Hwayi: A Monster Boy - My MOST anticipated film... (Merged)

[sukebanboy]

Despite all the platitudes in that interview you linked about how the original script struck him as being powerful & moving, he readily admits the commercial appeal of such a film and hey, the guy needs to eat too and can't have another commercial flop like STGP.

Yeah, this paradox struck me too...he raved about the script..but also noted that there was a certain "something" missing......sounds like he never found out what that "something " was!!..and working from someone else's script means his hands were ALREADY tied somewhat....You think STGP could have come from ANYONE ELSE'S mind?

I would certainly donate to see that FART MAN movie come to fruition.

and funnily enough, I think it would be pretty popular in Korea too....as they seem to be obsessed with body odours and emissions!!

It is very sad to hear that this movie is nothing special as the guy obviously has talent and imagination to spare..wasting his time on something as pedestrian as this appears to be should be a crime!!

It annoys me when shit like this happens and other talentless hacks get work out the wazoo as they are prepared to accept ANYTHING that is put their way.

I need to win heaps of money and I will personally bankroll ALL Jang Joon Hwan's personal movies and not let him have to worry about making money or box office receipts....

[47lab]

I guess ang Joon Hwan was pretty much a director-for-hire on this one then?

I presume he is happy enough just to be working after getting blackballed from most producers after STGP flopped badly.

I think so too. Despite all the platitudes in that interview you linked about how the original script struck him as being powerful & moving, he readily admits the commercial appeal of such a film and hey, the guy needs to eat too and can't have another commercial flop like STGP.

Not eagerly seeking this one out anymore after reading reviews of it (which mostly agree with your thoughts there 47LAB)...Will catch it if I see it cheap, or it turns up on cable one day.

Hopefully he is allowed to develop his own project 100% in the near future..

In hindsight, I probably would've been better served to just go ahead and re-watch STGP one more time. But like you said, if you have a chance to catch it on the cheap or you're absolutely bored and need a Korean movie fix, then you could do a lot worse than watching Hwayi.

That FART MAN project sounds like gold! I can just imagine the creative ways Joon-hwan could visually portray the paint peeling smelly kimchi induced farts onscreen. He should turn to crowd funding to raise the money for that project. I would certainly donate to see that FART MAN movie come to fruition.

[sukebanboy]

I guess ang Joon Hwan was pretty much a director-for-hire on this one then?

I presume he is happy enough just to be working after getting blackballed from most producers after STGP flopped badly.

Not eagerly seeking this one out anymore after reading reviews of it (which mostly agree with your thoughts there 47LAB)...Will catch it if I see it cheap, or it turns up on cable one day.

Hopefully he is allowed to develop his own project 100% in the near future..

Maybe he will get to his dream project FARTMAN

- That reminds me of your long-fermented project Fart Man, which you have had in your mind since the 1990s.

Oh, Fart Man is a dream project I've always wanted to realize someday. It is about a boy who is born with a gift he never wanted; farting big and often. It has elements of a superhero film as well as those of a coming-of-age film. I heard Inception was such project to Christopher Nolan, something that he dreamed of for a long time, but could do only after making The Dark Knight first. I'm not sure yet if I can make it happen like Nolan did, but if it does, Fart Man will be the ultimate sci-fi fantasy yet rooted deeply in our real lives. (laugh)

PLOT:

Growing up, JUNG-GU was constantly tormented by everyone he knew because of the toxic and venomous smell of his farts. Despite the daily suffering at the hands of others, Jung-gu found solace in his parents' unconditional love and with his one friend who looked past his odorous shortcomings. Little did he know that darker and dangerous days were ahead of him.

As if fate was against him, he found himself alone in a cruel and unjust world. It was then when he decided to turn his curse into his gift and to fight for justice.

Full interview here...
http://koreanfilm.or.kr/webzine/sub/..._VIEW&wbSeq=69

[47lab]

Although this film may not end up as creative and innovative as STGP, I hope that it is successful enough to give him more confidence (and bigger budgets) to maybe go back to something he REALLY wants to do for his next movie....

Yeah for sure, this sophomore effort from director Jang Joon Hwan is nothing like STGP in terms of the multi-mood experience. This film is completely devoid of the creativity that made STGP such a cult classic. That's not to say I'm entirely disappointed with what is essentially another turnkey Korean revenge/suspense thriller. Yes, it's quite derivative and predictable and character development is scantly addressed but it's redeemed a bit from being completely run of the mill by some of the action set pieces & gratuitous violence on display. It wouldn't surprise me to see Hollywood remaking this one in the near future.

[sukebanboy]

Although this film may not end up as creative and innovative as STGP, I hope that it is successful enough to give him more confidence (and bigger budgets) to maybe go back to something he REALLY wants to do for his next movie....

[sukebanboy]

Sorry..I thought the dashes looked cool!!...AND.I really didnt think anyone would bring this film up again....

?For the sake of the search engine and poor Ian's time, I promise never to use dashes again in my Thread titles!!!..(unless I sincerely forget!!)

[47lab]

Probably because it was titled Hwayi-- and the -- threw off the query. It's no big deal. Merging threads is fun.

See! It's all sukeban boy's fault for inserting those dashes. hmm? Gonna have to start some more duplicate threads since it's so much fun for you.

[Ian Jane]

Probably because it was titled Hwayi-- and the -- threw off the query. It's no big deal. Merging threads is fun.

[47lab]

Hey ...I started a thread for this one a while back :bruce:

This one doesnt look all that imaginative and innovative as the director of SAVE THE GREEN PLANET's director should!!!

But it might be ok......

http://www.rockshockpop.com/forums/s...ighlight=hwayi

My bad. I used the search function to see if someone already made a thread about this & it came up empty -- go figure?

[sukebanboy]

Hey ...I started a thread for this one a while back :bruce:

This one doesnt look all that imaginative and innovative as the director of SAVE THE GREEN PLANET's director should!!!

But it might be ok......

http://www.rockshockpop.com/forums/s...ighlight=hwayi

[47lab]

HWAYI: A MONSTER BOY (2013) Director Jang Joon Hwan

SAVE THE GREEN PLANET was a total mindfuck and one of the seminal Korean movies of the last decade IMO. It blew me away when I first saw it and along with Park Chan Wook's OLD BOY, which was released the same year -- it cemented my growing appreciation & affinity for Korean cinema.

So it's hard to believe that SAVE THE GREEN PLANET was director, Jang Joon Hwan's only major feature film to date until HWAYI. If you've ever watched the supplemental features on the Koch/Lorber DVD of STGP & the interviews with Jang Joon Hwan, I'm sure you came away impressed as I did with his down to earth gregarious personality. He just seems like a cool guy all around. So with much anticipation, I've been looking forward to his second feature film. It was officially released in South Korea last week & while the early reviews are lukewarm particularly in regards to the finale...I'm definitely going to check it out.

English reviews:

Hancinema.net

twitchfilm.com

Seongyong's Private Place Blog

[sukebanboy]

I don;t (as a rule) like the majority of Korean movies..with a COUPLE of exceptions....

But this one was such an original idea, good acting and also quite violent......Hard to imagine he got the money to make it when the producers saw the script....

[Jack J]

:cuckoo:

[Ian Jane]

Original is definitely the right word. It's a pretty unique movie by the standards of any country's cinematic output.

[sukebanboy]

I'm afraid I haven't even seen SAVE THE GREEN PLANET. I... putz.