Ain't Got No Luck

It's been a very difficult few days.

No, not in the grand scheme of things. I won't remember these few days when I look back on my life in 10 years; I won't care at all if I read about them on this blog. I know this, but it doesn't make these difficult few days any easier to bear in the present.

I think the straw that broke my figurative camel's back was last night's car key incident.

I was sitting in my car (my sister's car, she's borrowing my car) at the gas station, filling up. After the car was full ($2.19/gallon is sick and wrong), I went to turn the car on.

Nothing.

The engine doesn't even try to turn over.

Oh, the joy of sitting at a gas station on Venice Blvd. at 8:30 p.m.

I called the parents, who are on vacation. My dad, brilliant mechanic that he is, gave me very explicit directions.

I went to follow the directions ... no car keys.

Where, oh, where, could the car keys have gone while I was sitting in the car?!

I spent 35 minutes (THIRTY-FIVE MINUTES I WILL NEVER GET BACK) frrrrreaking out and tossing the car. I ripped up the carpets, I looked in the glove compartment that I'd never even opened, I checked in the visors. I was DESPERATE.

The keys were stuck on the bottom side of the passenger seat, STUCK in a way that elevated them two inches off the ground and therefore just barely escaping my frantic search underneath the seats.

Thank goodness for the owner of the gas station and some random dude. They came over and helped, and the gas station owner went and got a flashlight. It was because of the flashlight that I caught a glimpse of something shiny and found the keys.

Yes, a small, small event.

That just took three years off my life.

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2009's Hallyu Wave (한류)

The Hallyu Wave, also called the Korean Wave or Hallyuwood, refers to the popularity of Korean pop culture that's spreading like a- wait for it- wave. Now, being a Korean, I don't really see a change in popularity, since I've always watched Korean shows and known who the top Korean celebrities are. Moreover, my friend Wikipedia tells me that the Hallyu wave started in the early 1990's. I was eight years old in 1990, which means I don't really remember what life was like before this so-called Wave.

An interesting thing, to me, is the way the word was translated. 한류 in Korean is literally 'han' (한), which means Korean, and 'lyu' (류), which means wave. I don't know what happened to the 'han' part and why it became 'hal.' Hanlyu is harder to say, I suppose, and with proper Korean pronunciation, it does sounds like Hallyu.

A huge reason that I became immersed in Korean T.V. is because of a drama that came out in 2000, the year I turned 18. It's called 가을동화, translated to "Autumn Fairy Tale" or "Autumn in My Heart." The Korean title is much less annoying, and I think a closer translation would have been "An Autumn Tale." It's not a fairy tale, exactly, it's a tale that takes place in Autumn!

That show made me crush madly on the lead actors (both of them- they're both adorable, I promise) and I thought the lead actress was gorgeous. (I've since come to dislike her, as her character in 그들이 사는 세상, or "The World They Live In," is hateful and stupid- sorry, Song Hye-Gyo (송혜교), you're still beautiful, even with that unfortunate mushroom-cap haircut. Your stylist hates you.) The show was as melodramatic as it's possible to get, wringing tears with every single plot point. The reason it was so popular (at one point, 46% of Korea was watching it) was because it was the first of its kind. If it aired now, it wouldn't score as well, since drama-producers have exploited the "love that can't happen because of family secrets" plots and regurgitated shows with similar stories to the point that viewers are numb. At the time, though, it was amazing. I think I cried during every episode, and I really wanted both Song Seung-Hun (송승헌) or Won Bin (원빈) to hurry up and star in another drama so I could continue to admire them unabashedly. Look at the prettiness:

















Ignore the horrible '90's hair and lipstick ... and totally white face powder on the girls. Attractive cast even with those faults, though, no?

"Autumn Tale" was the first of four dramas directed by Yoon Suk-Ho (윤석호). Collectively, the four dramas are called "Endless Love" (oh, the sap). They are:

- Autumn Tale (가을동화)
- Winter Sonata (겨울연가)
- Summer Scent (여름향기)
- Spring Waltz (봄의 왈츠)

I really think it's these four dramas that mark the beginning of the Hallyu Wave, particularly in Japan. "Winter Sonata" shot Bae Yong-Joon (배용준) to stardom- he's still immensely popular in Japan, almost ridiculously so.

There's the history of the Hallyu Wave, which allows me to move into the present and future. This year, there are more Koreans than ever in upcoming Hollywood movies. I almost worked on one of them, but the timing didn't work out, which is too bad. With so many Koreans debuting on the Hollywood stage this year, I feel as though the stage is set for the Hallyu Wave to make its way across the Pacific and land in the U.S. (not just L.A. and Orange County). The films and its Korean actors:

- "Blood: The Last Vampire," with Jun Ji-Hyun, her American name being Gianna Jun (전지현), to be released March, 2009:













- "Dragonball Evolution," with Park Joon-Hyung (박준형), to be released April 8, 2009:













- "X-Men Origins: Wolverine," with Daniel Henney (okay, he's only half-Korean, but his popularity started in Korea, so go with me), to be released May 1, 2009:



















- "Ninja Assassin," with Rain (정지훈, or 비), to be released July, 2009:




















- "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra," with Lee Byung-Hun (이병헌), to be released August 7, 2009:


















- "1949," with Song Hye-Gyo (송혜교), to be released sometime in 2010 (they're still in pre-production):


















And these are just the movies that I actually know about. There are probably more! (Note that I only know about movies with extensive VFX work ... at least I know my field, right??)

Of all the actors above, I think Daniel Henney's going to hit the jackpot. He's attractive to Asians and non-Asians: tall (he was a model), chiseled, the kind of nose Koreans ask their plastic surgeons for, great smile. See what a British father and a Korean mother can do?:

















Makes me want to marry a white man so I can have pretty babies.

I know that Lucy Liu and Kelly Hu are quite popular, but they're both women. The popular Asian men are the ones that are good martial artists- Jackie Chan, Jet Li. Not really known for their attractiveness, not really heartthrobs. None of them Korean, either. (Not that it matters, since white people can't tell the difference between Korean and Chinese.)

The only worry I have is that of all the actors listed above, with the exception of the two women (Song Hye-Gyo and Jun Ji-Hyun), Daniel Henney is the least accomplished actor. That's my nice way of saying boy's hot but he can't act. Hopefully the 'hot' makes up for the 'can't act.'

Still, I predict a good year for Koreans in Hollywood. I'll post up industry news as I hear it, but only the stuff I care about.

I do hear that the VFX for X-Men are lookin' good...

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Razzle Dazzle

Last Sunday, January 25, the family took my uncle to watch "Chicago" at the Cerritos Center for Performing Arts (the musical, not the movie or anything).

My uncle, being the head of the music department at Jeonju University, is somewhat generally in charge of the musicals and shows put on by his department. They've toured China and Korea and done all kinds of stuff, which I'm very vague about because I've never seen any of the shows. We thought that "Chicago" would be an educational experience for him, since everyone knows the broads in that musical need to be amazing dancers and solid singers.

I've watched the movie, I know the soundtrack by heart, but I've never watched the actual stage musical. I was really sick that night and inhaling cough drops, slightly woozy from all the medication, but I didn't want to miss it.

Blown. Away.

It's absolutely astounding, one of the best experiences of my life. I thought Catherine Zeta-Jones was good (Renee Zellweger, so-so, Richard Gere- terrible), but the entire cast that I saw on Sunday blew her right out of the water.

Velma was a revelation. Played by Terra C. MacLeod, she was brash and sassy and perfect. My mother leaned over to me during the first song (All That Jazz) to ask if they were lip-synching. My mother was a piano major and has seen plenty of shows in her life, so it's not her judgment. They were THAT GOOD.

Roxie was also amazing (so much better than Renee). Played by Michelle DeJean, she was giddy and silly and could dance like nobody's business. Her red hair might have been just a touch too brassy, but her ability to milk hilarity from every single possible moment more than made up for the bad coloring.

I really loved Mama Morton, who was played by Roz Ryan. Even when she came out for her bow, she didn't run out, she sauntered. She swayed, she strutted, but never rushed, either in her songs or her actions. I loved Queen Latifah in the movie, but Roz Ryan really embodied the character.

The only character I was not completely enamored with was Billy Flynn. He seems to be some sort of ... thorn. In the movie, Richard Gere's nasal, pinched voice made me cringe. Why didn't they just dub him?? In the musical, Jeff McCarthy was better than Richard Gere but still didn't quite have the chops or suave dancing to enthrall me. He actually took me out of the show for a bit, when I wondered to myself why he was cast.






















Still, a great, great time. I actually wished it was longer!

Mary Sunshine ... oh, Mary Sunshine, why are you so fantastic?? One of the best audience reactions ever, worth watching the show for Mary's great moment at the end.

The band was amazing, the absolutely pristine set with only chairs as props was asterely impeccable, and I loved loved loved it.

I wish I had the opportunity to go to more Broadway shows! Maybe I need to take a Broadway trip and go to the real Broadway in New York. I've never been to New York ... but perhaps I could work at Blue Sky and work on Ice Age 8??

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