Original title: Pomnarun Kanda

Starring: Lee Young-Ae, Yoo Ji-Tae, Paik Seung-Hee, Park In-Hwan, Shin Sin-Ae
Director: Hur Jin-Ho
Studio: Starmax
Rating: 15 +
Genre: Drama

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>>>This DVD is encoded for Region 3 (Southeast Asia & East Asia --- including Korea & Hong Kong). This DVD will NOT be viewable on regular DVD players made in other regions unless they are code-(region-)free DVD players. To learn more about the DVD Region Code, please visit our Help Page and read Info on DVD Region Code.

About This DVD

Heo Jin-ho's One Fine Spring Day received the prize for best picture at the 22nd Blue Dragon Awards, the Korean equivalent of the Academy Awards in the U.S.

Few films have had as much influence within the Korean film industry as the 1998 melodrama Christmas in August. Despite its subdued tone and understated themes, the film in many ways revolutionized the way Korean filmmakers approach melodrama. Director Hur Jin-ho won over many fans both in Korea and in the rest of Asia for his ability to infuse everyday situations with emotion and meaning.

For his second film, Hur chose a universal and somewhat ordinary subject: a man and a woman who fall in love, and then break up. He says that while his first film was structured around the beginnings of love, One Fine Spring Day is more concerned with how it ends. As with his previous film, the idea of family also plays a big role: the man, Sang-woo, lives with his father, aunt, and grandmother, relying at times on their support; Eun-su, the woman, lives alone.

One Fine Spring Day is a gorgeous and yet somewhat abstract sort of a film, that will bore some viewers and captivate others. Hur has been called "Korea's Ozu" (he himself is a big fan of the Japanese director) for the slow pace of his films and his introspective style. Yet to make this comparison is to ignore how much of Hur's own personality is stamped on his works. With only two films he has become an important voice in Korean cinema, and his twisting of melodrama to make it serve different ends has become a model for many young Korean filmmakers.

One thing that makes this film particularly special is its use of sound. The characters themselves are drawn together by sounds (Sang-woo is a recording engineer, Eun-su is a radio producer), but everyday sounds, both man-made and natural, make up a crucial aspect of the film's style. When combined with precise and at times striking camerawork, the film is able to create moments that are both solemn and beautiful to see.

The film's stars, Yoo Ji-tae and Lee Young-ae, earned both praise and new respect from local critics after the film's opening. Both are popular new actors who are just coming into their own, which makes them particularly appropriate for the roles of a young couple who are struggling to understand how they feel about each other. Anyone who has been through a painful breakup will likely find resonance in the situations depicted by this film; part of this film's strength is its universality. Yet what makes the movie truly special is the care with which it was made and the quiet force of its personality.

Sound engineer Sang Woo meets local DJ Eun Soo on recording trip in the quest of the nature's voice... They succeed capturing various sensual sounds as well as the tenderness of each other. Their love flourishes as spring comes along, but Sang Woo's ever-intensifying passion often reminds Eun Soo of her tragic past. She knows only too well how passion can vanish like a sound; how love always surrenders to its expiry...

Audio Format:	Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround, DTS
Video Format:	Widescreen 1.85:1 (Anamporphic)
Languages:	Korean
Subtitles:	NO SUBTITLES
Country Made:	Korea
Region Code:	3
Year Made:	2001
Running Time:	115
Special Features:	Making of Documentary with director's commentary, Alternative scenes, 5 Music Videos, Deleted scenes, Interviews, Sound Collection
Availability:	Usually ships in 5-10 days.