OH! MY LADY's Chae Rim (L) and Choi Si Won (R)

Hunkazoid Choi Si Won and cutie Chae Rim will star in the fun-looking romance Oh! My Lady, and a bonanza of promo material, including the trailer and lots of cute in-character pics, can be found here (there’s even the obligatory shot of Choi’s abs).  Choi plays a gorgeous actor who can’t act, which obviously worries his manager, played by Chae. Something tells me things will work out just fine when Oh! My Lady debuts in a couple of weeks. See the end of this column for even better views of Choi…

Kim Nam Gil (Queen Seon Duk) addressed rumors that he’d be entering the military this summer, saying that he’s going to finish shooting Bad Guy first, and then enter the service in fall or winter. Kim also told an audience at a fan meeting Sunday that he thinks married women are the hottest, particularly the “pure” and “modern” Lee Young Ae.

If you’re enjoying Chuno and are curious about how much of the show reflects historical reality, be sure to check out this article on the facts behind the drama!

Fans of the Japanese drama Kimi Wa Petto (You’re My Pet) might know that there’s been a Korean film version of the story in the works for some time. According to reports, Jang Geun Seok has signed on as the male lead and filming could finally begin very soon. For more on the real-life human “pet” phenomenon, check out episode 3 of the documentary series Shocking Life: Sex here on Drama Fever!

Finally, as promised, there are much more photos of O!ML star Choi Si Won in the new issue of High Cut magazine, including another look at his finely shredded abs. Not to be outdone in the amazing body department, Nam Goong Min, star of Pearl Necklace and this year’s Birth of the Rich flashed his chocolate abs while shooting next week’s episode. I’m going to go do some cardio now…

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Category: News | Tags: Birth of the Rich, Chae Rim, Choi Si Won, Chuno, Fever Watch, Jang Geun Seok, Japanese, Jdrama, Kdrama, Kim Nam Gil, Kimi Wa Petto, Korean, Lee Young Ae, Nam Goong Min, O!ML, Oh! My Lady, Pearl Necklace, Queen Seon Duk, Shocking Life, You're My Pet

YI SAN's Queen Hyo Eui

Alrighty, and we’re back! So far we’ve covered several main character themes found in Korean Dramas, ranging from the unbelievably naive, to the incomprehensibly evil. In case you’ve missed these themes, here they are order of discussion: The Village Idiot, The Jealous Lover, The Evil Minion, and The Evil Mastermind. Now, if you’ve been keeping up from the start, you are aware that for the most part, these character themes are a little on the dark side (save our friend the Village Idiot), but never worry! For we are now taking a turn to the less certifiable side of K-drama, and will be taking a look at The Benevolent Benefactor. This character would usually be dubbed as “the fairy god-mother” or “guardian angel” in Western colloquial terms, but not because they wield a magic wand!  Read on, and get to know this priceless character, and why you wish they were in your corner. [Warning: Possible SPOILERS ahead!]

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Category: Korean Drama Random | Tags: Characters of Korean Drama, East of Eden, Kdrama, Korean, Korean Drama, My Girl, The Benevolent Benefactor, Tiffny, Yi San

Jang Hyuk (Chuno)

Ji Sung, from All In and last year’s Swallow the Sun, has been tapped to star in a big-budget historical epic for the first time in his career. Ji will play the title role in Kim Soo Ro, the story of the 5th century founding of the city-state of Geumgwan Gaya. Filming on Kim Soo Ro, also starring Sun co-star Yoo Oh Sung and Bae Jong Ok, will start in China in a couple of weeks.

Chuno’s Jang Hyuk shows off his bod in new photos for Men’s Health magazine. Not sure what to think of the bouffant hairdo.

A new interview with Pasta writer Seo Sook Hyang, she reflects on the creation of the popular foodie romance as a story of ordinary people rather than the oft-found Cinderella and Evil Mastermind archetypes.

Kim Hyun Jung revealed why he was brought to tears onstage as he and his SS501 bandmates wrapped up their multinational tour in Seoul over the weekend.

Ha Jung Woo (Lovers In Prague) got a high-profile boost to his artistic career with a feature in Vogue magazine focusing on the actor’s first solo exhibition of paintings. Check out the Pollack-inspired work right here.

The comedy High Kick Through the Roof continues its impressive parade of big-name guest stars as Park Shin Hye drops by later this month. Although the speculation is that her role will have something to do with the series’ finale, the only news from the set to leak is that her character “will be associated with an important character.” Hmmm…

Finally, speaking of High Kick, that show’s Shin Se Kyung recently topped the list of actresses who reminded netizens of their first loves. Lucky netizens… To see how your first love stacks up to theirs, check out the entire poll results here!

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Category: News | Tags: All In, Chuno, Fever Watch, Ha Jung Woo, High Kick Through the Roof, Jang Hyuk, Ji Sung, Kdrama, Kim Hyun Jung, Kim Soo Ro, Korean, Lovers in Prague, Park Shin Hye, Pasta, Seo Sook Hyang, Shin Se Kyung, SS501, Swallow the Sun, Yoo Oh Sung

If only they had known what was coming.

Looking back at the dusty annals of history in hindsight always reveals plenty of irony even in the most tragic events, let alone much lighter fare like the history of a medium as influential as cinema. Ironic like the fact that Hollywood itself was born out of what essentially was the beginning of independent cinema’s long and tumultuous history, when a group of filmmakers and producers decided to fight the patent war of the “Edison Trust” (the early 1900’s equivalent of today’s MPAA), by packing up and moving equipment and production facilities from New Jersey to sunny California, move which would eventually pave the way for the studio system’s birth, and decades of glitz and glamor.

Ironic, again, that indie films were arguably what put modern Korean cinema on the international map, in more ways than one. Independent cinema in Korea gained steam as a by-product of the social and political climate which surrounded most of the nation’s cultural sphere throughout the 1980s, as the same student demonstrators who filled the streets of Gwangju and protested the Jeon Du-Hwan regime in the early years of the decade formed college groups dedicated to cinema, and eventually started producing their own independent films, brimming with explosive energy and a critical slant which instantly changed the face of Korean Cinema. One of those men was Jang Sun-Woo, who would go on to become Korea’s most controversial filmmaker, over a decade before self-proclaimed “mavericks” making controversy the quickest way to gain notoriety would become en vogue.

Those were the days of Kim Dong-Won’s seminal documentary 삼계동 올림픽 (Samgye-Dong Olympics), putting the spotlight on the land redevelopment craze of 1988, when Seoul “cleaned” the streets to better present itself to the world before its long-awaited Olympic Games; of the quietly contemplative masterpiece 달마가 동쪽으로 간 까닭은 (Why did Bodhi Dharma Leave for the East?), one of the very best Korean films about Buddhism, awarded at Locarno at a time when Korean films were barely registering a blip both in the overseas film market and at international film festivals; and, last but not least, of legendary protest films like 파업전야 (The Night Before the Strike), a 16mm film about the labor struggles of the late 80s which scared off the authorities enough to threaten with criminal charges any theater which dared to screen it, and to even send hordes of policemen armed with tear gas and a helicopter to Jeonnam University, one of the few places where the film made it to a projector. It was 1990, only twenty years ago. But aside from such turbulent accolades, indie films are also responsible for jump-starting the boom which made Korea one of the most renowned and mature film industries in the world today.

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Category: Actors Film Interview News | Tags: Breathless, Kcinema, Korean, Mister X, movies, Yang Ik June

Jung Woo Sung

IRIS fans were excited to learn that Jung Woo Sung and Cha Seung Won have been cast as the male leads in the sequel series, IRIS 2. The sequel’s villains are a terrorist organization headed by Cha’s character called Athena, and Jung’s role as a national intelligence agent will be his first drama role in 15 years.

And speaking of IRIS, the original series’ star Lee Byung Hyun said that filming his new online fantasy The Influence felt just like an extension of his work on IRIS. The 3-part mystery drama Influence premiered Wednesday.

New pics from the set of Personal Taste have leaked, and stars Le Min Ho and Sohn Ye Jin look adorable on their rainy day date.

Explosive new stills of battle carnage were released from the high-priced and highly anticipated So Ji Sub war drama Road No. 1.

Chuno’s Jang Hyuk revealed how becoming a father changed his life in a short but heartfelt interview on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Jang’s co-star Lee Da Hae is scheduled to appear at the Mr. World Contest, a grueling competition featuring “James Bond-style” physical challenges, cooking tests and lots of runway-working.

Hero Jae Joong, from Kpop’s DBSK, will be featured along with Eita, Ueno Juri, Tamayama Tetsuji, and Seki Megumi in the Korean-Japanese joint drama I Can’t Be Honest, a romance about a group of five young men and women who meet online.

Finally, you can follow You’re Beautiful’s Jang Geun Suk on a jaunt around Seoul in this fun yet otherwise-unexplained photo series.

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Category: News | Tags: Cha Seung Won, Chuno, DBSK, Eita, Fever Watch, Hero Jae Joong, Influence, IRIS, Jang Geun Suk, Jang Hyuk, Japanese, Jdrama, Jung Woo Sung, Kdrama, Korean, Le Min Ho, Lee Byung Hyun, Lee Da Hae, Personal Taste, Road No. 1, Seki Megumi, So Ji Sub, Sohn Ye Jin, Tamayama Tetsuji, Ueno Juri, You're Beautiful

This weekend’s non-drama news for New York City features a night of great live music with DF supporters and hip hop artists Magnetic North and Taiyo Na, but Los Angelenos have got a huge event of their own this weekend – Kollaboration 10!

One of the biggest Asian American talent showcases will throwdown this Saturday, March 6th, at the Shrine Auditorium. Competing for top honors this year are Jason Yang, Clara Chung, Paul Jisung Kim, Sam Hart, Mike Isberto x Alfa Garcia and Will Volume. As the name denotes, this is the 10th Kollaboration event. Click on the flyer to see all the crazy details for this jam-packed event.

When:
March 6, 2010
7pm

Where:
Shrine Auditorium
649 W Jefferson Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90007

Tickets are still available. Click here for purchasing options.

For more information visit:
http://www.kollaboration.org/

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Category: Events News | Tags: Clara Chung, hip hop, Jason Yang, Kollaboration, Los Angeles, Mike Isberto x Alfa Garcia, music, Paul Jisung Kim, Sam Hart, Will Volume

Starting out strong with ratings that steadily climbed to remain over 20% for the last one-third of its broadcast, White Lies was a highly successful daily drama airing from Monday to Friday over the course of its 159 episodes. Film star Shin Eun Gyung (probably best known in the drama world for Bad Couple) and Kim Yoo Suk of Be Strong Geum Soon (soon to be seen in Dong Yi) head this strongly written, compelling drama about love, heartache and finding happiness in spite of betrayal.

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Category: Korean Drama | Tags: Im Ji Eun, Kdrama, Kim Hae Sook, Kim Tae Hyu, Kim Tae Hyun, Kim Yoo Suk, Korean, Shin Eun Gyung, White Lies

Gong Yoo

2PM’s Taecyeon is getting some competition! Shortly after Taec revealed that he will debut in Cinderella’s Sister, Im Seulong from 2AM has announced that he is also making his Kdrama debut in Personal Taste. Im will play Lee Min Ho’s romantic rival in the pretend-gay romcom.

And speaking of Cinderella’s Sister, Moon Geun Young is getting attention for her uncanny ability to turn the waterworks on and off at will. In her scenes with Taecyeon, she can go from laughing and smiling to actually crying at the drop of a hat. Weird!

Gong Yoo reveals some pretty cool bubble-making skills in newly released shots from Cosmo. Do they teach that in the army?

God of Study’s Yoo Seung Ho was so convincing as a student that electronics company iRiver has chosen him to model their electronic dictionaries and such.

Even though their new film premiered online, Lee Byung Hun and Han Chae Young met reporters in a movie theater to promote their film The Influence, which Korean audiences could view starting Tuesday.

A few new shots from the set of the sageuk Dong Yi have made their way online–catch a sneak peak of the Bae Soo Bin drama here.

Finally, fashionistas can admire God of Study’s Oh Yoon Ah rocking the Prada in newly-posted screencaps right here.

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Category: News | Tags: 2AM, 2PM, Bae Soo Bin, Cinderella's Sister, Dong Yi, Fever Watch, God of Study, Gong Yoo, Han Chae Young, Im Seulong, Kdrama, Korean, Kpop, Lee Byung Hun, Lee Min Ho, Moon Geun Young, Oh Yoon Ah, Taecyeon, The Influence, Yoo Seung Ho

Pictured Clockwise from Top Left: Taiyo Na, Magnetic North, Cynthia Lin, afterschoolspecial

In non-drama news this week, hip hop artists Magnetic North and Taiyo Na will be performing this Saturday, March 6, in New York City along with rap-rock band afterschoolspecial and singer-songwriter Cynthia Lin. Magnetic North and Taiyo Na, along with spoken word artist Kelly Zen-Yie Tsai, performed at the DF Launch Party back in August 2009. If you missed them, here’s another chance to see them live! Other performers include afterschoolspecial, making their first New York City appearance all the way from San Diego, and New York City’s own talented Cynthia Lin.

Who:
Magnetic North, Taiyo Na, afterschoolspecial, Cynthia Lin

Where:
Parkside Lounge
317 East Houston Street, New York, NY 10002

When:
Saturday, March 6, Doors at 8:30pm

Door Policy: $5 Cover, 21+

For more information:
Magnetic North on MySpace
Taiyo Na official site
afterschoolspecial on MySpace
Cynthia Lin official site

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Category: Events News Random | Tags: afterschoolspecial, Cynthia Lin, hip hop, Kelly Zen-Yie Tsai, Magnetic North, music, Taiyo Na

We’ve got two calendars for March 2010 – CHUNO and CREATING DESTINY! Historical or Modern, but both highly enjoyable Kdramas. Which calendar fits you?

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Category: Korean Drama Random | Tags: Calendar, Chuno, Creating Destiny, DramaFever, Goodies, Kdrama, Korean