‘Korean Cinema’s Golden Decade: The 1960s’ Spotlights Diverse Classics of World Cinema

Korean Cinema’s Golden Decade: The 1960s is an immersive retrospective that contains 24 movies during this creatively rich period in Korean film history. Running September 1-17, the series is one of the largest retrospectives of that decade (outside of Korea). The retrospective is presented by Film at Lincoln Center and Subway Cinema. Goran Topalovic, co-founder of Subway Cinema, talked about what makes Korean Cinema’s Golden Decade: The 1960s a unique retrospective.

One of the movies spotlighted in the festival include Kim Ki-young’s revered thriller The Housemaid, the story of a love triangle formed by a music teacher, his wife, and a housemaid with ulterior motives. A Woman Judge, directed by Hong Eun-won, is the second Korean movie directed by a woman. It was considered lost for over 50 years until a 16mm print was discovered in 2015.

After the September 2 screening of Aimless Bullet, audience members can listen to a discussion about the grown of the Korean film industry in the 1960s. September 3 features the international premiere of the newly restored The Marines Never Returned and a conversation about the movie takes place after the showing.

“It is in the 1960s that you reach that kind of pinnacle of the film production and sheer range and variety of films being made,” said Goran Topalovic. “At the time there was also a lot of creative energy, rebuilding after the war, and a lot of passionate filmmakers had stories to tell. That time period produced a lot of brilliant films and it’s a great opportunity for people to experience and get to know these great films. (They) are classics in world cinema, not just Korean cinema.”

Korean Cinema’s Golden Decade: The 1960s runs September 1-17. The retrosphective is co-presented by Subway Cinema in collaboration with the Korean Cultural Center New York and the Korean Film Archive.

Full interview with Topalovic is up on our Deepest Dream YouTube Channel: