Category Archives: Review

Review: My Home Village (1949)

Posted on March 28, 2012 by

It’s been such a long time coming. I finally tracked down – and finally sat down and watched – the first North Korean film ever produced: My Home Village (1949), directed by Kang Hong-sik. I knew what to expect from … Continue reading →

Posted in Kim Il-Sung, Korean Film Art, My Home Village, Review | 2 Comments

Review: Pyongyang Nalpharam

Posted on January 3, 2012 by

Museum curator: “Our traditional martial art was established as Thaekkyon in Ri Dynasty through Koryo’s. Regionally its practitioners were nicknamed differently. Eg, Chaebi and Jebi…” Mr Ko: “… and those around Mount Taesong were called Pyongyang Nalpharam… “ I loved the feel … Continue reading →

Posted in Hong Kil Dong, Kung Fu, North Korea, North Korean Films, Review | 2 Comments

Review: Order No. 027

Posted on August 10, 2011 by

“Immoral is the life dedicated to the Great Leader and the Party” I have an overwhelming need for genre categorisation when watching films, and “Order No. 027” (1986) certainly left me scratching my head. Yes, it’s a war film set during the Korean … Continue reading →

Posted in Kung Fu, North Korea, North Korean Films, Review, Spy | Tagged | 5 Comments

Review: The Schoolgirl’s Diary

Posted on August 3, 2011 by

Sacrifice is something that is particularly hard to comprehend during adolescence. In Jang In-hak’s modern melodrama, we see the 16-year-old Su-ryeon (Pak Mi-hyang) struggle to come to terms with the fact that her absentee father works tirelessly in the city on … Continue reading →

Posted in Football, North Korea, North Korean Films, Review, The Schoolgirl's Diary | 4 Comments

Review: From 5pm to 5am

Posted on April 15, 2011 by

Once again, I am pleasantly surprised by this offering from North Korea. Obviously, you have to judge this film – which I imagine most would find hard to sit though, even at 78 minutes in length – with a different criteria than … Continue reading →

Posted in Crossing the Line, From 5am to 5pm, James Joseph Dresnok, North Korea, Review | 1 Comment

Review: Our Lifeline (2002)

Posted on April 3, 2011 by

What struck me most about Our Lifeline, an actually pretty good espionage thriller with a couple of cute twists in its tale, was how old the film looked. I sat through Part 1, which clocked in at around 1 hour … Continue reading →

Posted in North Korea, Our Lifeline, Review, Spy | Leave a comment

Review: Centre Forward (1978)

Posted on March 30, 2011 by

Just a great image from the film Centre Forward (1978). The banner at the top of the site is also from this film. The movie also has a special place in my heart as they used a quote from my … Continue reading →

Posted in Centre Forward, Football, North Korea, Review | Leave a comment