Painted Fire is gorgeous. Even a shot of the dirty and miserable Jang flinging himself about in a bare room of wadded-up paintings turns into a thing of beauty.
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05/02/03
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Chi-hwa-seon (2002)
82
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:39
Fresh:32
Rotten:7
Average Rating:7.1/10
Theatrical Release:Feb 14, 2003 Limited
Synopsis: IM Kwon-taek's ninety-fifth film tells the story of renowned nineteenth-century painter JANG Seung-up (Choi Min-Sik), an artist whose revolutionary work - and persona - has forever changed the face... [More]
Starring: Min-sik Choi, Sung-Kee Ahn, Ho-jeong Yu, Yeo-jin Kim
Director: Kwon-Taek Im
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Reviews for Chi-hwa-seon
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12/06/05
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12/30/06
Mr. Im's own aesthetic command is evident in the movie's wealth of beautiful, perfectly framed images of nature.
10/24/02
Top CriticIf you've never seen a South Korean film, or even if you have, Chihwaseon is an ideal place to start or continue.
02/13/03
Top CriticAn undeniably robust and sporadically entertaining film.
09/23/02
Scene after scene blends masterfully with the work of Ohwon’s paint brush, and the power of images and symbols reveal not only a great artist, but also a pivotal era in Korean history.
12/08/02
It is quietly observant, with a detached eye for the telling moment, and the visual compositions are often exquisite.
06/20/03
Top CriticIm Kwon-Taek recounts the life of a 19th century Korean painter with the workmanlike precision one expects from someone who's directed nearly 100 features in 40 years.
09/26/02
The film succeeds as the rehumanizing of a near mythical figure.
02/11/03
A handsome film, filled with lavish costumes and set designs and told in a series of exquisitely composed images.
03/14/03
Top CriticThe film's sexy romanticism and its tragic sense of Korean history will thrill even those who have never set foot in an art gallery.
05/14/03
A visually alluring and thematically rich portrait of a nineteenth century Korean artist who defied categorization and was a true connoisseur of wonder.
09/29/02
There's much to fill the eyes.
02/14/03
Top CriticA fascinating, consummately crafted and ultimately moving study of a man who conforms surprisingly closely to western archetypes of the artist as rebel and hedonist.
06/03/03
This Korean drama is a credible portrait of its main character, the revered 19th-century artist Oh Mon Jang Seung-up, and it looks beautiful enough to be a work of art itself.
06/20/03
It contains many great and beautiful passages, but the overall effect is too fast and basic. As in Frida, we get more of an idea of what the artist did rather than who he or she was.
03/17/03
[Chihwaseon] rushes through the life of its subject in nimble leaps and bounds, concentrating on the livelier and more spectacular parts and avoiding the dull historical and biographical stretches.
06/06/03
Top CriticThe sturdy and goateed Choi Min-sik gives an extraordinary performance as the mercurial Ohwon whose moods fluctuate from sadness to rage, anguish, and depression.
06/25/04
Im distinguishes what might have otherwise been a standard Hollywood biopic through his use of exquisitely composed shots that could have been imagined by Jang himself.
02/14/03
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