''Chunhyang'' () is a 2000 South Korean period

romantic drama film Romance films involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion (emotion), passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typically their ...

directed by

Im Kwon-taek Im Kwon-taek (; born December 8, 1934) is one of South Korea's most renowned film directors. In an active and prolific career, his films have won many domestic and international film festival awards, as well as considerable box-office success, ...

, with a screenplay by Kang Hye-yeon and Kim Myung-gon. Distributed by

CJ Entertainment CJ ENM Films & Television, formerly CJ Entertainment, () is a South Korean entertainment, film production, and distribution company under CJ ENM Entertainment Division. The company operates as a film production company, film publishing house, in ...

, the film was released on January 29, 2000 in South Korea. Lee Hyo-jeong plays Chunhyang and

Cho Seung-woo Cho Seung-woo (; born March 28, 1980) is a South Korean actor and singer. He is best known for his leading roles in the films ''The Classic (2003 film), The Classic'' (2003), ''Marathon (2005 film), Marathon'' (2005), ''Tazza: The High Rollers'' ...

plays Mongryong. It is a film adaptation of the ''pansori'' Chunhyangga, one of the most notable works in the pansori tradition. To date, there have been more than sixteen works based on this narrative, including three North Korean films. Im Kwon-taek's ''Chunhyang'' presents a new interpretation of this oral tradition with a focus towards a more global audience. It is the first Chunhyang adaptation that uses lyrics of pansori as a major part of the screenplay. The film uses the framing device of a present-day pansori narrator who, accompanied by a drummer, sings the story of Chunhyang in front of a responsive audience. The film flashes back and forth between the singer's presentation and scenes of Mongryong. It was entered into the

2000 Cannes Film Festival The 53rd Cannes Film Festival took place from 14 to 25 May 2000. French filmmaker Luc Besson was the Jury President for the main competition. Virginie Ledoyen was the mistress of ceremonies. Danish filmmaker Lars von Trier won the ''Palme d'Or'' ...

. The film is the first Korean film which was presented at the 2000

Telluride Film Festival The Telluride Film Festival (TFF) is a film festival held annually in Telluride, Colorado, during Labor Day, Labor Day weekend (the first Monday in September). The 51st Telluride Film Festival, 51st edition took place on August 30–September ...

. At the 2000

Asia Pacific Film Festival The Asia-Pacific Film Festival (abbreviated APFF) is an annual film festival hosted by the Federation of Motion Picture Producers in Asia-Pacific (FPA). The festival was first held in Tokyo, Japan, in 1954. History The festival was first he ...

, it won a Special Jury Award. It also won an award for Best Narrative at the

Hawaii International Film Festival Hawaii ( ; ) is an island state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only state not on the North American mainland, th ...

in 2000.

Plot

The film is told through

pansori ' () is a Korean genre of musical storytelling performed by a singer and a drummer. The term ' is a compounds of the Korean words and , the latter of which means "sound." However, ''pan'' has multiple meanings, and scholars disagree on which ...

, a traditional Korean form of storytelling that narrates through song. It is based on '' Chunhyangga'', a traditional Korean folktale, and is set in 18th century Korea. Lee Mongryong, a governor's son living in

Namwon Namwon (, ) is a city in North Jeolla Province, South Korea. Namwon is about 50 minutes from the provincial capital of Jeonju, which is almost three hours away from Seoul. The official city flower is Royal Azalea () while the city tree is the ...

falls in love and marries Chunhyang Sung, the daughter of a courtesan. Their marriage is kept a secret from his father who would disown Lee if he found out that he had married beneath him. The governor is posted to Seoul and so Mongryong has to leave his wife behind, promising to return for her when he passes the official exam. After Mongryong and his father leaves, the new governor, Byun Hakdo, desires Chunhyang. When she refuses, stating that she is married and will remain faithful, the governor punishes her by flogging. Meanwhile, in Seoul, Lee passes the exam with the top score and becomes an officer. After three years, Mongryong returns to the town on a King's mission. There, he finds that his wife is to be beaten to death on the governor's birthday as a punishment for rejecting him. Mongryong arrests the governor for his corruption and avarice. The two lovers are finally united.

Cast

*Lee Hyo-jeong - Chunhyang *

- Mongryong *Kim Sung-nyeo - Wolmae *Lee Jung-hun - Governor Byun *Kim Hak-yong - Bangja *Choi Jin-young - Governor Lee *Hong Kyung-yeun - kisaeng leader *Cho Sang-hyun - pansori singer *Kim Myung-hwan - pansori drummer *Lee Hae-ryong - Lord of Soonchun *Gok Jun-hwam - Lord of Okgwa *Yoon Keun-mo - Lord of Goksung *Lee Hye-eun - Hyangdan

Production

The bed scene between Chunhyang and Mongryong took two days to film because

and Hyo-jeong Lee, who had no experience at all, were shy. The two of them didn't know there was a love scene until they started filming, and they were scared, and director

gave them homework to come after seeing 'Yellow Hair'.

Critical reception

According to Elvis Mitchell of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', "Instead the story is freshened through the use of a Korean singing storyteller, a pansori singer, to provide a narration, belting out the song from a stage in front of an audience. The pansori, or song, is performed under a proscenium arch to highlight the ritual elements of folk tales. Even though much of what the pansori tells us unfolds before the cameras at the same moment, the forcefulness of the performance lends another layer of feeling to the picture."

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * *
''Chunhyang''
at the

Busan International Film Festival The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF; ), formerly the Pusan International Film Festival (PIFF), held annually in Haeundae District, Busan, South Korea, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. The first festival, held fro ...

The Ch'unhyang Story
- from the award-winning website Instrok.org, created by East Rock Institute {{DEFAULTSORT:Chunhyang (2000 film) 2000 films 2000s romantic musical films 2000s historical romance films South Korean romantic musical films Pansori Films set in the 18th century Films set in Joseon Films based on The Tale of Chunhyang Films directed by Im Kwon-taek 2000s Korean-language films South Korean historical romance films Grand Prize Paeksang Arts Award (Film) winners 2000s South Korean films 2000 musical films