Blu-ray Collection
A Fine, Windy Day (1980)
A Fine, Windy Day is the representative Korean realist and social-critical film, ranked number seven in the 2014 top 100 Korean films selection. Director Lee Jang-ho debuted with Heavenly Homecoming to Stars in 1974, but it was A Fine, Windy Day that marked his successful comeback in 1980. It is the film that raised him to the status of auteur director. In its story of three young men who come to Seoul – and through the landscape of the developing city – we can see once again the value and aesthetic excellence of Korean classic film.
The film is Lee Jang-ho’s adaptation of a novelette, Our Vines by Choi Il-nam. Set in the 1980s in the southern development area of Seoul (Gangnam), a place where Korean capitalism and all the problems of rapid urbanization came to the surface, the film’s characters include three young men: a Chinese food delivery man, Duk-bae; an inn clerk called Gil-nam; and a barber’s assistant named Chun-shik. There are also three young women: a high-class lady called Myung-hee; a hair salon aid named Jin-ok; and a barbershop shaver known as Miss Yoo. The boys each like one of the girls, and each experiences the pain of love as a result. Amidst a desperate situation wherein many residents were dislodged from their homes by urban development, the film describes bleakly and humorously the life of the city’s lower-class youth. It reveals Lee Jang-ho’s love and hope for humanity, and the depth of his insights into Korean society and class questions. We can see how the film became a prototype for all Korean film, including those of the Korean New Wave, and how it emerged as a Korean classic. You will be touched by the young lives of well-known Korean actors and actresses, including Ahn Sung-gi, Choi Bul-am, Lim Ye-jin, Yoo Ji-in, and Kim Bo-yeon.
Director Lee Jang-ho himself participated in the A Fine, Windy Day commentary, which enhances the value of the film historiography as well as the significance of this blu-ray release. Professor Kim Hong-joon of Korea National University of Arts also took part, sharing interesting stories about the film’s production along with his profound analysis of each scene. A second film, My Love, My Film (2008, 80 mins), a documentary about the Korean films loved by Korean filmmakers like Lee Jang-ho and Kim Tae-yong, is also part of this blu-ray release. In addition, this blu-ray includes trailers for two of Lee Jang-ho’s films and video clips showing the before and after of the film restoration process. The high-quality booklets that come with all the films in the KOFA DVD Collection have always been acclaimed by collectors. This time, professor Yi Hyo-in (Kyung Hee University) writes an essay about director Lee Jang-ho and his films.
The film is Lee Jang-ho’s adaptation of a novelette, Our Vines by Choi Il-nam. Set in the 1980s in the southern development area of Seoul (Gangnam), a place where Korean capitalism and all the problems of rapid urbanization came to the surface, the film’s characters include three young men: a Chinese food delivery man, Duk-bae; an inn clerk called Gil-nam; and a barber’s assistant named Chun-shik. There are also three young women: a high-class lady called Myung-hee; a hair salon aid named Jin-ok; and a barbershop shaver known as Miss Yoo. The boys each like one of the girls, and each experiences the pain of love as a result. Amidst a desperate situation wherein many residents were dislodged from their homes by urban development, the film describes bleakly and humorously the life of the city’s lower-class youth. It reveals Lee Jang-ho’s love and hope for humanity, and the depth of his insights into Korean society and class questions. We can see how the film became a prototype for all Korean film, including those of the Korean New Wave, and how it emerged as a Korean classic. You will be touched by the young lives of well-known Korean actors and actresses, including Ahn Sung-gi, Choi Bul-am, Lim Ye-jin, Yoo Ji-in, and Kim Bo-yeon.
Director Lee Jang-ho himself participated in the A Fine, Windy Day commentary, which enhances the value of the film historiography as well as the significance of this blu-ray release. Professor Kim Hong-joon of Korea National University of Arts also took part, sharing interesting stories about the film’s production along with his profound analysis of each scene. A second film, My Love, My Film (2008, 80 mins), a documentary about the Korean films loved by Korean filmmakers like Lee Jang-ho and Kim Tae-yong, is also part of this blu-ray release. In addition, this blu-ray includes trailers for two of Lee Jang-ho’s films and video clips showing the before and after of the film restoration process. The high-quality booklets that come with all the films in the KOFA DVD Collection have always been acclaimed by collectors. This time, professor Yi Hyo-in (Kyung Hee University) writes an essay about director Lee Jang-ho and his films.
ㅇ Subtitles: Korean, English, Japanese
ㅇ Frame: 1080P HD 2.35:1
ㅇ Audio: Korean LPCM Mono
ㅇ Rating: Aged 15 or over
ㅇ Running Time: 118 minutes
ㅇ Special Features
- Commentary: Lee Jang-ho (Film Director), Kim Hong-joon (Film Director)
- My Love, My Film (80 minutes)
- Videos before and after restoration
- Trailers of Lee Jang-ho’s films: People of Dark Streets and Widow Dance
ㅇ Booklet
- “Lee Jang-ho, the Cornerstone of Korean New Wave,” Yi Hyo-in (Professor, Theater & Film, Kyung Hee University)
ㅇ Frame: 1080P HD 2.35:1
ㅇ Audio: Korean LPCM Mono
ㅇ Rating: Aged 15 or over
ㅇ Running Time: 118 minutes
ㅇ Special Features
- Commentary: Lee Jang-ho (Film Director), Kim Hong-joon (Film Director)
- My Love, My Film (80 minutes)
- Videos before and after restoration
- Trailers of Lee Jang-ho’s films: People of Dark Streets and Widow Dance
ㅇ Booklet
- “Lee Jang-ho, the Cornerstone of Korean New Wave,” Yi Hyo-in (Professor, Theater & Film, Kyung Hee University)