Director Lee Myung-Se Q&A on Tuesday
Probably the most controversial, acclaimed, attacked, defended, studied and debated Korean director these days is Lee Myung-Se, director of the kinetic action movie, NOWHERE TO HIDE, the swooningly gorgeous swordplay film, DUELIST, and this year’s psychedelic romance, M. Director Lee has been a good friend of the New York Asian Film Festival for years, and we’re pleased as punch to announce that he’ll be here for the Tuesday, July 1 screening of M at 7pm. Director Lee will be introducing the movie and then conducting a Q&A afterwards - and if there’s ever a movie that leaves the audience wanting to know more, it’s M.
Starring one of Korea’s biggest male stars, Jang Dong-Won, M is a movie that director Lee started writing when he was living in NYC after the release of NOWHERE TO HIDE. Informed by a short story by Truman Capote, Haruki Murakami’s novel East of the Sun, West of the Moon, a dream he had about Alfred Hitchcock and a complicated and tangled dreamscape that grew in his mind based on his observations of New York City and his memories and dreams about Seoul, M sounds simple: a writer is followed by a young woman who claims to know him. She could be real, she could be a ghost, she could be a memory or a dream, and that’s when things get funky. It’s like dreaming with your eyes open, and here’s what critics have to say:
“The film’s initially disorienting avant-garde tropes and heavy noir atmosphere, as it progresses, gradually reveals its big, beautiful romantic heart.” - Meniscus Magazine
“… impressive and bewitching…” - New York Press
“Lee’s M drowns in style…Bodies overlap, rooms merge into one another or turn on their axis’; a running girl vanishes into a pitch-black alley and emerges into a sunny street that instantly becomes a noon-time thunderstorm.” - Brooklyn Rail
“There is little doubt that Korea’s Lee Myung-Se is one of the purest cinematic talents working in the world today. His grasp of the language unique to cinema is staggering, his ability to merge cinematography, editing and sound unparalleled.” - Twitch Film
Tickets are available and on sale now. You really don’t want to miss this. Director Lee’s Q&A sessions are legendary, he’s truly a unique artist and his brain works in ways most of us don’t understand.
July 1st, 2008 at 2:04 pm
You must mean Haruki Murakami’s “South of the Border, West of the Sun.”
July 2nd, 2008 at 12:27 pm
Thanks for the mention! Attended the screening last night and was blown away by the film. - YKC
July 3rd, 2008 at 11:52 am
You’re absolutely right. I meant “South of the Border, West of the Sun.” For some reason I always name the fairy tale rather than the novel which is really negligent on my part since it’s one of my favorite books.