S. Korean western nominated for best film at Hong Kong festival

SEOUL, Jan. 22 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's spaghetti western "The Good, the Bad,
the Weird" will be competing for the top prize at Hong Kong's upcoming Asian Film
Awards (AFA), event organizers said Thursday.

Established in 2007 by the Hong Kong International Film Festival, the AFA spans
the full range of genres by Asian filmmakers. The event kicks off on March 23,
coinciding with the opening night of Hong Kong's main film festival.
"The Good, the Bad, the Weird," directed by Kim Jee-woon, has been well received
by audiences in and out of the country, debuting at the Cannes Film Festival and
drawing the largest number of viewers at home last year. The comic movie,
inspired by Italian director Sergio Leone's "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly,"
depicts a battle between three men over a supposed treasure map in 1930s'
Japanese-occupied Manchuria.
The movie has been nominated in eight categories, including best film and best
director.
Kim's film will be competing against Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki's animation
"Ponyo on the Cliff," Chinese director John Woo's historical epic "Red Cliff" and
Chen Kaige's "Forever Enthralled," which depicts the life story of the late
Chinese opera performer Mei Lanfang. The drama "Tokyo Sonata," which spans the
globe from Tokyo and the Netherlands to Hong Kong, will also be competing, as
will Indonesia's "The Rainbow Troops." Woo and Miyazaki are also competing
against Kim for best director.
South Korean actor Song Kang-ho, who won best actor at the AFA 2007, has again
been nominated in the category for his performance in "The Good, the Bad, the
Weird." He will be competing against Ha Jung-woo ("My Dear Enemy"), another
Korean actor, China's Ge You, Indonesia's Akshay Kumar, and Japan's Kenichi
Matsuyama and Masahiro Motoki.
The winners will be announced at the ceremony in Hong Kong on March 23.
hayney@yna.co.kr
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