Movie Migrations: Transnational Genre Flows and South Korean Cinema (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780813569970)

As the two billion YouTube views for "Gangnam Style" would indicate, South Korean popular culture has begun to enjoy new prominence on the global stage. Yet, as this timely new study reveals, the nation's film industry has long been a hub for transnational exchange, producing movies that put a unique spin on familiar genres, while influencing world cinema from Hollywood to Bollywood. Movie Migrations is not only an introduction to one of the world's most vibrant national cinemas, but also a provocative call to reimagine the very concepts of "national cinemas" and "film genre." Challenging traditional critical assumptions that place Hollywood at the center of genre production, Hye Seung Chung and David Scott Diffrient bring South Korean cinema to the forefront of recent and ongoing debates about globalization and transnationalism. In each chapter they track a different way that South Korean filmmakers have adapted material from foreign sources, resulting in everything from the Manchurian Western to The Host's reinvention of the Godzilla mythos. Spanning a wide range of genres, the book introduces readers to classics from the 1950s and 1960s Golden Age of South Korean cinema, while offering fresh perspectives on recent favorites like Oldboy and Thirst. Perfect not only for fans of Korean film, but for anyone curious about media in an era of globalization, Movie Migrations will give readers a new appreciation for the creative act of cross-cultural adaptation.


Author: Hye Seung Chung, David Scott Diffrient
ISBN-10: 0813569974
ISBN-13: 9780813569970
Publisher: Rutgers University Press
Language: English
Published: 07/06/2015
Pages: 306
Format: Paperback
Weight: 1.11lbs
Size: 9.07h x 6.01w x 0.78d

Review Citation(s):
Choice 01/01/2016