If you liked the 2022 Cannes Film Festival’s Ecumenical Jury Award winning film, “Broker,” you’re going to love this collection of equally brilliant films and dramas!

If You Liked "Broker"

After the passing of his wife, Kim Man Seob (Song Kang Ho) is left with an overwhelming number of hospital bills and a young daughter, whom he now has to raise on his own. A hard-working taxi driver traversing the streets of Seoul in 1980, Man Seob is doing everything he can to make ends meet, but it never seems to be enough. Until the day Fate decides to give him a little wink. Overhearing another taxi driver talking about a foreign client willing to pay a substantial amount of money to anyone willing to drive him to Gwangju and back, before curfew, Man Seob takes the job.

A West German journalist hoping to report on the increasing civil unrest in Gwangju, Jürgen “Peter” Hinzpeter (Thomas Kretschmann), knows he’s risking his life for this story. With foreign reporters prohibited from entering the country, he has used the role of missionary and businessman to get as far as Seoul, but it’s not far enough if he hopes to cover this breaking story. Meeting Man Seob, the two set off for Gwangju, only to find that all roads leading into the city are not only blocked, but also heavily guarded. Undeterred by the danger ahead, the two find a more creative way into the city, only to find themselves caught up in the escalating events unfolding around them.

Unintentional participants in the uprising, Man Seob and Peter soon find themselves befriending strangers from all walks of life as they attempt to document the severity of the situation, all while trying to outrun the law. Short on time and running thin on luck, the brave pair must find a way to get home before it’s too late.

Based on a real-life story, “A Taxi Driver” is a 2017 historical action film directed by Jang Hoon.

A Taxi Driver

TheBest_TaxiDriver

Chang Seok (Yeon Woo Jin) is a novelist who lives and works in the United Kingdom. After a seven-year absence, he returns to Seoul in the springtime to relive old memories of his days living in the South Korean capital. His life has become entangled with his work, blurring the lines between real life, fiction, and his writing. As he navigates the city streets, he stops by cafes, bars, museums, and restaurants.

His wanderings lead him into a number of unusual encounters with strangers, including Sung Ha (Kim Sang Ho), a man who approaches him to tell the novelist a story about a mysterious Buddhist monk. He also meets Mi Young (IU), a young woman who says she has no interest in reading novels – and claims she cannot understand why people would ever read a fiction book. And then there’s Joo Eun (Lee Joo Young), a bartender who starts talking to him while he is writing in his notebook – offering to “buy” his memories in exchange for a drink. Meanwhile, an editor named Yoo Jin (Yoon Hye Ri) has a sad story she wants to tell him about a former boyfriend. As he listens to their tales, and tells them some of his own stories, the lines between reality and fiction begin to blur even further…

“Shades of the Heart” is a 2021 South Korean movie that was directed by Kim Jong Kwan.

Shades of the Heart

The Storytellers of the H♡rt

A 13-year-old girl named Soo Rin (Shin Eun Soo) is forced to relocate to a small island with her stepfather after the death of her mother when he is placed in charge of a major construction project on the island.

There she meets a young orphan boy named Seong Min (Lee Hyo Je). 

They soon discover that they have similar interests and a shared love for mysterious stories and folklore.

One day, Soo Rin joins Seong Min and his three friends on a secret journey to the heart of the construction site.

They come across a cave, and venture inside where they find a strange egg they believe may contain a monster that can turn children into adults. The boys take the egg – despite Soo Rin’s misgivings…

The boys vanish and find themselves trapped in a bizarre time bubble, while Soo Rin is unaffected. A massive manhunt is launched, with many fearing that the boys have been abducted by a dangerous criminal.

But when – a few years later – a 30-year-old man (played by Kang Dong Won) turns up telling Soo Rin that he is Seong Min, she must decide whether this strange man is an impostor, or if he really is her friend, all grown up.

“Vanishing Time: A Boy Who Returned” is a 2016 South Korean movie that was directed by Um Tae Hwa.

Vanishing Time: A Boy Who Returned

It’s not easy, admitting to yourself that your life is not a happy one, but that’s exactly what Park Dong Hoon (Lee Sun Gyun) has been forced to do. A middle-aged engineer working at a company where his college junior, Do Joon Yeon (Kim Young Min), is his boss, Dong Hoon is anything but happy. But that’s the least of his problems. With his two unemployed brothers living at him with his mother, he has to do what he can to help his struggling family, while trying to hold his own life together. Meanwhile, his wife and Joon Yeon are secretly having an affair.

As if life couldn’t get any more complicated or miserable, Dong Hoon soon finds himself entangled in a messy situation when one of his co-workers, Lee Ji An (IU) sees him accepting an unexpected bribe at work. Living with an invalid grandmother and drowning in debt, Ji An is drowning in her own miserable life so when the opportunity presents itself, she does what she can to try to make things better. Exploiting Dong Hoon in his moment of weakness, Ji An does what she can to make her life better but things don’t go the way she planned.

Caught up in a tangled web of personal struggles and internal corporate rivalry, Dong Hoon and Ji An find themselves fighting for the chance to make life better as they struggle to free themselves from their current misery and find a way to heal the wounds they each carry.

An emotional tale full of hurt, hope, and healing, “My Mister” is a 2018 drama directed by Kim Won Seok.

My Mister

The Lonely Team

In 1978, Song Woo Seok (Song Kang Ho) was tired of dragging himself through his daily routine. Desperate for a change, he left his position as a regional judge and moved to Busan to set up his own private law firm. Ridiculed by other lawyers for having passed his bar exams without any sort of higher education, Woo Seok brushes off the sneers of his peers and dedicates himself solely to his practice. Willing to take on the cases no one else wants to touch, Woo Seok finds a comfortable niche and quickly rises to the top.

Three years later, Woo Seok has made quite a name for himself as a highly successful lawyer. But the smooth sailing of his happy life is soon disrupted by the storms of civil unrest swirling around him. Trying to keep his distance from the turmoil around him, Woo Seok soon finds himself drawn in when an acquaintance of his, Choi Soon Ae (Kim Young Ae), tells him that her son, Park Jin Woo (Im Siwan), has gone missing. Assuring Soon Ae that he’ll look into the matter, Woo Seok is appalled when he finds Jin Woo and his friends have been imprisoned and tortured under charges of sedition.

Determined to stand up for the rights of the oppressed, Woo Seok takes on Jin Woo’s case, but defending him against a repressive government won’t be easy. As Woo Seok takes up the mantle to fight for justice he begins to wonder, can any one man really change the world?

Inspired by real-life events, “The Attorney” is a 2013 courtroom drama film directed by Yang Woo Suk.

The Attorney

The Lawyer Team@Viki.com

They say every child is a blessing. For 17-year-olds Dae Soo (Kang Dong Won) and Mi Ra (Song Hye Kyo), it is a terrifying prospect. When the young couple meets and falls in love, Mi Ra becomes pregnant and decides to have the baby against her parents’ wishes.

Dae Soo works as a taxi driver and Mi Ra works at a laundromat to support themselves and their son, Ah Reum (Jo Sung Mok). But their lives are complicated even further by the fact that Ah Reum is born with Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that causes accelerated aging in children. At the age of 16, Ah Reum’s body has degenerated that of an 80-year-old man, and he realizes that he doesn’t have long to live. Ah Reum decides to share the story of his life with the world through a television show. How will the world react to his very unusual life?

“My Brilliant Life” is a 2014 South Korean film directed by E J Yong. It is based on the novel My Palpitating Life by Kim Ae Ran.

My Brilliant Life

That Brilliant Summer Team 

It is the 15th century. In the kingdom of Joseon, the vast majority of the population is illiterate, and the few people who do know how to read and write must make use of Chinese characters – a writing technique that is notoriously difficult to master.
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The aging King Sejong the Great (Song Kang Ho), dreams of sparking an intellectual revolution in his country. His plan is to develop a script so straightforward and easy to read that even peasants could learn to read it.

Spurred on by the quick-witted Queen Sohun (Jeon Mi Sun), Sejong embarks on an ambitious quest to realize his dream – and help his country move out of China’s shadow, with a move he says “would take China 1,000 years to achieve.”
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But Sejong is dismayed to find that his royal court and noble advisors are short of ideas on how best to create the script.
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In his desperation, he turns to a group of low-born Buddhist monks led by Shin Mi (Park Hae Il) for help. Shin Mi and his monastic brothers guard the secrets of the Tripitaka Koreana, a massive library of 81,258 wooden printing blocks produced in the 13th century.
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Shin Mi’s calligraphy and language skills are second to none, while the king’s drive to complete the project is unswerving. But many obstacles stand between them and what seems at times like an impossible dream.
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Can King Sejong and his unlikely cohort of pious linguists help create a script that will ultimately become Hangeul, the modern Korean alphabet?
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The movie was based on real-life events, and all three of its main characters were historical figures from Korea’s past.
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“The King’s Letters” is a 2019 South Korean movie directed by Cho Chul Hyun.

The King's Letters

Creator Team

Cho In (Kang Dong Won) is a man with an incredible secret power – he can seize control of people’s minds and force them to do his bidding.

He discovered his skill as a young boy and used it to make his abusive father commit suicide.

Now he has grown up to become a cynical hedonist – using his power to manipulate unsuspecting businesses into handing over large sums of money to him.

But one day he meets his match when he strolls into a pawn shop intent on stealing cash – and comes face to face with an employee named Kyu Nam (Go Soo). Rather than bend to Cho In’s will, Kyu Nam fights back, although the pawnshop owner is killed and Cho In escapes.

Kyu Nam, who has formed a close relationship with the owner’s daughter, plans to avenge his ex-boss’ death – and enlists the help of his friends as he tries to stop put an end to the dangerous mind-controlling Cho In’s malicious schemes.

“Haunters” is a 2010 South Korean movie directed by Kim Min Seok.

Haunters

Supernatural Team

With dreams of becoming the perfect ruler of Joseon, King Yeongjo (Song Kang Ho) aspires to greatness as he ascends the throne. Hoping his acts as king will wipe his tarnished background from the minds of the people, King Yongjo does all he can to lead his country well. But the rumors of his lower class mother follow him wherever he goes, as does the whispers of his brother’s murder, and his desperate grapple for the throne. It would seem some moments in time can never be erased.

But time passes and with it comes the blessings of marriage and family. Father to a son, King Yeongjo has great plans for his young prince. Hoping his son will follow in his footsteps, the King does everything in his power to give his son a thorough education. Watching his son grow into a man, the King begins to see some less-than-desirable qualities emerge. Shunning his education, Crown Prince Sado (Yoo Ah In) shows more interest in art and swordplay than studying. As the schism between father and son grows, so does the general sense of unrest within the palace.

Thirty-five years into his father’s reign, Crown Prince Sado is accused of plotting treason. Though unable to carry through with the final, killing blow, the Prince must be punished. Realizing the implications of fathering a traitor could threaten his position, King Yeongjo orders his son to take his own life. Unwilling to follow his father’s orders, the King orders his son to be locked in a wooden rice chest and left in the palace courtyard to die a slow and agonizing death.&nbsp;

Inspired by one of the most notorious events in Korean history, “The Throne” is a 2015 historical drama film directed by Lee Joon Ik.

The Throne

The Throne Team

Nestled deep in the heart of Seoul’s thriving downtown sits a curious hotel, the like of which no one has ever seen before. Old beyond measure, the building has stood for millennia, an ever-present testament to the fact that things are not always what they seem. Running this hotel is Jang Man Wol (IU), a greedy, suspicious soul who has spent the past thousand years acting as the establishment’s CEO.

Cursed for a sin she can no longer remember committing, Man Wol is doomed to spend all of the eternity running this odd establishment, catering to the needs of a most peculiar clientele. Her only hope of escape is to find someone who has committed a worse sin than her own but after a thousand years, she’s beginning to lose hope.

However, things take an interesting turn when Goo Chan Sung (Yeo Jin Goo) shows up. Once the youngest assistant manager ever to work at a multinational hotel corporation, Chan Sung finds himself forced to manage the Hotel del Luna because of a deal his father made with Man Wol years ago. A stickler for rules and regulations, he’s a perfectionist to the extreme but that may be exactly what this odd establishment and its cursed CEO needs.

A tale of old curses, lost souls, and unexpected surprises, “Hotel Del Luna” is a 2019 mystery, romance, fantasy drama directed by Oh Choong Hwan.

Hotel Del Luna

🏨  Team Hotel Del Luna  🌕

A passionate reporter with exceptional talent, Lee Jin Woo (Lee Seo Jin) has dedicated his entire career to pursuing nothing but the truth. Committed to telling the whole story, Jin Woo will do whatever it takes to find and report the hard facts. A hard-working man with a nose for news, Jin Woo’s life takes an unexpected turn when a mysterious phone call connects him with Seo Jung In (Lee Joo Young), a woman who claims to be living five years in the future.

A hard-nosed reporter with a burning passion for her work, Seo Jung In has a knack for finding the best stories. But sometimes digging deep uncovers some nasty truths. Following a string of leads, Jung In uncovers a dark plot that could shake the very foundations of the country. With the life of her father, South Korea’s President, Seo Ki Tae (Kim Young Chul) on the line, Jung In finds herself in a deadly race against time. But she’s not in this race alone. Mysteriously connected by phone to Lee Jin Woo, the two agree to join forces to save the president.

Living and working in two completely different times, Jin Woo and Jung In set out on a dangerous quest for the truth. But will they be able to stop the villainous masterminds plotting this heinous crime before it’s too late?

A time warping tale of intrigue, “Times” is a 2021 political mystery thriller drama directed by Yoon Jong Ho.

Times

⌛Trapped In A Time Warp ⌚ Team

KBS02

We live in a world full of hatred and rage, where people are not even surprised by horrible and heinous acts of crime anymore. While some continue with their lives shivering in fear, some decide to end their misery by taking their own lives. The lack of humanity in our world led us to believe that we can't put our trust in others. But what if these heinous crimes and horrible accidents were caused by something other than humans? What if there was more to what meets the eyes in this world? This is a story about a private detective and his sidekick whose mission is to solve mysterious crimes by hunting down spiritual beings.

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