Asian Cinema: Korean Movies Leading The Way?
Although I cannot as yet claim to be a ‘hardcore’ Asian movie lover due to the fact that I haven’t seen as many Asian movies as I would have liked yet, I can say that I am an Asian movie fan nowadays.
So I was pleasantly suprised when I found a BBC documentary on Asian cineme on YouTube, entitiled ‘Asian Invasion’. Apart from the Pommy host’s somewhat annoying accent, this was a good documentary. It is split up into 3 episodes, focusing on Japan, Hong Kong and South Korea respectively. Check them out below:
Ep 1: Japan
Ep 2: Hong Kong
Ep 3: South Korea
From my personal experience so far, I’ve found that I really like the Korean style of movies right now. They better utilise location cinematography than those other two countries. I also like the way Koreans portray themselves in their films. Korea is given an image of being a modern mega city with a heart. Lastly, I think of those three countries (okok, so HK technically is China, but what the heck), Koreans make the best sappy melodrama romantic stories, complete with beautiful chicks and for the girls, hot guys 
March on the Korean Wave!
Hong Kong movies are fine, but they somehow lack that refined technical touch that Koreans have which make their movies look ‘clean’ and ‘crisp’. Hong Kong’s movies, with the exception of a few more exceptional ones, generally looks ‘rougher’. Although Hong Kong has always produced great cops vs triads films and a few good romantic comedies, they seem to lack in the drama department.
Somehow, I just don’t like Japanese movies, based on what I saw in the documentary. The Japanese seem to have this thing for sadism and pain. Either that, or outright wackiness (see The Squid). Both type of styles which I have always steered clear from. Their animes are a different story though. I especially like their deep sci-fi animes.
All in all, I am still partial towards the great Korean films that are coming out from Korea right now. They seem the most appealing to me. And apparently, I’m not the only one with these sentiments. Many people are now into Korean pop culture ala its movies, dramas, and music due to the Korean Wave pop phenomenon which swept across Asia in early 2000. I have discovered that I am not immune to this as well. Apart from their hot chicks, I have found that I also like the way their language sounds. It’s more guttural when compared to Mandarin or Japanese. Lower and deeper. Cool. Japanese sounds especially sissy to me, what with their high pitched style of talking. And the Korean culture itself, especially its male culture, is decidedly ‘macho’, what with beating each other up or what not. Rockin’ 
No wonder they’re known as the hotheaded Irish/Italians of the East!
To me: Korean > Hong Kong > Japanese
It’s unfortunate that your view in Japanese cinema is defined completely by that documentary.
Sadism and the likes are a minority. Someone like Takashi Miike does NOT define Japanese films. That’s like saying all anime has energy balls and superpowered beings in them.
Check out the works of Shunji Iwai, or the older ones like Ozu or Akira Kurosawa. Not every single film is like Audition, or Ringu, or Ju-on.
It just happened that the Japanese films that could travel internationally are the horror ones.
Sorry, I could’ve commented more, but I seriously hope that your stereotyping of Japanese cinema is meant to be some kind of a joke.
As for Koreans, they have higher production values because… well, they have bigger budget. Films travel around Asia, and also occasionally in the West, something not enjoyed by Hong Kong nor Japan (UNLESS it’s a horror film, or some sadistic extremely violent film, those that easily appealed to the Western audiences)
Comment by Swifty — June 16, 2007 @ 9:17 am
It’s all about personal taste mate. Sorry if I’ve put down Japanese movies a bit, but I did quantify this post by saying that my movie viewing experience isn’t exactly massive yet.
That said, is it just me or have anyone else noticed how some manga and anime from Japan are somewhat ’sexualised’? What’s more, they involve young children as well! What’s up with that?
Comment by sigma — June 17, 2007 @ 6:04 am
Some animes are probably trying to get as close to hentai as possible without actually being hentai. But then they’re not the only ones, the media in general is really sexualised anyway, it’s not a surprise. I don’t know why they would involve young children tho…
Comment by hlam3167 — June 21, 2007 @ 11:20 am
On Korean films, the good bit is actually their acting. Not cinematography (even Bollywood beats them), story line, casting, etc.
Try watching a good Korean film without subtitles. 99% chance you would get most of the story. I’m not sure about China films, but Hong Kong films tend to depend a lot on dialogue (even in fighting scenes, if you noticed).
But Taiwanese are the worst.
Haven’t exactly watch Japanese films, but was once following a Japanese serial. The Koreans, however, have surpassed them in the acting department.
As for the “cleaner” feel, it’s mainly due to the fact your samples are from different genres. If the average Hong Kong film (read: thiller, often with triads) uses the same editing style and lighting as the average Korean film (read: drama), Hong Kong films would be a lot worse.
And truth is, it is a lot more expensive to pull it off (for one, considering there are a lot more outdoor and dark scenes, lighting would be a bitch). Not to defend them, I mean. Dramas are a lot cheaper to make (e.g. more indoor scenes, and more day-time scenes). They just need to import Korean directors.
Comment by Rajan R — June 27, 2007 @ 10:41 am