so I was hoping there’d be something that would keep me as addicted to this as that. I suppose Seoul Busters is an amalgamation of all things fun that are big today, a police procedural with misfit crops almost formulaically lifted from Brooklyn Nine-Nine, an underdog-to-superhero kind of vibe with an ensemble cast that has a character for everyone to adore or relate to. It does sound fun, and it is for the most part, but...

South Korea’s Finecut has sold upcoming comedy-drama Victory to a raft of territories including North America ahead of its local release on Wednesday (August 14).

The film, centred on a Korean cheerleading squad, has been acquired by 815 Pictures for North America and Lumix Media for Vietnam, both of which will open the feature theatrically on August 16.

It has also been picked up for Taiwan (Sky Films Entertainment), Indonesia (Pt Prima Cinema Multimedia), Thailand (House of M) and Cambodia (Westec Media Limited), which are set to release the film from late August to September. Inflight rights have gone to Emphasis Video Entertainment.

Agents Of Mystery arrives on Netflix on June 18 ( Photo Credit – Netflix )

For all the thriller genre fans, Netflix is soon releasing an unscripted series full of mystery and suspense that promises to keep you on the edge of your seats. Titled Agents of Mystery, the Korean reality series follows a group of investigators working together to crack bizarre cases in a real set-up.

The show features some well-known faces, who will be using their deductive skills to solve puzzles at a mysterious yet fascinating location. If the show sounds interesting to you, here are all the updates you need about Agents of Mystery.

Agents of Mystery Arrives on Netflix This June

Agents of Mystery is scheduled to be released on Netflix on Tuesday, June 18th, 2024. The number of episodes that the reality show will be featuring has not been announced as of now. Netflix launched the official trailer for the series earlier this month,...

South Korean comedy drama Victory is to world premiere as the opening film of this year’s New York Asian Film Festival (Nyaff) where lead actress Lee Hye-ri will be honoured with the Screen International Rising Star Asia Award.

The performer, better known as Hyeri, will attend the festival to receive the honour on July 12 ahead of the premiere of Victory at New York’s Lincoln Center.

Hye-ri will introduce the film alongside director Park Beom-soo and co-star Park Se-wan. All three will also attend a post-screening Q&a.

The Rising Star Asia Award recognises emerging talent from Asian cinema...

South Korea’s Plus M Entertainment is set to launch sales on upcoming romantic drama Pavane: For A Dead Princess and action thriller Night Fever in Cannes.

Pavane: For A Dead Princess is directed by Lee Jong-pil, known for 2020 comedy drama Samjin Company English Class and 2015 period drama The Sound Of A Flower.

It will reunite Lee with Samjin actress Ko A-sung, who also played the lead in Because I Hate Korea, which opened last year’s Busan International Film Festival. Further cast includes Byun Yo-han of box office hit Hansan: Rising Dragon and Moon Sang-win of drama series Wedding Impossible.

Best Korean Dramas Dubbed in Hindi: Embark on a captivating journey into the realm of Korean entertainment with our meticulously curated list of the top 10 Korean dramas, expertly dubbed in Hindi for an enriching viewing experience. From timeless classics to contemporary masterpieces, these stellar productions transcend linguistic barriers, captivating audiences with their compelling narratives and captivating performances. Join us as we delve into each drama, accompanied by its respective release year, offering a glimpse into the rich tapestry of Korean storytelling.

1. Crash Landing on You (Yeh Mera Deewana Pan Hai) – 2019

Experience the epic romance of “Crash Landing on You” (Yeh Mera Deewana Pan Hai), released in 2019, as it unfolds against the backdrop of political intrigue and cultural divides. Follow the unlikely love story between a South Korean heiress and a North Korean soldier, navigating the complexities of forbidden love amidst geopolitical tensions.

2. Descendants of the Sun (Suraj Ki Kiran) – 2016

Journey...

The Netflix original D.P. was a super hit back in 2021, and the way it ended had everyone expecting a second season soon enough. Our wait is finally over, and the next season is just around the corner, sporting more emotional damage while still being fun for viewers. The series focuses on the mandatory military service of South Korean men for about two years before they turn 30. Particularly the hardship that the boys and men go through, the hierarchy system, and the bullying that happens within the military that reaches atrocious levels. Our main characters are a part of the D.P. (Deserter pursuit) department of the military, which happens to be the unit that apprehends deserters and brings them back. Season 1 explores the reasons the men choose to desert. The show is based on the webtoon D.P. Gaeui Nal, which translates to D.P. Dog Days, written by Kim Bo-Tong.

There’s something about K-dramas that Western TV series cannot replicate, no matter how hard they try. Whether you want to feel giddy with romantic shows, dive into captivating fantasy worlds, or simply experience the rollercoaster of human emotions, K-dramas have it all. While K-drama fever has been around for many years now, there are still many people who just have started exploring this exciting world.

If you’re a beginner looking to start your Korean drama journey, here are ten dramas you shouldn’t miss watching. But just a friendly piece of advice, make sure to have fast and stable internet from reputable internet providers like HughesNet to have the best streaming experience. So, without ado, let’s explore the ten K-dramas you must watch.

Descendants of the Sun

Descendants of the Sun follows the story of Captain Yoo Shi-jin (Song Joong-ki), a member of the Special Forces, and Dr.

If Back To The Future was Korean, My Perfect Stranger would be it. The show follows a similar premise of family drama and a time-traveling car that takes a man into the past and the future. Of course, the car isn’t as fancy, and the man isn’t going back in time to get his parents to fall in love but to solve a grave mystery. On one of his many trips, he hits a woman who also goes back in time with him and causes the car to break down. How many glitches in time will they create, and will Hae-Joon be able to save himself from murder in the future by heading back to the past?

Spoilers Ahead

Finding The Time-Travelling Car!

Yoon Hae-Joon is a famous TV journalist who is having a bad day because of the rain, navigation going wrong, and a broken cell phone.

When asking any K-drama fan about the most popular ‘Slice of Life’ storylines, Reply 1997 is on the list. Created by Shin Won-ho, Reply 1997 was the first installment of his Reply K-drama franchise in 2012. Its cast consisted of some of South Korea’s most well-recognized actors on TV today. Each installment focused on a new group of characters, but director Shin gave fans hope for a Reply 1997 sequel.

The cast of ‘Reply 1997’ in 2012. | via tvN ‘Reply 1997’ K-drama focuses on six close friends from Busan

The 2012 K-drama was one of the highest-rated series on cable television thanks to its heartwarming storyline of six best friends and their daily lives. Reply 1997 focuses on a female teen named Sung Shi-won, played by actor Jung Eun-ji. Fans could relate to her as she is obsessed with the male K-Pop group H.O.T. and dreams of marrying one of its members.

But...

Pre-sales also closed on crime feature ‘Dirty Money’.

South Korea’s Acemaker movieworks is launching sales ahead of the EFM on Remember, a Korean remake of Atom Egoyan’s 2015 Nazi-hunter film that starred the late Christopher Plummer.

The thriller, in post-production, is directed by Lee Il-hyung, whose 2016 crime film A Violent Prosecutor recorded 9.7 million admissions and took $69.5m at the local box office. Leading cast members include Lee Sung-min (The Man Standing Next) and Nam Joo-hyuk (The Great Battle).

The story is set in Korea where a retired octogenarian soldier with dementia goes in search of vengeance against pro-Japanese collaborators,...

Four years after the time-travelling love story “Will You Be There?”, director Hong Ji-young is back with her newest project “New Year Blues”, a a feel-good holiday film that will probably mean most to regular watchers of K-Dramas.

Synopsis

“New Year Blues” is based on the romantic one week of four couples who overcome different fears before the new year.

“New Year Blues” stars a plethora of K-Drama stars, including Yoo Yeon-seok, who had a successful 2020 after starring in “Steel Rain 2: Summit” on the big screen and “Hospital Playlist” on tv, Kim Kang-woo, Yoo In-na, Lee Yeon-hee, Lee Dong-hwi, Chinese film and tv actress Chen Duling (“My Left Ear”) and Yum Hye-ran, among others. It is scheduled to be one of the final releases of the year, with a late-December 2020 release anticipated.

This year’s Busan International Film Festival – one of the key players in the Asian film market and indicators of emerging Asian film talent – experimented with a hybrid approach akin to Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (Bifan). In-person theaters filled up at 25 percent capacity, requiring a strict set of health screenings and restrictions for all attendees. Online screenings remained – well – online, but — interestingly enough — multinational screenings were cast simultaneously. This allowed certain Q&As to be conducted in real-time, wherein Korean audiences could speak to international guests within theatres.

Though there are less awards than last year, Korean productions still dominate this year’s selections. Some familiar faces, like Lee Woo-jung — perhaps most famous for writing the hit nostalgia drama “Reply 1988” — has plucked a few awards for her new feature, “Snowball.” Cannes-repeat Jero Yun also returns with his first fictional feature, “Fighter.” Among the newcomers, Jung Wook’s directorial...

In the early 2010s, two K-Dramas in the “Reply” series were released, throwback shows to life and times in the 90s that did quite well with the audiences. But it was the third, and so far the last, “Reply 1988” in 2015, that the series saw most success. The show ruled the ratings when it aired and it is to its credit that even today, more than four years since its final episode aired, it is still the fourth highest rated Korean drama on cable television. This feat is doubly impressive when you take into consideration the fact that all the other shows in that list have been released after “Reply 1988” finished airing, some even as recently as 2020.

“Reply 1988” is the story of five childhood friends who grew up and live on the same street in Ssangmun-dong, Seoul. Sung Sun-woo, the perfect student, Kim Jung-hwan, the quiet Mr.

Capelight Pictures has acquired the film for North America and German-speaking Europe.

South Korean sales company Finecut has sold family comedy Secret Zoo to multiple territories, including North America and German-speaking Europe, which have gone to Capelight Pictures.

Directed by Song Jae-gon (My Scary Girl), the film is produced by About Film, which was behind South Korea’s second biggest all-time box office hit Extreme Job. It stars Ahn Jae-hong, who has credits including TV shows Reply 1988 and Microhabitat, along with Kang So-ra (Sunny).

The film tells the story of a temporarily employed attorney who is given the job...

Join our newsletter to get more stories like this Sky Castle (often stylized with the word “Sky” in all capitals) has taken Korean cable network shows by storm. The plot, phenomenal acting, and great direction continue to appease viewers. Now Sky Castle has recently earned another accolade. Even though the series is still ongoing, it has now become the highest-rated K-drama in Korean cable television history. This means that it surpassed the two blockbuster K-dramas of 2016 that aired on the Total Variety Network (tvN), Goblin and Reply 1988. Reaching for the sky when it comes to viewership Sky Castle […]

The post Sky Castle: Jtbc K-Drama sets record for network and cable television by surpassing tvN’s Goblin and Reply 1988 appeared first on Monsters and Critics.