Burning (2018 film)

Burning
Theatrical release poster
Hangul
버닝
Revised RomanizationBeoning
Directed byLee Chang-dong
Screenplay by
  • Oh Jung-mi
  • Lee Chang-dong
Based on"Barn Burning"
by Haruki Murakami
Produced by
  • Lee Joon-dong
  • Lee Chang-dong
Starring
CinematographyHong Kyung-pyo
Edited by
  • Kim Hyeon
  • Kim Da-won
Music byMowg
Production
companies
  • Pinehouse Film
  • Now Film
  • NHK
  • Finecut
Distributed byCGV Arthouse (South Korea)[1]
Twin Co., Ltd (Japan)
Release dates
  • May 16, 2018 (2018-05-16) (Cannes)
  • May 17, 2018 (2018-05-17) (South Korea)
  • February 1, 2019 (2019-02-01) (Japan)
Running time
148 minutes
CountriesSouth Korea
Japan
LanguageKorean
Box officeUS$8.1 million[2]

Burning (Korean: 버닝; RR: Beoning) is a 2018 South Korean-Japanese psychological drama film[3][4] co-written, produced, and directed by Lee Chang-dong. The film is based on the short story "Barn Burning" from The Elephant Vanishes by Haruki Murakami, with elements inspired by William Faulkner's story of the same name.[5] It stars Yoo Ah-in, Steven Yeun, and Jeon Jong-seo. The plot depicts a young deliveryman, Jong-su (Yoo), who runs into his childhood friend, Hae-mi (Jeon). They soon meet an enigmatic young man named Ben (Yeun), whom Jong-su becomes suspicious of, and he begins to believe Hae-mi is in danger.

The first film by Lee after a hiatus of eight years, the film premiered on May 16, 2018, at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival, where it competed for the Palme d'Or; it ended up receiving the FIPRESCI International Critics' Prize at the festival. It was released the following day in South Korea and on October 26, 2018, in the United States.

The film received critical acclaim from critics,[6] with praise for its sense of unease, ambiguous narrative, and performances. It was selected as the South Korean entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the 91st Academy Awards; although it was not nominated, it became the first Korean film to make it to the final nine-film shortlist. It received numerous other accolades, and was included on several critics' "top ten" lists for the year 2018, notably those of The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and the Associated Press. It has been regarded by some critics as one of the best films of the 21st century,[7][8] and it was voted as the best Korean film of all time on Korean Screen, from a poll of over 150 critics from 28 countries.[9]

  1. ^ Noh, Jean (May 23, 2018). "Cannes jury grid hit 'Burning' scores key deals including UK, Japan and Spain". Screen International. Retrieved May 24, 2018.
  2. ^ "Beoning (2018)". The Numbers. Retrieved March 8, 2019.
  3. ^ "New Haruki Murakami Adaptation 'Burning' Is A Feverish Psychological Thriller". Adelaide Film Festival. 2018-10-09. Archived from the original on 2020-06-08. Retrieved 2020-06-08.
  4. ^ "Burning review - an explosive psychological thriller". theartsdesk.com. 2 February 2019. Retrieved 2020-06-08.
  5. ^ Brzeski, Patrick (December 10, 2018). "HKIFF Interview: South Korea's Lee Chang-dong on the Many Mysteries of 'Burning'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  6. ^ Boman, Björn (December 2020). Valsiner, Jaan (ed.). "From Oldboy to Burning: Han in South Korean films". Culture & Psychology. 26 (4). SAGE Publications: 919–932. doi:10.1177/1354067X20922146. eISSN 1461-7056. ISSN 1354-067X.
  7. ^ "100 best films of the 21st century according to critics". Stacker. Retrieved 2021-07-08.
  8. ^ "The 100 best films of the 21st century". the Guardian. 2019-09-13. Retrieved 2021-07-08.
  9. ^ "100 Greatest Korean Films Ever | koreanscreen.com". Korean Screen. Retrieved 2021-07-08.