KOREAN CULTURAL CENTER NEW YORK & THE NEW YORK ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL ANNOUNCE
A MERRY ZOMBIE XMAS
December 24, 2020 – January 7, 2021
In a world where the 3 Bs (Blackpink, BTS, Bong Joon-ho) are edging towards massive mainstream success, and an age when all things “K” (k-drama, k-pop, and so on) are synonymous with “crazy, sexy, cool”, another phenomenon has been going viral and global: the zombie movie “made in Korea”.
Filmmakers from the peninsula have injected new life in the undead genre, bringing both a bit of a Midas and Lazarus touch to a mythology that has been exploited almost to death. Original storylines spanning wildly diverse settings, from the Joseon era to our troubled times and even dark Mad Max-style dystopian futures, in-depth character development, and a clear-eyed look at today's societal fears have raised the biters back from the realm of putrid pop fiction.
As the holiday season approaches, it's time to celebrate the reinvigorated genre, powered by the big guns of the silver screen (Gong Yoo, Hyun Bin, Jang Dong-gun, Gang Dong-won, Choi Woo-Sik, among others) and look far east: Korean Cultural Center New York (KCCNY) and the New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF) team up again to present a free streaming series that highlights Korea's singular take on the zombie genre through a selection of four major films of the genre from December 24 to January 7.
A MERRY XMAS SERIES Streaming details:
Free and unlimited run of the films for 15 days
December 24, 2020-January 7, 2021 at koreanculture.org
FULL LINEUP:
TRAIN TO BUSAN (Yeon Sang Ho, 2016, South Korea, 121m)
Cast: Gong-Yoo, Jung Yu-Mi, Ma Dong-Seok, Choi Woo-Sik, An So-Hee, Kim Eui-Sung, Kim Su-An
Language: Korean with English Subtitles
(synopsis courtesy of WellGo USA)
When a mysterious virus breaks out across South Korea, the infected transform into the murderous undead in the wildly successful 2016 thriller TRAIN TO BUSAN, an official New York Times Critic's Pick that Slant Magazine credits with scare tactics “among the most distinctive the zombie canon has ever seen.” As terrified travelers fight for their lives on a bullet train from hell, the result is a gory high-speed collision between the rich and the poor, the living and the undead, and the best and worst of human nature. When some among them prove willing to sell their soul for a shot at survival, trust may prove to be a luxury even the richest passengers cannot afford.
TRAIN TO BUSAN PRESENTS: PENINSULA (Park Hee-gon, 2020, South Korea, 116m)
Cast: Gang Dong-won, Lee Jung-hyun, Kwon Hae-hyo, Kim Min-je, Koo Gyo-hwan, Kim Do-yoon, Lee Re, Lee Ye-won
Language: Korean with English Subtitles
(synopsis courtesy of WellGo USA)
Four years after South Korea's total decimation in TRAIN TO BUSAN, the zombie thriller that captivated audiences worldwide, acclaimed director Yeon Sang-ho brings us PENINSULA, the next nail-biting chapter in his post-apocalyptic world. Jung-seok, a soldier who previously escaped the diseased wasteland, relives the horror when assigned to a covert operation with two simple objectives: retrieve and survive. When his team unexpectedly stumbles upon survivors, their lives will depend on whether the best—or worst—of human nature prevails in the direst of circumstances.
RAMPANT (Kim Sung-hoon, 2018, South Korea, 127m)
Cast: Hyun Bin, Jang Dong-gun, Kim Eui-sung, Jeong Man-sik, Lee Sun-bin, Seo Ji-hye
Language: Korean with English Subtitles
(synopsis courtesy of WellGo USA)
A darkness looms over Joseon-era Korea: murderous creatures known as Night Demons have overrun the country. Returning from a long imprisonment abroad, Prince Ganglim discovers that it will take the strength of his entire kingdom to stop the bloody rampage spreading across the nation in this fresh new take on zombie horror from the studios that brought you TRAIN TO BUSAN.
ZOMBIE FOR SALE (also known as: ODD FAMILY: ZOMBIE FOR SALE)
(Lee Min-jae, 2019, South Korea, 112m)
Cast: Park In-hwan, Jung Ga-ram, Lee Soo-kyung, Uhm Ji-won, Kim Nam-gil, Jung Jae-young
Language: Korean with English subtitles.
(synopsis courtesy of Arrow Films)
An infectiously funny slice of modern Korean cinema where TRAIN TO BUSAN, THE QUIET FAMILY and WARM BODIES collide to create a memorable rom-zom-com from first time director Lee Min-jae.
When the illegal human experiments of Korea's biggest pharmaceutical company go wrong, one of their “undead” test subjects escapes and ends up in a shabby gas station owned by the Park family – a band of misfits spanning three generations who hustle passers-by to make ends meet. When the Park family uncover their undead visitor, he bites the head of their household, who instead of transforming into an undead ghoul becomes revitalized and full of life! The family then hatch a plan to exploit this unexpected fountain of youth, allowing locals to pay to be bitten too, until things go wrong…
With a cabbage-munching zombie who prefers ketchup over blood, and a dysfunctional family that gives the Kim family of PARASITE a run for their money, ZOMBIE FOR SALE will warm the deadest of hearts and breathe some new life into the zombie genre.
Enjoy these films for free at koreanculture.org!
ABOUT KOREAN CULTURAL CENTER NEW YORK (KCCNY)
Inaugurated in 1979, the Korean Cultural Center New York is a branch of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) of the Republic of Korea. Under the authority of the Consulate General, KCCNY works to promote cultural arts exchange and stimulate interest in Korean culture through various opportunities including exhibitions, concerts, film festivals, and educational programs.
ABOUT NEW YORK ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL (NYAFF)
Now in its 19th year, the New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF) is North America's leading festival of popular Asian cinema, which The Village Voice has called “the best film festival in New York,” and The New York Times has called “one of the city's most valuable events.” Launched in 2002, the festival selects only the best, strangest, and most entertaining movies to screen for New York audiences, ranging from mainstream blockbusters and art-house eccentricities to genre and cult classics. It was the first North American film festival to champion the works of Johnnie To, Bong Joon-ho, Park Chan-wook, Takashi Miike, and other auteurs of contemporary Asian cinema. Since 2010, it has been produced in collaboration with Film at Lincoln Center.
ABOUT THE NEW YORK ASIAN FILM FOUNDATION
The New York Asian Film Foundation Inc. is America's premier 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the exhibition and appreciation of Asian film culture in all its forms, with year-round festivals and programs, and a view to building bridges between Asia and America.
The New York Asian Film Foundation's flagship event is the annual New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF), which has been presented in collaboration with the Film at Lincoln Center since 2010. Now entering its 19th year, NYAFF is North America's leading festival of Asian cinema.
