Park Joong-Hoon in Retrospective/Pleasantville

Details: Category: Featured Events

Ahn Sung-Ki, Jonathan Demme and Park Joong-Hoon (Photo: Ernest Woo)

The Jacob Burns Film Center (JBFC) is having a Park Joong-Hoon retrospective and presenting six films starring the South Korean actor, from April 11-17: Radio Star (reviewed here), The Truth About Charlie, Two Guys, Nowhere To Hide (this Sunday, April 15 at 6:00 PM; a classic and a personal favorite), My Love, My Bride (on April 16 at 7:15 PM) and Rules Of The Game (on Tues. April 17 at 7 PM).

His most recent film, the excellent comedy by Lee Joon-Ik (The King and the Clown), Radio Star, opened the retrospective, followed by a particularly informal and entertaining Q&A conducted by filmmaker Jonathan Demme (The Silence of the Lambs), and graced by the special appearance of fellow Korean veteran actor Ahn Sung-Ki. Much banter and laughter was shared with an excited audience.

Ahn Sung-Ki and Park Joong-Hoon, having a good time on screen and on the stage (Photo: Ernest Woo)

Three guests of note were among the attendees: director Lee Myung-Se, Ambassador Donald Gregg (Chairman of The Korea Society), and Kim Dong-Ho, the director of the Pusan International Film Festival, who introduced Park Joong-Hoon.

Ahn Sung-Ki and Ambassador Gregg. Kim Dong-Ho (Photo: Ernest Woo)

On the stage

On stage (Photo: Ernest Woo)

And of course, the New York Korean Film Festival team was among the many moviegoers present to celebrate the 20 years of an exceptional career (if I may express one regret: I wish they had picked up Chilsu and Mansu as well).

Ahn Sung-Ki and the NYKFF team (from left to right): Silvia, Moon Hye-Sung, Nam Hyo-Jin, film program officer Yuni Cho, me, Susan Yang and Seran Kim

For a long time, in those distant days when I was still in Paris, I thought of Pleasantville as a fictional town coming from the imagination of film director Gary Ross, a black-and-white place standing at the edge of the world of colors, flesh and blood. I used to think of Pleasantville as a movie with Reese Witherspoon. One train ride later, my mental map of America has become a tad more accurate, if far from complete. But more interestingly, I discovered an outstanding film venue with a diverse, strong program (from classic Italian cinema to a “Dance On Camera” series featuring Mark Morris’ work this year), supported by a knowledgeable and adventurous public.

Very fun evening overall.