Directed by acclaimed director Akira Kurosawa, it stars Toshirō Mifune as the bandit Tajōmaru; Takashi Shimura as a nameless woodcutter; Machiko Kyō as the Samurai's wife; Masayuki Mori as the murdered Samurai; and Minoru Chiaki as a budhist priest. Kurosawa worked in collaboration with cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa.

The film is based on two short stories by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa. "Rashōmon" provides the setting of Rashōmon Gate, while "In a Grove" provides the characters and the plot. Rashomon is the seminal film which introduced Kurosawa and subsequently Japanese cinema to the West. Rashomon is considered to be one of Akira Kurosawa's masterpieces.

The film went on to win the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival, an Academy Honorary Award at the 24th Academy Awards as well as numerous other awards.

Rashomon is a stunning film and included numerous groundbreaking devices at the time it was created. Since then it has become a timeless classic. Among the devices employed by Kurosawa includes filming directly into the sun and the use of black died rain to stand out better against the backdrop. It's use of human falability and subjectivity was also groundbreaking at the time.

Rashōmon Gate.

It begins with a heavy downpour, where three characters meet as they hide from the rain at the crumbling Rashōmon Gate. Here a priest and a woodcutter sit deep in their thoughts, contempating the strange story that had unfolded not long ago. They are joined by a third man, a commoner played by Kichijiro Ueda, who sensing something amiss questions them. The priest and the woodcutter then begin to recount a very strange tale.

“I've seen so many men getting killed like insects, but even I have never heard a story as horrible as this.Yes. So horrible. This time, I may finally lose my faith in the human soul.” - the priest.

The Woodcutter recounts his story, starting with how he went into the woods three days ago to collect some wood. This scene opens up to mysterious almost snake-charmer-like music that leads us through the winding journey of the woodcutter. This scene seems to take forever, so that the audience is pulled out into the world of the story and made to feel as if they have journeyed deep into the forest, far from civilization. The woodcutter finds first a hat and a veil, then cut rope lying on the ground, and finally the body of a murdered Samurai. He flees in a panic to tell the authorities.

The woodcutter finds the woman's veil.

Next the Buddhist priest tells the authorities how three days ago he was walking in the woods when he saw both the Samurai and his wife as they passed him.

The notorious brigand Tajōmaru who has been captured by the authorities then recounts his own version of the story, punctuated by his hysterical laughing. He claims that he saw the Samurai and the woman pass and was so enchanted by her that he decided he wanted her at all costs.

The bandit points to a cache of weapons.

He used his guile to trick the samurai to follow him off the mountain trail to look at a cache of valuable ancient swords he discovered and buried. In the grove he tricks the Samurai into stepping ahead of him and knocks the Samurai down from behind and ties the man to a tree.

The bandit fetching the Samurai's wife.

He fetched the woman who was waiting for her husband to return by saying that her husband had fallen ill. He claims that he tried to rape the woman, but though she initially tried to defend herself she submitted to his advances and was "seduced" by the bandit in full view of her husband. The woman, filled with shame, then begged the bandit to duel with her husband so that she can be saved from both men knowing her guilt and shame.

The bandit honorably set the samurai free and they duel. Tajōmaru recounts the fight as being fought fiercely, and skillfully, but in the end Tajōmaru gains the upper hand and killed the Samurai. The bandit claims that he crossed swords with the Samurai 23 times, and was impressed with the man's skill since no one had ever lasted more than 20 before then.

He then tells the magistrates how when he turned to look for the woman, she was gone, and supposed that she fled in fear. At the end of the story, the officials ask him about the expensive dagger owned by the Samurai's wife. He replies that, in the confusion, he surely forgot all about it, and says forgetting about it was the biggest mistake he had ever made before laughing hysterically.

The Samurai's wife, who was discovered hiding in a temple is then brought before the authorities to recount her story. She is a pathetic figure, bundled up on the ground and weeping as she tells her version of the story. After being raped by the bandit, the bandit fled laughing hysterically as he went while she lay sobbing beside her husband.

Her husband sat quietly beside her, still tied up, lost to his own thoughts. She begged him for forgiveness and was instead met by a cold, dissinterested stare. As the expression on her husband's face tore her apart, she cut the rope that tied him and begged for him to kill her. As the tension mounted, and she flew into an ever more hysterical fit, she fainted with the dagger in her hand and woke up to find that same blade plunged into her husband's chest. In her shame she tried to kill herself by throwing herself in a nearby lake, and eventually ended up at the temple.

The deceased samurai is then given the opportunity to recount his version of events, through the voice of a medium. This eerie scene unfolds as the spirit thrashes about in the medum's body and tells how he has been cast into a dark empty void. He claims that after Tajōmaru captured him and he was forced to watch the bandit rape his wife, Tajōmaru asked her to travel with him. She accepted then asked Tajōmaru to kill him so that she wouldn't feel the guilt of belonging to two men. The samurai says that such hateful words coming from his wife's mouth tore him apart inside and his world fell apart around him.

The samurai then recounts how Tajōmaru, was so shocked by this request that he grabbed the woman and threw her to the ground. Then the bandit gave the samurai the choice of letting the woman go or killing her. The Samurai tells officials; "I almost forgave the bandit," his actions in some way redeeming him from his earlier crim. The woman fled followed by Tajōmaru giving chase. Many hours pass and the Samurai is left in his own thoughts all alone in the grove. Finally Tajōmaru returned to free the Samurai, having given up chasing the woman. The samurai then killed himself with his own dagger. Before the spirit fades back to oblivion, the ghost then tells officials that somebody removed the dagger from his chest.

The Samurai contemplating the dagger he would use to kill himself.

Back to the present, as the three characters sit at Rashōmon Gate, the woodcutter is startled by the recounting of the Samurai's tale and claims that the dead is lying since he was clearly killed by a sword. The priest claims the dead don't lie.

The woodcutter then confesses to the commoner that his earlier version of events was a lie, since he didn't want to get too involved in the debaucle. Having actually witnessed events he reveals that Tajōmaru raped the samurai's wife and begged the weeping woman to marry him. She freed her husband and said it was not for her to decide, then returned to her incessant weeping.

The Samurai tels her that he refuses to die for a woman like her. Tajōmaru, hearing the words, loses interest in the samurai's wife and starts to leave. The wife cries even harder, and prompts her husband to demand that she stop. Tajōmaru repremands the Samurai calling it "unmanly" of him because women are weak and can't help but cry. This provokes the woman into an embittered tantrum about both her husband's reluctance to protect his wife and Tajōmaru's who's passionate affection having so suddenly changed.

She spurs the men to fight for her, and then appears to regret it as soon as they do. Both fight pitifully and Tajōmaru wins, mainly through luck. At the sight of her husband's death, the woman screams and runs from Tajōmaru. Unable to follow her, the bandit takes the samurai's sword and leaves the scene limping.

In the end we return to Rashōmon Gate. The commoner laughs at the woodcutter, claiming to know that the woodcutter stole the expensive dagger. As they stand talking they hear a noise nearby and then the three men find an abandoned infant tucked into a corner of the building. The commoner takes the baby's possessions and runs off claiming that all men are wicked. The priest says he has lost all faith in mankind. The woodcutter moves to take the baby and the priest snaps at him, thinking he too is going to steal from the child. Instead the woodcutter says he has six children at home and one more will not make any difference. The rain stopps and the woodcutter walks away from Rashōmon Gate with the child.

The priest protectingly holds the child.

So as the film ends we are left with what seems like a definitive version of events, and yet we are also left enturely unsure if we can believe any of them. Surely the truth lies in there somewhere, as a combination of all the seperate stories, but it is so tangled up that the thread is impossible to unravel. This exploration of human subjectivity was so expertly handled by Akira Kurosawa that the film, in the single word; Rashōmon conveys to all who have seen it the sense that we can never truly know anything and that everything is coloured by our own imperfect perception.

Films in general are full of Psychological cliches, so much so that they influence the world of Psychology in the strangest of ways. Hollywood picked up on the word Psychopath and turned it into the steriotype of deranged knife wielding killer behind the shower curtain or the killer businessman with plastic over his couch to stop the blood ruining it as he kills his unsuspecting collegues. Because of that Psychologists were forced to find an alternative word to avoid the stigma associated with Psychopath and instead turned to the word Sociopath (to highlight the social nature of the condition). As more and more films, books and games make use of the new term, eventually Psychologists may be forced to change even it.

Yet here Rashomon is a film so powerful, so profound, that psychologists are using its name as shortcut for the effect that subjectivity plays in our perception and recollection. The paper "The Rashomon Effect: When Ethnographers Disagree," by Karl G. Heider, published in American Anthropologist in March 1988 demonstrates the profoundity of the film in capturing something unique to film and something unique in understanding our own psyche.

Sixty years on and Rashomon I still highly watchable and enjoyable. Like all classics it seems to never get old. There simply aren't enough superlatives in the english language to do it justice. It is a must watch. Those who do will soon find themselves great fans of Kurosawa-san.

Note: Screenshots are in the public domain. (Due to a 2006 Japanese court ruling; all movies produced in Japan prior to 1953 are in the public domain.)

One evening of drinking bout, dirty and completely drunk, he is going back home. After few minutes, Louis sees that the bus does not take the right direction and point the driver asking him to bring him back home.

In the meantime,a passenger find a way to call the police.A few minutes later the bus is stopped by the cops. Louis will spend the night in police custody...

At the same time, Charles Subra, a terrible murderer that Louis arrested 25 years earlier, would be released for good behavior…

Starring:  Dirk Bogarde

Running Time:  96 minutes

Louis Farr is a man with a secret; and a successful career in law and a loving, beautiful wife give his secret a much greater weight.  Louis Farr is homosexual--a crime punishable by prison time in his home of late 1960's London.  He is a member of a faceless subculture, one of men on the fringes of society, ashamed of their feelings of love for one another.  Farr is content with denying his lustful urges for one particular young man, and reaping the benefits of good reputation.  Content, of course, until he finds that his would-be lover committed suicide in prison under the pressures of blackmail. 

A very controversial and challenging film for its time, Victim deserves a great deal of praise.  Quickly, though, I will mention one of the pitfalls of the film:  the soundtrack.  The orchestra is much too dramatic--even for a film containing such grave social commentary.

Moving on, one of many of the film's triumphs lies in its "normalcy."  There are no queens, and no overdone effeminate gesticulations--just people trying to keep themselves out of the glaring eye of public scrutiny.  Not to mention, Farr's sexuality is not rigid.  He feels what can be categorized as lust for "Boy" Barrett, the aforementioned young man; this does not mean that his love for his wife is a false one.

In fact, Mrs. Farr is aware (although not happily) of her husband's potential bisexuality.  She knew before they married, and hoped a ring of Louis Farr's finger would calm his... "tendencies."  However, once the blackmailers get too close for comfort, Mrs. Farr does not falter--preferring to remain supportive of her husband's stand:  to have the law against homosexuality challenged in court.

So, what makes this sensitive take on homosexuality so special?  The fight.  Farr sacrifices his untarnished career to bring this injustice to the foreground.  Whether or not you are interested in LGBTQ issues, this is an important film to take a look at.  It will help to shatter even today's misconceptions of the social boundaries placed on sexuality and love.

This film is researched well, it pulls no punches and holds nothing back.

It is, to the best of my knowledge accurate and unbiased. It has a depth that is lacking in many of today's historical films. I congratulate the creator of this film on a superb effort to preserve it's authenticity. If you have yet to see it, I suggest you give it a view and be sure to give me feedback.

You won't regret it and that is a promise.

I have always been a history buff, that is part of what intrigued me the most. Another thing however is that this film put human vulnerability boldly and unashamedly back into films. In an industry and world that is often times preoccupied with "for the moment", this film says Hold up, step back,relax, and Feel.

Genuine and brutally honest, and that to me is what made this film great.

The main characters in this movie are Mitchell Y. McDeere (law student), his wife Abby, Ray, his brother, (FBI agent) Wayne Tarrance, and Avery Tolar (Mitch's mentor at the Firm).

In this movie The Firm Mitch the main character (a young attorney) receives a job offer from a law firm based in Memphis. The firm seduces him by offering him a large salary and a large house, as well as paying off his student loans. Soon after he joins, his new colleagues help him study and pass his bar exam.

Wayne Tarrance confronts Mitch and he learns gradually that the firm is actually part of the white collar operations of the Morolto crime family of Chicago. Mitch is in the dilemma of cooperating with the FBI who tells Mitch that he needs to make a decision fast. His meetings with the FBI are dangerous as Mitch is continually followed and he is bugged in his home.

Mitch is encountering an ethical dilemma in which he needs to react morally in response to the FBI and work with them within the justice system. Mitch will lose his house and job if he does, but the outcome is best for everyone concerned and this utilitarianism. Disclosing hidden facts about the firm will not only help Mitch, but society itself secondary to the crime element attached to the law firm. Crimes within the firm will be solved and lives will be saved once Mitch discloses the information that he needs to the FBI agent involved.

If Mitch decides to not disclose the information then the frame work of ethics would be to serve him and not others. Mitch feels threatened with his life and if a decision was made to stay with the firm wit would only benefit him and therefore the outcome in this situation would be a grounding point for deontological framework. It would benefit him to keep his house and job and stay alive.

In the deal that Mitch makes with the FBI, Mitch gets $2 million and the release of his brother from prison if he collects enough evidence to indict the firm. The ethical framework of this deontological as he receives something in return for a good moral act he will commit to stop further crime within society as within this firm.

His wife, Abbey, follows the natural law as she wants to leave the situation completely and follow the natural laws involved with society. She believes things are either right or wrong and sticks to that thought.

As for the ethical framework of the firm, it was one of immorality concerning itself with murder and illegal money laundering under a crime family's umbrella. It's only concern is the benefit of itself and its own operations within the criminal elements of itself. Religiously, this is wrong and immoral, and contains no valuable desirable ethics.

The FBI's only real concern is the benefit of society. The danger for Mitch in this situation is real and out takes any benefits that are offered by the FBI in its outcome. Therefore, the ethical framework depicted by the FBI is of moral value, but does not ideally benefit the individual but society itself of which is a much larger group of people than just an individual such as Mitch. This ethical framework is (utilitarianism) teleological as its good is determined by the consequences of its actions. Sometimes there are decisions to be made where the benefit of the good will benefit society and the individual and, of course, society must be the priority.

When Mitch discovers the FBI has an informant within the firm, he decides to steal money from the firm for himself and Abbey. It is wrong in itself to steal and as far as moral ethics are concerned, religiously it is wrong as well. One of the Christian standards is to not steal; as its one of the commandments set forth by God, and handed to Moses and written on stone tablets.

Since there was corruption within the FBI itself in this movie, I feel the natural laws of ethics would have been the alternative to this situation regarding the Firm. I feel that suspicion of deaths and the relationship with a crime family was enough to serve the Firm with a warrant as and retrieve by investigation information to stop their criminal processes from continuing. Right is right and wrong is wrong. Being devious and underhanded and putting other people's lives in jeopardy while serving the public is immoral in itself.

White collar crime is investigated on a continuum in regard to the FBI. The FBI has the right to investigate suspected branches of crime within society. By adding an informant to an investigation only serves the FBI in its thinking while the FBUI thinks it serves society in all and all it is a teleogical standpoint. It could have been avoided as far as ethics go in this movie.

Mitch, in disclosing information about his clients such as the Morolto crime family, breaks the attorney-client privilege; but since a crime is being committed; it does not apply to a lawyer who knows a crime is being committed. Again this is unethical but moral at the same time disclosing the needed information regarding the family who practices criminal activity. It portrays an ethical formalism such as deontological ethical framework. Mitch believes it is wrong what the crime family is doing and in the same token he wants to save his life and his family's life.

With Mitch being concerned about his brother's welfare, and his wife's it then interplays with the egoism ethical system as he is concerned with the moral influences; that determine one's survival, and personal happiness. He is willing to lose the house at some point and risks his own life for his family's life. He is upset that his wife is unhappy with the situation at hand and wishes her to be happy. He truly cares about his brother and his welfare.

In this movie Mitch and his wife are secretly monitored by the firm. Surveillance equipment is within the home they own given to them by the firm. This is unethical practice by the firm and is illegal also in its standing. The experience of being secretly watched can harm people by depriving them of a sense of freedom and creating instead a sense of invasion. Considering the ethics involved here it is a break in natural law. Right is right and wrong is wrong. People need their privacy to maneuver in the world and to survive. Not asking someone's permission for information is unethical and immoral in its context.

At the end of the movie, Mitch escapes from the firm and the FBI. Criminally he has stolen 10 million dollars from the firm for his own pleasure. This breaks Christina law about stealing. Again he is only concerned about himself in this matter and it is a form of egoism. The outcome is for him and not society's good.

The basic framework of this movie is one that serves the depict stealing and the crime syndicates way of dealing with life. Immorally and without any form of righteousness that is acceptable by society the plot wanes on and continues to the end filled with conspiracy and deceit.

The FBI could have stayed honest within the bureau and held the information confidential. There was a lack of honesty on their part corresponding with Mitch and deceit was on a continuum.

I feel that legal dramas and dilemmas make for interesting entertainment because on a continuum we hope for the bad guy to get caught in the end. This is anyone's hope and the excitement of the criminal chase by detectives or by the law itself is satisfying to the public eye. Everyone wants to feel good and see a good outcome to a movie in the end. Law dramas sometimes teach us things about ourselves and most certainly the ethics involved that we hold dearly to our hearts as productive people in society.

Excited his mother, ushers him to pursue his love. Florentino writes a letter the size of a book to give to her, expressing how he feels. She eventually accepts it and is about to deny his request for her hand in marriage, when the aunt tells her, not to be a fool and accept. She does reluctantly and without her fathers permission. Her father played by John Leguizamo, whisks her away to the country, as he only just moved there and with the intention of his daughter marrying above their class. A telegraph boy was not what he had in mind. With his love taken and nothing, but his writing, Florentino begins a quest of love and passion in poetry. Eventually marrying a doctor played by Benjamin Pratt, Fermina struggles with her boyhood crush and her very attractive and rich husband. Florentino does not give up and the story lends itself to a true romantic tale.

Unfortunately, I have not read the book, but having seen the film, I am inclined to do that. The story was beautiful, the twists, the plot points, the actors, the cinematography, however, the faults were too many for me to enjoy the film. I wanted to ring Florentino's neck for crying so damn much, but I forgave that writing privilege, for the sake of it being a love story. Yet, there is not one excuse acceptable for the poorly done make up and aging done to the actors. I could see the cracks in the make up for God's sakes. The parts of the story that I'm sure were in the book, but obviously missing from the movie, would probably have made for a more believable timeline. One minute their young and acceptably aging to the next faze in life. However, when they age from middle age to senior citizen, not only does the make up get worse, but so does the believability of time. I would have liked to see more in regards to what Fermina was doing. She seems so meek and mild, but with an underlying spunk to her throughout the whole film and then by the time she meets up with Florentino again in her old, old age of 72, she is not only sure of herself, adamant about her wants and needs, but also easy to show her breasts, which she was very shy about early on. How did this character development take place? We never find out.

I certainly agree to take the extra step to go read the book first and if you can overlook the poor make up and poor transition of time, then the movie may add to the books experience. I give the movie a 6.

Legal dramas and dilemmas make for interesting entertainment because while watching the drama unfold, you are constantly “on the edge of your seat”. You try to guess what you think may happen next but you are usually wrong for one reason or another. Logic seems to be thrown out the window with these types of entertainment which makes it all the more better. Legal dramas almost always surprise its viewers because of the many twists and turns the storyline takes. One could not even begin to imagine what is taking place but at the same time, one tries to imagine every detail not only with amazement but with shear disbelief as well. As in this particular movie, the initial law suit was for $10,000,000. However, after it was all said and done, the jury awarded the Black's $150,000 for damages and $50,000,000 for punitive damages; resulting in the largest amount ever received in a law suit of this type. The irony, however, is that The Great Benefits Insurance Company quickly filed bankruptcy and the Black's never saw a dime of what was owed to them. Dot Black did not seem to mind when Rudy gave her the news. She simply smiled and said, “A little old woman from Memphis, TN. broke the biggest insurance company that was once worth millions.”

Brief summarization of movie plot: Rudy Baylor is a rookie lawyer in over his head on a high-profile case. Rudy must go up against an army of seasoned legal sharks. On his side: Deck Shifflet, a feisty “paralawyer” who specializes in flunking the bar exam. Rudy's chances of winning this case are slim to none; that is, until he uncovers a trail of corruption that might lead to the one thing that could win his case: the truth.

Rudy Baylor had to deal with a couple of ethical dilemmas within this movie. The main one is the choice he must make as an attorney; to go by the book or to throw out all he was taught just to win a case. When Rudy decided to represent the Black's in their law suit against their medical insurance company he knew from the start that the Black's had a legitimate claim and their son, Donny Ray, deserved to receive the proper medical care to help save his life. The Great Benefits Insurance Company was liable to pay for that care since Dot Black made her monthly premiums every month as outlined in the policy. Rudy's dilemma began when the insurance company made their first settlement offer of $50,000 to $75,000. He informed his clients of the offer; one he had full intention of taking if his clients agreed. However, when Donny Ray asked him on his death bed if he wanted to settle, Rudy really looked at this dying boy for the first time and knew what he should do; what was right ethically and morally. He told Donny Ray he would fight the insurance company all the way. The ethical dilemma was that Rudy almost did not defend his clients to the best of his abilities. He saw dollar signs and for a moment, was tempted to take the money for his own personal gain instead of exposing The Great Benefits Insurance Company as the biggest scamming business it truly was. Even though Donny Ray died before the case went to trial, Rudy kept his promise and in the end won extremely more than he could have ever imagined.

The other ethical dilemma that faced Rudy involved Kelly Riker. Rudy met Kelly at the hospital where she was a patient. Kelly was put there by her husband, Cliff Riker, when he beat her with an aluminum baseball bat almost killing her. The two quickly fell in love. Rudy convinced Kelly to file for divorce before Cliff finally does kill her; vowing he would protect her from Cliff's rages. Kelly later agreed when Cliff beat her again not long after she went home from the hospital. Rudy accompanied her back to her house to pack her things. While there, Cliff unexpectedly came home; aluminum baseball bat in hand. Cliff began swinging the bat resulting in hitting both Kelly and Rudy with it. Just when it looked as if Cliff was going to kill them both, Rudy managed to knock Cliff senseless. Even though Cliff was on the floor bleeding, Rudy still hit him twice in the head with the bat splattering Cliff's blood all over the wall. Kelly stopped Rudy and told him to leave and said, “You were never here.” After he left, Kelly called the police and took the blame stating that once again, Cliff tried to beat her but this time; she struck back resulting in his death. Rudy knew that he killed Cliff but before he thought things through, he did as Kelly asked. Now she was being arrested and charged with his death. Rudy talked with the prosecuting attorney and convinced him not to press charges; stating it was self defense.

Due to the ethical dilemmas that Rudy faced, in the end, he decided to take Kelly and leave Memphis, TN. He also decided that since he “crossed over that line”, being a lawyer was not something he wanted to be after all. He was forced to do things that he knew were morally wrong and since he had a conscience, he could not bring his self to ever “cross over that line” again.

Rudy could have decided to take the insurance company's first offer of $50,000 to $75,000. Since he was entitled to a third of that, and knowing he needed the money badly, it would have certainly helped him out financially. By doing so, The Great Benefits Insurance Company would have gotten away with scamming their policy holders allowing them to keep on doing just that in the future. The Great Benefits Insurance Company was expecting Rudy and his clients to take their offer. They never dreamed that a kid fresh out of law school and a little old woman from Memphis, TN. would bring their million dollar insurance scam crumbling down.

Resources:

Grisham, John (1997). The Rainmaker (1998). Paramount Pictures.

Pollock, J. M. (2004). Ethics in crime and justice: Dilemmas and decisions (4th ed.). Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth.

1. A Tale of Two Sisters

   Two young sisters return home from a mental hospital where they spent time recovering from the shock of their mother's death. However, it is soon apparent that there is something very wrong in the house - could it be that the sisters' mental health is deteriorating again? Or is there a supernatural force in the house that is beyond its inhabitants control?
   
   The two actresses that play the sisters - Im Soo-Jung and Moon Geun-young - are superb as young girls confused by the death of their mother and the appearance of a stepmother. However, it is the beauty of the cinematography and the use of colour that make this film so outstanding, particularly when combined with the horror and goriness of the story. This is a taut psychological thriller that, in my opinion, is head and shoulders above most Hollywood equivalents.

2. The Harmonium in My Memory

   A young man fresh out of Teacher Training College is sent to the middle of the countryside to teach a group of teenagers just approaching puberty. His kindness to Hong-yeon, who is bullied by her mother because she is not male, leads to her developing a crush on him. But he is in love with another teacher. Is Hong-yeon's heart destined to be broken?
   
   Do-yeon Jeon gives a remarkable performance as Hong-yeon in what was one of her first film roles and has since won awards for her acting. Byung-hun Lee is also excellent as her teacher. The cinematography is simple, yet effective - set in the countryside, watching the changing of the seasons is a real pleasure. This is a coming-of-age story, simply, yet beautifully told and should appeal to anyone who enjoys a good drama.

3. Christmas in August

   Jung-won is dying and just wants to live out his days in peace. His family is aware of his illness, although he is determined to keep it a secret from his friends. Then he meets a beautiful traffic warden, with whom he quickly falls in love. Will he share his illness with her? Or will he cut all ties with her to protect her?
   
   Suk-kyu Han gives a very understated performance as Jung-won, but this is exactly what the role calls for and so he turns the film into something truly special. The cinematography is nothing out of the ordinary - in fact, the set is quite drab, which helps to highlight the fact that Jung-won is the centrepiece of the film. This is not an overly tragic story, despite the subject matter, but is a rather noble way of dealing with death.

4. Oldboy

   Oh Dae-su is in prison, but this is no ordinary prison - he has no idea why he is there or who is responsible for his incarceration. After fifteen years, he is finally released with a wallet full of money and a mobile phone. Slowly, he begins to piece together the reasons for his imprisonment and realises that the woman he loves is in danger of dying because of his misdeeds. Can he put things right before it is too late?
   
   Min-Shik Choi is exceptional as Oh Dae-su - I found his performance so mesmerizing and convincing that I couldn't take my eyes off the screen for the entire film. The director, Chan-wook Park, has done a great job of creating clever camera angles that help develop the creepy, doom-ridden atmosphere of the film. There are also some very violent fight scenes, which may not appeal to everyone. Oldboy is one of a trilogy of psychological thrillers - the other two are called Lady Vengeance and Sympathy for Mr Vengeance, but as each film is a stand-alone story, it isn't necessary to watch them in order.

5. A Bittersweet Life

   Sun-woo works for a hotel, but is far from being a regular hotel employee - he is an enforcer and deals with any problems the hotel owner, Mr Kang, comes up against. Then Mr Kang asks him to follow his girlfriend, Hee-soo, whom he suspects of having an affair. Sun-woo does as he is asked, but soon falls in love with her and decides not to tell Mr Kang of her affair. When Mr Kang finds out, he is furious and wants revenge on Sun-woo. Will Sun-woo manage to come out alive?
   
   Byung-hun Lee gives the performance of a lifetime as Sun-woo. This is very much an action film and as such Sun-woo has little to say, yet manages to convey a whole range of feelings convincingly and naturally. Director Ji-woon Kim uses a lot of black and white and light and dark, which complements the simplicity of the story. There are no hidden twists to this film, yet it never becomes boring - partly because of the fight scenes, which, although violent, are also very balletically executed.

Sixteen Candles(1984)

Actors: Molly Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall

One of the many genius collaborations with John Hughes and Molly Ringwald, “Sixteen Candles” shows the less glamorous side to turning sixteen. As opposed to MTV's “Sweet Sixteen,” “Sixteen Candles” is the realistic and disappointing side of being a teenager.

The Breakfast Club (1985)

Actors: Emilio Estevez, Molly Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall, Ally Sheedy, Judd Nelson

Who else but John Hughes could make high school detention so interesting? A group of teenagers from different social groups are stuck in school on a Saturday for detention and end up having the time of their lives. Ridiculous antics, pranks, laughs, deep conversations, and goals are discussed on a day that should be dull and frustrating.

Cruel Intentions (1999)

Actors: Reese Witherspoon, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillipe, Selma Blair, Joshua Jackson, Tara Reid.

Dark and disturbing but every bit entertaining! Sometimes difficult to watch, “Cruel Intentions” is an amazing film that draws you in so that you cannot turn away. Kathryn and Sebastian are two stepsiblings with a strange attraction to each other. They make bets on who can sleep with certain classmates and challenge each other. When Sebastian falls in love with one of his “conquests,” Kathryn is angry and bitter. Anything can happen when two uber-rich stepsiblings become worst enemies.

Pretty in Pink (1986)

Actors: Jon Cryer, Molly Ringwald

Yes, another John Hughes pic. The King of teen movies strikes again with “Pretty in Pink” and, of course, Molly Ringwald stars. A poor teenage girl falls for the rich high-school hottie, but money divides them from really feeling comfortable around each other.

Drive Me Crazy (1999)

Actors: Melissa Joan Hart, Adrien Grenier, Stephen Collins,

It's cute, it's fun, and it's cheesy; but the movie named after a Britney Spears song is worth watching. The teenage witch herself, Melissa Joan Hart, stars alongside Entourage's Adrien Grenier, which makes for great chemistry. When the popular girl can't find a suitable date, she enlists her slob neighbor and gives him a makeover.

Charlie Bartlett (2007)

Actors: Robert Downey Jr., Anton Yelchin, Kat Dennings

Heard of it? This overlooked movie is a must- rent! When the oddball new kid becomes an underground psychiatrist for his high school peers the truth about teens is revealed. Those at the bottom become more important than those at the top: the failing rich kid is helping everyone whereas the high school principle is a depressed alcoholic hoping to win back the love students had for him when he was a teacher.

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (2005)

Actors: Alexis Bledel, America Ferrera, Amber Tamblyn, Blake Lively

The story line sounds kind of lame, but the movie is actually very touching and sweet. Four friends find a “magical” pair of jeans that fit each of their body types perfectly and decide to share them and each take them on their summer adventures. From Greece to a grocery store, the jeans are a connection between the girls who all have the greatest summer of their lives.

Mean Girls (2004)

Actors: Lindsay Lohan, Tina Fey, Rachel McAdams, Amanda Seyfried

Yes, one of the few Lindsay Lohan movies that is worth watching. “Mean Girls” is witty, clever, and hilarious. When the new girl from Africa makes friends with two social outcasts, they encourage her to make friends with the “plastics” or popular girls and sabotage them. But, before she knows it the new girl is sucked into their life of beauty and parties.

10 Things I Hate About You (1999)

Actors: Heath Ledger, Julia Stiles, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Larisa Oleynik,

Heath Ledger…need I say more? Even as a teen, Ledger picked great movies. “10 Things I Hate About You” is an teen adaptation of Shakespeare's “The Taming of the Shrew.” A dork wants to date the high school cutie, but she can only date if her older sister (a.k.a. the Shrew) dates, so the dork hunts for a man willing (and brave enough) to date her.

Juno (2007)

Actors: Ellen Page, Michael Cera, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman

A great teen comedy movie about a pregnant teenager? Yes! This hilarious movie is about a young girl in a weird family who gets pregnant and puts the baby up for adoption. Throw in a hamburger phone and a stepmother obsessed with dogs and you've got yourself a hit indie-flick!