Anchor: The halfway point has passed at the Cannes Film Festival and reviews about the competitive films are pouring in. South Korean director Hong Sang-soo’s movie “The Day After” is getting rave reviews and all eyes are on whether the film will win the coveted top award.
Our Park Jong-hong has this report.
 
Report:
 
[Audio clips from Geu-hu]
 
The latest film by director Hong Sang-soo premiered in Cannes, France on Monday and is in the running to win the film festival's top prize.
 
[Audio clips from Geu-hu]
 
The movie filmed in black and white tells the tale of a married man who runs a publishing company and falls in love with his employee.
 
Lead roles are played by Kim Min-hee and Kwon Hae-hyo.
 
Meeting with the press in Cannes, director Hong caught the spotlight for bringing up his relationship with the movies leading lady, actress Kim Min-hee.
 
[Sound bite: Hong Sang-soo (English)
"Kim Min-hee, as I told the press conference in Korea, I love her. So much more are coming to me. It is obvious so much more inspiration working with her." 
 
The film called “The Day After” or “Geu-hu” in Korean is Hong’s fourth film to be invited to the competitive division of the global film festival.
 
This year another flick by the prolific director called “Claire’s Camera” was invited for a special screening, displaying his wide appeal to the European cinematic industry.
 
“The Day After” has been well received by a sold-out audience who gave the movie a four minute standing ovation after it ended.
 
The French movie site ‘Chaos Liens’ gave the film a four-point-66 out of five and several critics on the site gave the film a golden stamp, signifying a perfect score.
 
Critics of Korean flicks, Darcy Paquet and Jason Bechevaise, said Hong has once again proved his artistic finesse.
 
Hong’s film did not score high with U.S. and British film media and with nine judges deciding on who wins the top honor dubbed Palme d’Or, many say it’s too early to tell whether Hong will scoop the coveted award.
 
The winner will be announced on the 28th at the closing ceremony.
Park Jong-hong KBS World Radio News.