L.A. travelogue, Chunhyang, Gung, Duelist, blogging

[tarigwaemir]

Lowell House, on the Feast of St. Marcellus

Dear self,

Yes, it's true the Widener stacks are a marvelous though chilly place to study, but if you are going to attempt to revise for finals at a carrel next to shelves and shelves of books, please don't choose to sit near the contemporary British literature section as this is a really, really stupid idea and will result in your finishing Bridget Jones' Diary* instead of rereading Kierkegaard.

Your voice of conscience

* For some odd reason, I think I actually prefer the movie to the book. That may be because while I've always had a high tolerance for chick flicks, I've never attempted reading chick lit before.

The past week's been a strange combination of frantic productivity followed by utter, utter laziness. In retrospect, more laziness than productivity, although I did manage to write a paper on The Man Who Was Thursday for the course on Job that I felt was worthy of Chesterton (or at least as worthy a paper I am capable of writing). Unfortunately, I decided that the way to reward myself for this achievement was to spend the weekend doing absolutely nothing, other than submit my part for the huge communal study guide compilation. Ugh. I've also been lax in leaving comments on LJ although I am reading the friends list. I keep telling myself that I'll come back and leave comments properly but the combination of needing to study and feeling lazy has proven to be somewhat of a hurdle. Anyway, some belated ramblings that I meant to post up before but did not due to sloth.

1. Los Angeles: When I arrived at LAX, I could hardly believe that it was January. The sky was that unique shade of summer blue that I hadn't seen for months up on the East Coast, and it was delightfully warm. I understand now why they say that people in California seem so relaxed; who wouldn't be, in such nice weather? Some of the girls from New England were gossiping about the UC boys at the conference, who were deemed to be taller and better-looking than the boys out here, and I opined that it was all due to the climate. Of course you'll turn out looking better if you grew up in a climate where you didn't have to endure six months of winter and unpredictable precipitation. The hotel we stayed in was quite possibly the nicest hotel I've ever seen, decorated in charming Mediterranean colors of turquoise and golden pinks, along a sort of old Spanish Mexico theme. Tiled mosaics, pools with real carp stretching throughout the lobby. Our suite actually had a common room with a TV and a little kitchenette, in addition to a separate bedroom which had an additional sink outside of the usual bathroom. I have never, ever stayed in such a nice suite before, even though it was the usual two queen beds, and I kept imagining how nice it would be to have the money to vacation in a place like that for a week or two. The bathroom had the nicest shower--oh, you laugh at me for noticing details like these, but all the plumbing in New York and Cambridge is hopelessly old. My bathroom has been whitewashed several times but that doesn't stop the faucet from leaking, the pipes from looking rusty or the bathtub enamel from peeling. -_- It's such a delight to use a bathroom where the facilities actually look new and modern. Even more of a delight because the water wasn't as hard as it is here.

The conference itself was pretty interesting. We had a leadership workshop on the first day, which occasionally veered into trite slogan-spouting ("Leadership is about will, not skill!") but nonetheless helped break the ice. We went through this self-introduction section where we had to draw little pictures depicting who we were and what we wanted at school (or work) and at home. For what I wanted at home, it didn't occur to me that the generic answer was to say something like "peace and happiness for my family" so in my usual self-centered way, I thought of personal goals that had nothing to do with my future career path and came up with "I want to be a better writer." >_> Oops. (Now people think I've actually made a serious attempt at writing something other than loads of short fanfiction drabbles...) The next day we had presentations, most of which were engineering-related and hence beyond my comprehension. A few were pretty accessible, including an interesting one that analyzed the collapse of the World Trade Center and one on teaching digital signal processing to undergraduates. By the way, I've concluded that I have nothing but the highest respect for engineers now because, oh my gosh, all the math and computer programming required simply boggles my mind. >_> I did manage to completely understand the biology lectures, which mostly addressed the same material we learned in MCB 155 this semester.

The speeches this time around were a lot shorter and less boring than the ones at YGF. The president of KSEA went on this weird but funny tangent where he half-ranted about how he thought the living conditions in Korea were unhealthy (i.e. the high-rise apartments all in close proximity, which leaves you constantly open to the scrutiny of your neighbors and increases the sense of competition). But the universal favorite was from the vice-president (also the CEO of some engineering corporation), who spoke at length on leadership: "There are two types of leaders: good leader and bad leader. It is very easy to be leader, but very hard to be good leader." My absolute favorite part of his speech was when he was explaining that we should not be so arrogant to believe that we can achieve success by our own means, but rather should place our faith and trust in something greater. (The theme of his speech essentially boiled down to the notion that success depended on faith, a very Protestant notion. You may be surprised at the amount of religious talk that was bandied about at a science and engineering conference, but in my experience, almost every older Korean lecturing to a "young generation" group will invariably bring up the importance of religion. A few will attempt to be politically correct and call it spirituality, but most won't make any attempt at all and talk about the need for Jesus Christ in our daily lives, etc., etc.) He said, "Some people have trust in money. They are gangster." Pause for laughter. "Some people have trust in a mission. They are communist!" At this, I very nearly choked on my food from laughing. The other priceless moment was when he shared his "watermelon theory" of good leadership--this theory proceeded to get parodied in every skit--where he said that it was better to go for the big watermelon and share it with other people than for the smaller apple all by yourself (i.e. the importance of teamwork). I had the good fortune to sit at the same table with him during the CEO dinner on the second day, and he proceeded to entertain us with a continual series of outrageous remarks. I must admit, I really do enjoy listening to old opinionated Korean men (there are quite a lot of them at my church) because they're so hilarious.

The first night I stayed in and went to sleep early because I was jet-lagged and suffering from a cold, but the second night I tagged along with everyone and got to see a bit of L.A.'s Koreatown. Main impression of L.A.: the buildings are short and everything's so spread out, even the roads. No wonder you need a car to get anywhere. They say that the Koreatown there is no different from Seoul, but I'm afraid I couldn't appreciate the similarity because Seoul to me is full of narrow spaces and tall buildings while L.A. is flat and sprawling. To tell the truth, the reason why I can't say wholeheartedly that I loved California was that I did feel constantly unnerved by the wide openness of it all. Even when we were supposedly "downtown" I felt like I was in the middle of the suburbs. -_- In any case, we went to a bar, where I drank water and virtuously refused all alcohol (being underaged of course). There was a funny moment where one of the guys kept calling me 누나 ("older sister") until I pointed out to him that he was in fact older than me. Apparently he thought I was a Master's student. I haven't been mistaken for a grad student since freshman year (when people thought I was a first-year grad student because I didn't seem excited or insecure enough to be a normal freshman). It always tickles me to no end when people think I'm older than I actually am because usually it's the opposite way around.

After that, we went to karaoke! I managed to sing two songs, despite my incredibly hoarse voice and congested sinuses. Nothing can get in the way of my karaoke time, not even a dreadful cold! ^_^ It was a huge room, and wow, everyone sang really well. ^_^ My father says that the noraebang culture in Korea has created a nation of great singers, which does leave you to wonder why the gigantic new boy bands they're forming these days can't manage to get people who sing well and look pretty. Came back at about 4 in the morning, utterly exhausted. We then had skit performances and an award ceremony. Yours truly won an award for Best Undergraduate Poster. Plus our group got second prize for the skit. The first place skit was actually really hilarious. The premise was that the protagonist was attempting to turn an apple into a watermelon (haha, the watermelon theory strikes again), and he went around to his friends met through KSEA to seek their various specialties. To turn the red apple to a green color, he consulted a friend who majored in "colorology" ("색갈학"); to increase the size of the apple to a melon, the friend called up another friend who specialized in "inflation" ("부풀리"); to get the melon to have the proper stripes, the friend's friend brought over a student from MIT majoring in "line drawing" ("줄그림"). Hm, recounting the story here sounds a bit bland, but it was pretty hilarious to watch and rather clever to boot.

Afterwards, I went to the airport and waited several hours for my flight. Saw the sun setting at LAX and felt like I was watching a scene out of a movie. L.P. called me up, saying "Guess where I am!" to tell me that she was on the Chinatown bus back to Cambridge. I answered, "Guess where I am," and had the satisfaction of utterly flabbergasting her by saying that I was sitting in an airport on the other side of the continent during reading period. Hahaha. The very idea makes me feel like such a rebel, even now. ^_^ I've also learned that domestic flights are awful and uncomfortable, and their service is ten times worse than on international flights. My ears wouldn't pop both ways, and my chair wouldn't recline on the red-eye flight back leaving me staggering into Cambridge at 6 AM Monday morning hardly having slept. I have newfound respect for ladydaera, schwimmerin and Nan for braving such an ordeal every break.

2. The story of Chunhyang, a summary: noble_scarlet asked me to narrate the legend of Chunhyang a while ago. I'm not sure how much better I'll be than the American summaries out on the web, but I'll give it my best shot.

The story of Chunhyang probably began as a folktale possibly loosely based on a true story, but it achieved its first cohesive form in pansori, which roughly translates to Korean folk opera. Pansori is performed by a solo artist who half-chants, half-sings both the narrative and the dialogue using a fan and dance movements to illustrate the story, with percussion accompaniment by a drummer. I've watched bits of Chunhyangjeon (Legend of Chunhyang) performed live by a real pansori artist (she is considered one of the cultural treasures of Korea) once in New York, and it's quite an interesting experience. Pansori was considered commoner's entertainment, rather like the Italian Commedia dell'Arte, but nonetheless, it's a very unique art form which depends on interaction between the performer and the audience, who often calls back to the performer to cheer him or her on during the performance. The result is that a really good pansori artist will hold the audience's interest and draw them into the story, allowing them to see and hear several different characters in the place of one.

Chunhyang is considered the epitome of marital fidelity in much the same way Shimcheong (from another famous Korean folktale) represents the ideal of filial piety. Seong Chunhyang is the daughter of a gisaeng (which correspond roughly to the Japanese geisha in their dual roles as entertainers and sexual companions) and a yangban noble. Hence, although she is of a lower class, she has been brought up to think of herself as someone special, destined for something more than the life of an ordinary gisaeng. A gisaeng usually had more education than the average woman, since they needed to know not only how to entertain with music and dance but also be able to converse wittily and compose poetry in front of the yangban gentry, a class that predominantly identified itself through its knowledge of Confucian classics. Some of the most famous sijo (a form of traditional Korean poetry) were composed by gisaeng, and there are many tragic love stories about a nobleman's steadfast love for a beautiful and talented gisaeng. It's even true that a gisaeng could aspire to become a nobleman's concubine although never a proper wife. All that being said, we mustn't romanticize affairs completely; a gisaeng was both more and less than a commoner, and although she wasn't a prostitute, that doesn't mean that she wasn't essentially an object of sexual exploitation either.

Anyway, Yi Mongryong comes to Namwon (a city in Jeollado) when his father is assigned to be magistrate for the city. He is supposed to be studying for the civil service examinations, but like most boys of his age (he is around fourteen to sixteen at this time), he has trouble concentrating on his studies. He first sees Chunhyang on the day of the Dano festival (단오), the fifth day of the fifth month of the lunar calendar, while she is swinging. (Swings are traditional to the Dano festival, just as jumping seesaws are to the New Year festival.) He asks his servant, Bangja, to find out who the beautiful girl is and where she lives, then chases after her professing his love for her. Presumably Chunhyang falls in love with him too, but she, of course, refuses to sleep with him until he promises to marry her, which he does by signing a marriage contract. This contract is not, however, legally binding but Chunhyang believes it to be proof of their marriage. (At this point in the pansori, there is a famous song where Mongryong playfully feeds Chunhyang watermelon on their marriage night.) Well, after idling his summer days away, Mongryong's father is summoned to the capital, and Mongryong has to leave a tearful Chunhyang behind.

(Some of the American reviewers for the movie comment that it's kind of unrealistic that Mongryong doesn't communicate at all with Chunhyang while he is away in Seoul. I think they're missing on the subtext here though. On the story level, the audience believes and is expected to believe that Mongryong and Chunhyang truly love each other, in Romeo-and-Juliet, "till death do us part" fashion. On the sociocultural level, however, the audience knows equally well that the more likely scenario is that Mongryong never had serious intentions towards Chunhyang in the first place and that the idea of a marriage between a yangban's son and a gisaeng's daughter is a fanciful dream. We give into the romantic belief that their love is beautiful and true while listening to the story, but nonetheless, the underlying "reality" of the situation is what makes Chunhyang's fidelity so noble and so tragic. I think it's important to note this tension between the "story truth" and the "realistic truth" because that is what makes this folktale emotionally moving.)

When the new magistrate, Byeon Hakdo, arrives, he calls for all the gisaeng in the district to appear before him. Chunhyang does not appear because she considers herself to be a married woman and not a gisaeng. Byeon has her summoned and asks her to explain herself, but he does not recognize her marriage (which as you may remember is not actually legally binding) and orders her to serve him. When she refuses, he has her flogged and imprisoned. (In the pansori, there's my favorite moment when Chunhyang for each count of the lash composes a poem about the magistrate's injustice and cruelty. You know, "As there is only one heaven and one earth, there can only be one husband for one woman," and "As there are five elements in the universe, there are five virtues: benevolence, righteousness, wisdom, filial piety and fidelity." Etc. for each number. A traditional form of defiance to an unjust ruler, whom Byeon Hakdo personifies to the last degree, especially in his inability to control his passions and his cruelty to the common people.) He tells her that if she gives up her stubbornness and agrees to become his concubine, he will forgive her "crimes" but if she doesn't, she'll be put to death.

Meanwhile, Mongryong finally got down to his studying at the capital and took the civil service examinations, where he placed first. With this distinction, the king appoints him as an amhaeng'eosa (암행어사), which is a sort of undercover police inspector who travels around the kingdom checking up on the behavior of the royal magistrates to make sure they govern fairly. (The role has been popularized in the manga/manhwa "New Amhaeng'eosa" or 신암행어사.) He's assigned to Namwon first, and he disguises himself as a beggar so that he can find out what the magistrate is really like. He hears about Chunhyang's situation, right down to the part where she is about to be executed the very next day. (At this point, there's a hilarious scene where he heads over to Chunhyang's mother's house and asks his mother-in-law for something to eat, pretending he's a poor beggar now because he failed his examinations in the capital. The mother is aghast and berates him, wailing what are they to do now, after they had pinned all their hopes on him coming to save her. Very comic actually since the audience knows Mongryong is acting.) The next day, the magistrate is holding his birthday banquet when Mongryong still disguised as a beggar demands to be given a drink in return for composing a poem. Amused, the magistrate agrees, and Mongryong composes a poem that condemns Byeon's cruelty to the commoners. Recognizing the allusion, all the other nobles at the banquet quietly begin to excuse themselves and leave, but Byeon is oblivious (being the stupid lout that he is). He calls for Chunhyang to be brought in for her execution, at which point Mongryong gives a signal to his men who surround the pavilion calling out "암행어사 출두요!" (What the inspector traditionally says when he reveals himself, roughly meaning, "The secret inspector has appeared!") He has the magistrate arrested and then calls Chunhyang before him.

Chunhyang, weary and faint from her ordeal, does not recognize the man sitting before her. She thanks him for saving him, at which point, he puts her to the test one last time, saying that he thinks she's very pretty and won't she consider serving him instead. Chunhyang explodes at this point and insists that she will remain loyal to her husband even to the end. At this point, Mongryong shows her his ring, and she finally recognizes him. The two are happily reunited, and celebrations commence. (At this point, the mother-in-law has a comic moment when she fawns on her son-in-law and says that she knew he had been pretending all along and that she only beat him because she didn't want to give away his disguise. Haha.)

Whew, there you have it, all the essential pieces of the story of Chunhyang. Not told very gracefully, but I'm pretty sure I didn't leave anything out. Hope it helps, Ekai!

Edit: Oh, and this is probably shameless self-pimping, but I did write a fanfic based on the Im Kwontaek movie adaptation of the Chunhyang story here. I think actually the fic might make more sense after this summary, which is inevitably "stained" with my particular interpretation of the story.

3. 궁, the drama version: Thanks to kenbu's heads-up, I downloaded and watched the first two episodes of 궁 over the weekend. I wasn't all that enthusiastic about the manhwa, but the drama is proving to be cute and amusing. Although I must admit, it doesn't have the usual feel of a K-drama...I think partly because all the furniture is so modern, even in the supposedly traditional palace. 채경's house is completely Westernized, for example, and oddly well-furnished for a family who's supposedly in debt. (It's really hard to believe that she's a poor girl when her family actually owns a house in Seoul, which has notoriously expensive real estate.) Also, I must admit that I don't really understand half the slang. It's one thing to see chatspeak in text; it's completely another to try to understand it when spoken out loud. >_> I mean, not that the dialogue is difficult to follow or anything...I just find myself not really understanding every single word. (I actually do follow most of the dialogue word-for-word in K-dramas with a contemporary setting nowadays, so it's a bit frustrating when I can't.) Anyway, 신 looks constipated and can't act. I can't tell if 율 can act either, but he at least looks pretty on-screen despite the orange hair. 윤은혜 is the best actor of the lot, I think, and has good comic timing. Will continue watching for the eye candy. They also put a lot of thought into the fusion costumes; I wonder if it will create any interesting fashion trends. Also, isn't it a bit weird that all the men get to prance around in slightly antiquated Western suits while the women stick to elaborate Joseon-dynasty-style hanbok? -_-

4. 형사, or Duelist: Downloaded this movie, which I've been wanting to watch ever since it was mentioned on Soompi. It's supposed to be based on the Damo manhwa, which as many of you know was made into a drama series a few years ago. 형사 stars the same female actress, Ha Jiwon, as the same female protagonist, albeit under a different name (Namsun instead of Chae'ok). It's...roughly the same plot, with a female detective chasing after a counterfeiting ring only to find herself inadvertently falling in love with the criminal (although thankfully this time he doesn't turn out to be her brother), but otherwise, the connection between the two ends. I don't know exactly what genre this movie claims to follow. The director called it "noir" and I can definitely see some of the influences, but it also occasionally veers into...horror? sheer artsiness? The dialogue is almost sing-song at times, and there are all these spooky effects where the actors whisper then suddenly shout, creating a disconcerting contrast. Definitely not your typical martial arts film. For one, the director is obsessed with slow motion scenes and sudden freezes and an epilepsy-inducing series of fast cuts, which I do admit reflect the original manhwa art style. For another, all the fight scenes don't even try to be realistic or feasible; they are choreographed as dance from start to finish. In the arrest scene, where the police swarm the mansion, they rotate outwards in this spiraling circle that is most commonly seen in traditional dance. The sparring between the two main characters is sensual, even erotic, but lacks adrenaline entirely.

Namsun is a very different sort of heroine from Chae'ok, despite the fact that they are played by the same actress. Namsun is coarse, even vulgar, and speaks in 사투리 or dialect, which usually suggests someone uneducated and lower class. (I think that is much more realistic than Chae'ok's long list of accomplishments despite her slave status.) Namsun also has issues with her femininity--she really does think of herself as a man, I think--which is why she finds the male protagonist, who is only known by the name Sad Eyes ("슬픈눈") so unsettling. Kang Dongwon plays Sad Eyes, and I must say, I usually don't like long hair on males because it looks messy but...I'll make an exception for Kang Dongwon. What a gorgeous face! I appreciated all the slow panning shots of his eyes. Yes, I'm shallow. In any case, this movie was very odd, very experimental. I'd recommend seeing it just to boggle at the craziness of the director (if not to ogle Kang Dongwon's face).

5. Adventures into the Korean blogosphere: I signed up for a Naver "café", which is a sort of community forum, where K-fandom seems to congregate like the way we do on LJ. Of course, I chose a café for Hikaru no Go (who's surprised?). Apparently, this is where K-fandom posts its fanfics. I've only looked at two so far, and both happened to be in script format. I was wondering if that was common, but a comment in response to one of the fics suggested very kindly that the person not write their story like a chat. Hm. By the way, that particular fanfic began with an argument between Hikaru and Akira over a go game. ^_^ My OTP transcends language barriers! Hahaha.

I also gave into the dark side and signed up for a Cyworld. Oh dear. aetherangelette will never look at me with respect again (not that she had much respect for me in the first place). On the bright side, I don't find Cyworld quite as addictive as my other Internet activities because the abundance of features makes my brain go kaputz. I mean, I like to stalk look at other people's pages, but I don't exactly feel tempted to create content myself because I do that here on LJ and on my book blog and on Naver. I guess that makes me a typical lurker.

By the way, two and a half years attending this institution, and until today I had no idea that Widener had a café. -_- Next time, I won't starve lunch but go there to eat instead.

Writing is on a bit of a back burner for now until I get through finals. ;_; Although that didn't stop me from typing up this ridiculously long post.

Yours &c.

Post-script: You know, I've just realized that this entire post is either about Korea or Korean culture or Korean people. O_O This is slightly disconcerting. Is this a recent development or did I always post so much about, well, Korean things before this year? One of these days, I'm going to take a leaf from worldserpent's book and do a poll on what I should post about.

Post-post-script: Wow, this post is long. >_<

Comments

[noble-scarlet.livejournal.com]

thank you, Tari! it does help a lot. ^_^ (am saving, hope it's okay)

[troisroyaumes]

Save away! I'm glad it's useful. ^_^

[serendip.livejournal.com]

I love it <33333333333333

[troisroyaumes]

^_^a Er...love the post? the drama? the snarking about old opinionated Korean men? XD

[serendip.livejournal.com]

The Korean kultur blogging ♥♥♥♥♥

I need to watch more doramas XD Instead, I read Bleach to torment eve. Must get priorities str8

[troisroyaumes]

Yay, glad you like it. Psst, have you tried using Clubbox yet? It's the best way to get the latest episodes. XD

[serendip.livejournal.com]

d00d, my Korean sucks ass, I can barely read webpages XD I have trouble understanding all of the dialogue in k-doramas even XD So the answer is no XD Also, don't I need a registration number? Too lazy to scan in passport.

[troisroyaumes]

Clubbox doesn't ask for ID#, thank goodness, or for a passport scan. It's the most straightforward registration process; they have a separate page for overseas users...but it's still in Korean. There are walkthroughs in English available on Soompi and D-addicts, which I can dig up for you if you want, but then again, lately D-addicts has been pretty good about getting the raws out on torrents quickly if you're willing to wait a week after airing.

[clocklike.livejournal.com]

I was so hyped about Goong because it just brought back so many memories! But yeah, I was wondering how her parents could afford art institute fees and own a house in Seoul at the same time. Maybe they bought it a long time ago? >_> Have to agree with you on the outfits: I was expecting the guys to be wearing the hanbok too, but er. XD *runs* <-- *has never read the manhwa*

And yes, it is quite warm here (LA and other cities around LA). ^_^ I haven't been to a karaoke in a long time. Good luck on your finals! *hugs*

[troisroyaumes]

Oh, the drama didn't disappoint me at all! I thought it was awfully cute and funny, and I'm definitely looking forward to watching the next two episodes this week. XD I guess I have a reflex tendency to poke holes in all the dramas I watch, but that doesn't ever stop me from fangirling over them too. ^_^ I've only read a couple of volumes of the manhwa, but from what I have read, I think I actually prefer the drama version. ^_^;;

L.A. weather was quite beautiful! And I'm sad I didn't know you lived so close to L.A. before I went on my trip, otherwise we could have tried to meet up. ;_; Oh well...hopefully this won't be my last visit to SoCal. XD

[sangoire.livejournal.com]

The Ch'un-hyang ka! I wrote about three papers on that story this term for EAS 97r. One of the great highlights of the semester was watching the recent movie version with my TF, who was continuously like, "Geez, Myong-nang is a horrible, horrible person."

[troisroyaumes]

I agree, he is horrible. ^_^ I mean, when I was a kid growing up with the story, I actually thought that I wanted to be like Mongryong--top scores on exams! then secret agent of justice!--and then later, after seeing the movie, I thought he was a bastard...which is why I felt all the more sorry for poor Chunhyang. Now I think Chunhyang sort of redeems him; it's her fidelity turns their love from a casual fling to a real relationship, elevating a common tragedy to a great romance. But that's just my pompous theorizing. >_>;;

Did you get to listen to the actual pansori in your tutorial? It's neat that you covered Korean culture as well; it's so easy to overlook when compared to the output from China and Japan. ^_^;;

[sangoire.livejournal.com]

Unfortunately, no, we just watched the the movie--was that a pansori who narrated it? I didn't know the word for it.

We covered Korea, but the breakdown of the course was something like nine weeks on China, three on Japan, and one on Korea. It was pretty depressing, really. :( How are the more Korean-centric courses here?

[troisroyaumes]

Yup, the narrator was a pansori performer. ^_^

Heh, I'm not surprised. Even when I go to Yenching, the Korean section is a quarter of the size of other sections. Well, given the size of the country, I suppose it makes sense. I've only taken Korean language courses, which tend to focus more on modern pop culture than history, which is a bit of a shame. :/

[derlirum.livejournal.com]

Yeah, before I moved to Southern California, I had heard that Koreatown was like Seoul -- very, very far from the truth. You have none of the bustling streets of Myongdong, Apkujongdong, and Kangnam in L.A.'s Koreatown. You also don't have the fabulous cheap food. (Actually, I found the Korean food better in O.C. than in L.A.)

Funny thing, though. I didn't go to Koreatown until about mid-way through my clerkship -- and I went with my Chinese friends.

And this comment has really no relevancy, but I thought I'd share. XD

P.S. I think your summary of "Chungyang" is good. (And though I liked the movie, I was, given the rave reviews, a little disappointed.)

[troisroyaumes]

Yes, and the streets of L.A. were practically deserted at night, which is really different from what I saw of downtown Seoul. ^_^ If I ever get a chance to go to CA again (hopefully for a longer stay next time) I'll definitely have to check out the food in O.C. then. XD

Bridget

[jaebi-lit.livejournal.com]

I like the books a great deal and I think I like the first movie because I like the books (still haven't seen the second movie, probably won't). Once I've removed myself from the books and look at the movie on its own, I don't think it's very good at telling the story; the novel's not set up that way.

Cali is gorgeous, ain't it? Especially after this ridiculous cold spell, I'm missing my wide open skies and palm trees.

Re: Bridget

[troisroyaumes]

California is lovely! I want to go there for grad school just to enjoy the weather. XD

I haven't watched the second movie either, but I liked the first even without having read the books. But you're right, the story structure is very different; almost like they took scenes out of the book but connected them with entirely different material. I liked the book but it was hard for me to relate to the character, which makes reading first person narrative more difficult. Movies don't require as much personal involvement I guess?

[worldserpent.livejournal.com]

Hey, I find these posts interesting. I have the Chunhynang movie somewhere. I should watch it. BTW, have you seen the TV series loosely inspired by the legend? XD

3. BTW, do you know the English title of it? Sounds kind of interesting.

[troisroyaumes]

I haven't seen the Sassy Girl Chunhyang drama, mostly because my inner prudish old woman was vaguely horrified at the thought of modernizing the legend, but now that I've read noble_scarlet's review of it on televida, I think I might give it a try. ^_^ I did very much like the movie, which I had the good fortune to see on the big screen when it was released in the U.S.

궁 in English is either just Goong or Palace or The Imperial Household...I'm not sure which title they've decided as a standard yet, but "Palace" would be the best translation. It's just started broadcasting in Korea last week, but thanks to the Internet, we can download the episodes right away off of Clubbox (major Korean filesharing service). I think it's a lot of fun--very comic and doesn't take itself too seriously. XD

[worldserpent.livejournal.com]

Ah, that sounds interesting. I like historical series. I've seen some of Sassy Girl Chunhynang. It's not really a modernization. It's a very loose taking of some of the plot elements. And they have these BIZARRE shorts at the end where the characters dress in historical clothes and parody the legend. XD

[troisroyaumes]

Ah, sorry to give the wrong impression, but Gung actually isn't a historical series. It's based on this premise of what if the Korean royal family hadn't been murdered at the beginning of the century but had survived to this day. Basically, the girl who comes from a poor, common family finds herself engaged to the crown prince who attends the same school...I think you get the picture. Very typical shoujo, but it's kind of fun to watch on screen, especially with all the costumes.

Yes, I realized after reading Ekai's summary that Sassy Girl Chunhyang wasn't really a modernization. Definitely should give it a try...the parodies sound amusing. Is it mostly comic then or does it get melodramatic later on?

[worldserpent.livejournal.com]

What? It does sound exactly like a shoujo manga. I love costumes, so I think I'll go see this if it comes out in the states soon.

At the beginning it's very comic, but like many comedies, it soon gets more serious.