Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 09/04/2026Na Hong-jin finally graduates to Cannes Main Competition with his hugely anticipated sci-fi epic HOPE! 062
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 09/04/2026Yeon Sang-ho back in Cannes Midnight Screenings with his new zombie film COLONY. #군체 020
Reposted by Pierce ConranAlexandra Heller-Nicholas @horrornonna.com · 31/03/2026I am loath to do this, but I need your help. My 20+ year marriage has unexpectedly imploded. There's a kid involved. Aside from Lupus, Autism and a shitty 2009 Mazda, I have nothing. Things are fairly desperate right now, so if you can help out now in any way at all I'd be really grateful ❤️ko-fi.comSupport Alexandra Heller-NicholasSupport Alexandra Heller-Nicholas 40452501
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 01/04/2026Brad, chiming in here as I’ve also had trouble getting a response about a SUDDENLY IN THE DARK contributor copy. 000
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 07/03/2026Good news for the struggling Korean film industry? Not really. THE KING’s WARDEN accounts for almost 60% of Korean film box office this year (possibly 75% by end of March) and will match at least a quarter of 2025’s total Korean film revenue. This imbalance makes survival all the more difficult. 040
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 07/03/2026THE KING’S WARDEN is doing insane numbers. It crossed 10 million viewers Friday, but at this rate it’ll become the highest grossing domestic film in Korean box office history (record is ₩139.6B, ₩150B seems assured). 50/50 whether it unseats ROARING CURRENTS’ all-time admissions haul (17.6M). 143
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 01/03/2026Stepping back into the K-Cinema Library column over on KoBiz with a dive into cinematic iconoclast Lee Myung-se's sumptuous reverie FIRST LOVE, a criminally underseen landmark of 90s Korean cinema starring Kim Hye-soo. #첫사랑 www.koreanfilm.or.kr/eng/news/inF...koreanfilm.or.krFirst love1993 | 108 MIN | Drama, RomanceDIRECTORLEE Myung-seCASTKIM Hye-soo, SONG Young-chang, CHO Min-kiRELEASE DATEJanuary 22, 1993CONTACTKorean Film ArchiveTel+82 2 3153 2001Fax+82 2 3153 2080Emailkofa@kore... 051
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 26/08/2025These are all bangers. Now now, get your head out of the gutter, I'm being serious. This is a fascinating subgenre filled with genuinely great films, and, lucky for you, many are available to watch, subtitled and for free, on the Korean Film Archive's YouTube channel, the gift that keeps on giving. 010
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 26/08/2025Inspired by the recent release of AEMA, I felt it was high time that someone compiled the definitive ranking of the best Korean Erotic films of the 80s. www.scmp.com/lifestyle/k-...scmp.comIntrigued by Netflix’s Aema? The 13 best 1980s Korean erotic films rankedFrom Mulberry to Between the Knees to Woman of Fire ’82, we rank 13 of the best erotic films to come out in Korea during the 1980s. 121
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 22/08/2025AEMA dives into Korea’s ‘80s ero film industry and digs up more than a few surprises. #애마scmp.com 000
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 12/06/2025In lieu of a minute of silence, my favourite Brian Wilson deep cut. www.youtube.com/watch?v=scIn...youtube.comDon't Talk / Beach Boys (unreleased chorus snippet)YouTube video by fagenfagen 011
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 12/06/2025“If you should ever leave me Well life would still go on believe me” There are times when Brian Wilson’s music was the only thing that got me through the day. Today, as we say goodbye to my favourite 20th century composer, looks to be another one of those days. 110
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 02/05/2025Well this was a lovely surprise. #JIFF2025screenanarchy.comJeonju 2025 Review: THE DREAM, Gender Politics Take Center Stage in Dark Period FableAfter tearing through the 1980s with a range of celebrated films such as People in the Slum, Whale Hunting and Deep Blue Night, all starring Ahn Sung-ki, director Bae Chang-ho kicked off the 1990s wit... 011
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 03/04/2025WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU TANGERINES explores Koreanness in a way that is rich, raw and profoundly moving. The series sets a lofty benchmark for homegrown K-drama that could guide the industry for years to come. #폭싹속았수다scmp.comReview | When Life Gives You Tangerines: one of the best K-dramas ever madeAn emotionally rich script and a sensational cast make this series a gripping and rewarding watch from start to finish. Have tissues on hand. 040
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 02/04/2025"Love it or hate it, there's no denying that this future camp cult classic is the 'real' deal." Well, it finally happened, but not at all how I expected it would.modernkoreancinema.comReview: REAL Makes Korean Noir Gloriously Camp, Weird and AmazingThe top resource for Korean film news, reviews and features. 011
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 19/03/2025The phenomenal K-drama WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU TANGERINES continues. #폭싹속았수다scmp.comWhen Life Gives You Tangerines midseason recap: moving period K-dramaThis touching story of Jeju islanders plays out over decades as urbanisation and modernisation change their worlds. 000
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 07/03/2025Lim Sang-choon's WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU TANGERINES, with IU and Park Bo-gum, bridges the K-drama gap between bright romcoms and pricey genre tentpoles. This is a true prestige drama, rich, evocative, heartfelt and intrinsically Korean. www.scmp.com/lifestyle/k-...scmp.comWhen Life Gives You Tangerines: IU, Park Bo-gum in period K-dramaRicher and more ambitious than most K-dramas, Netflix tale of two characters struggling to find their place in the world is vividly realised. 001
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 20/02/2025Kim Sae-ron's tragic death has been a difficult one to process. Another bright light snuffed out by craven netizens and a cruel media hungry for scandal. Lots of soul-searching in Korea this week, but is this society that repeatedly and senselessly pushes people to the brink ready to change?scmp.comKim Sae-ron the latest in a long line of Korean stars bullied to deathKorean celebrities may be loved by their fans, but make one slip-up and the online abuse starts, often fuelled by mass media. 041
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 18/02/2025Got to see Bong Joon Ho’s MICKEY 17 yesterday and had many thoughts, only some of which made it into this unusually long review.screenanarchy.comBerlinale 2025 Review: MICKEY 17, Bong Joon Ho Takes Us to the Stars in Angry and Amusing Sci-fi ComedyWith his latest film, Bong Joon Ho reaches for the stars but what his characters discover in the far reaches of space is just another version of the messed-up world they left behind, a world Bong has ... 153
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 04/12/2023SWEET HOME 2 recipe 1. Place ingredients of SWEET HOME on work surface 2. Discard the ones that viewers liked 3. Double remaining ingredients 4. Frantically raid spice cabinet 5. Serve scalding hot over naked eyeball My despairing review for SCMP www.scmp.com/lifestyle/k-...scmp.comSweet Home 2: hit Netflix monster show with Song Kang loses its wayNetflix’s Sweet Home season 2 doesn’t hold a candle to the successful first season of the horror hit. It has lost the indoor setting that gave the monster action focus, and is swamped with new cha... 000
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 15/10/2023Back from a very enjoyable and productive 28th edition of the Busan International Film Festival. Saw lots of great Korean films and dramas, my definitive ranking of which you can find below. letterboxd.com/pierceconran...letterboxd.comFilm list: BIFF 2023 Ranked (28th Busan International Film Festival)All the Korean films I saw at the 28th Busan International Film Festival (not including retro titles). A slimmer but solid lineup this year that unearthed a number of impressive new indie voices.… 000
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 09/10/2023Had great fun with the pulpy action-revenge drama VIGILANTE. Think Korean Batman with Nam Joo-hyuk as a very handsome and very angry police academy recruit going after the city's scum in the dead of night. #BIFF2023 #비질란테 www.scmp.com/lifestyle/k-...scmp.comVigilante: Nam Joo-hyuk in Disney+’s engrossing revenge K-dramaThis Disney+ Korean drama stars Nam Joo-hyuk as a police recruit who goes after his mother’s killer, then starts a spree of revenge killings, which sees him dubbed the ‘Vigilante’. 000
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 27/09/2023The 'kimchi western' returns with SONG OF THE BANDITS starring Kim Nam-gil and Seohyun, a pale imitator of THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE WEIRD which looks the part but sings a hollow tune. #도적칼의소리 www.scmp.com/lifestyle/k-...scmp.comSong of the Bandits: Kim Nam-gil, Seohyun in Western K-drama on NetflixSong of the Bandits, a Netflix series starring Kim Nam-gil and Seohyun, mixes the violence of a Western with the melodrama of a Korean TV series. While promising, it ultimately sings a hollow tune. 020
Pierce Conran @pierceconran.bsky.social · 21/09/2023Was swept off my feet by the epic conclusion of MOVING. A sterling conclusion to a sweeping saga. #무빙 www.scmp.com/lifestyle/k-... 001