Family Ties Wins Top Prize at Home

The nation’s oldest film awards ceremony, the Grand Bell Awards, gave its top prize to  low-key hybrid-family-drama Family Ties, directed by KIM Tae-yong.  The film, which has toured a number of international film festivals winning the top prize at the International Thessaloniki Film Festival in Greece, also picked up a Grand Bell Best Screenplay award.  The win was a happy surprise after many expected last summer’s
blockbuster The Host to take top honors.  The Host did however snatch up a Best Director award for BONG Joon-ho and Best Editing for KIM Sun-min. 

Actress KIM A-Jung, whose fame is spreading like wildfire across south-east Asia, picked up the Best Actress award for her lead in the cutting-comedy 200 Pounds Beauty.  The sleeper-hit also took away the Best Cinematography and Best Music awards for PARK Hyun-cheol and LEE Jae-hak respectively.  Veteran star AHN Sung-ki received a Best Actor prize for his role in Radio Star.  Tazza: The High Rollers snagged a Best Supporting actor prize for KIM Yoon-suk along with Best Costuming.  Both Best Supporting Actress (SHIM Hye-jin) and Best New Actress (JO Yi-jin) went to cast in the comedy Over the Border.

Like a Virgin newcomer RYU Deok-hwan won the Best New Actor award, while the Best New Director prize went to KWON Hyeong-jin for his debut For Horowitz. CJ Entertainment’s big-budget effects movie The Restless won Best Visual Effects. Actor JUNG Ji-hoon (a.k.a Rain) and actress KIM Tae-hee were applauded with Best Overseas Popularity awards.  Meanwhile, Cannes award-winning actress JEON Do-yeon received a special honorary award for her lead in Secret Sunshine, which will not be officially eligible for a nomination until next year. 

Nigel D’Sa (KOFIC)