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| D-War, a new sci-fi film produced by a former Korean actor and soon to be released in Hollywood, and French soccer star Thierry Henry’s appearance on a Korean comedy program. |
2007-06-16 |
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 Comic-turned-film director Shim Hyung-rae’s long-cherished dream is to make a great, entertaining sci-fi movie. The utter failure of his first international attempt “Yonggary,” a 1999 film about a Godzilla-like monster roaming Los Angeles, did not deter him from having another go at sci-fi filmmaking. This time Shim directed a monster flick called “D-War,” which is about the resurrection of dragon-like snakes from the legends. Using vastly improved computer graphics technology, “D-War” indeed looks much more sophisticated and awe-inspiring than “Yongari,” but whether it can succeed in Hollywood remains to be seen. Accustomed to big-budget, CG-laden blockbusters, today’s moviegoers are very hard to please, so whatever improvement director Shim brought to his latest work should be eye-popping to catch the interest of the general public and the film industry.
So far most people are skeptical about Shim’s seemingly far-fetched idea of making a sci-fi blockbuster, dragging up his not-so-impressive list of acting and directing. His first appearance on a sci-fi action film was “Wuroimae from Outer Space,” which spawned six sequels. Meaning thunder hawk in Korea, the Wuroimae series was much like Power Rangers, with main characters transforming into super-powered heroes. Given Shim’s past career in comedy and comic roles in films, people didn’t take him seriously when he declared that he was going to make a big-budget monster flick. Although his first attempt “Yongari” failed in the box office, it showed a glimmer of hope for Korean-made sci-fi film with Shim’s bulldozer-like drive and his undying passion for filmmaking, as well as some spectacular CG technology. Whether that hope continues to live on depends on how well “D-War” does in the box office.
Another person gracing the popular search word list is French soccer star Thierry Henry, currently playing for the Arsenals in the English Premier League. While the 30-year-old superstar was in Seoul to promote sporting goods brand Reebok, he decided to appear on one of Korea’s most popular entertainment programs, “Infinite Challenge.” The show is about six comedians trying to accomplish rather absurd and meaningless, yet extremely difficult tasks every week. Some of their challenges included outrunning a train in a 100-meter dash or stacking 200 coal blocks without breaking. The July 9th show’s nationwide rating went through the roof with 19%, topping the May 5th show with actress Lee Young-ae of the “Lady Vengeance” and “Jewel in the Palace” fame.
Language barrier was no problem for Henry, as he joined the cast in singing and dancing, showing an aspect of his personality totally different from the deadly concentration and competitiveness as the world’s top striker. Relaxed and even mischievous, Henry took part in the one-on-one dribble contest, shooting through Styrofoam obstacles, and a break through six defenders. When asked why he chose to appear on this particular show, he answered that he wanted to do something wacky and different. He had such a wonderful time on the show that he invited the cast of “Infinite Challenge” to London. After the show, he commented on the Korean soccer players in England, mentioning them by name – Park Ji-sung, Lee Young-pyo, and Seol Ki-hyun – and praising them for their skills and work ethic. His great personality and good sportsmanship proved that he is a gem both on and off the ground. |
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