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This week at the kino: Korean triple bill

Catch Bong Joon-ho‘s Palme D’Or-winning "Parasite", plus Lee Chan-ong’s "Burning" as part of EXBlicks' ongoing Korean new wave fortnight, the Arsenal's series of period Korean cinema kicks off, and more happening in the Berlin film world this week.

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Photo by Courtesy of Neon / CJ Entertainment. Catch Parasite in Berlin cinemas now!

Brace yourselves – there’s plenty to keep you busy these next few days…

Our Exblicks fortnight of Korean new wave is well under way – don’t miss the chance to see Lee Chan-ong’s Burning (with those hard to come by English subs) tonight (Oct 17) at 19:30 (with a repeat screening on Sunday, Oct 20, at 20:00). Alongside Exblicks comes Arsenal’s line-up of features focusing on a lesser known period of Korean film. The “Spring on the Korean Peninsula – Korean Cinema 1934-1962” selection share the theme of social repression that threatens women’s autonomy. It starts tonight with the oldest surviving Korean film, Ahn Jong-hwa’s 1934 revenge story Crossroads of Youth (20:00). And while you’re at Arsenal, we recommend you book some tickets for their Lynne Ramsay retrospective – our pick is Saturday (Oct 19) evening’s 20:00 screening of You Were Never Really Here, which won Best Screenplay for Ramsay and Best Actor for Joaquin Phoenix at Cannes in 2017.

Keeping on the Korean strand, the main release in kinos this week is Parasite, Bong Joon-ho‘s Palme D’Or-winning film whose post-festival buzz is not only merited but seems to have enough zip to keep it going well into awards season. Don’t miss out – it’s truly one of this year’s best. From the sublime to the ridiculous, we urge you to avoid both After The Wedding and Maleficent: Mistress Of Evil, the listless sequel to Disney’s 2014 live action spin on Sleeping Beauty

Elsewhere, the two-day Obscura Filmfest starts on Friday (Oct 18); what started as a celebration of Grindhouse cinema has morphed into a festival that offers a platform for independent genre films that would otherwise get overlooked by most German festivals. From fantasy action to exploitation via horror thrills, there’s something for everyone at Kulturbraurei – it kicks off at 19:00 with Danish horror film Finale (screening in English).

Finally, looking ahead to next week, make sure you circle Monday October 22 in your diaries: the 14th edition of Berlin’s PornFilmFestival opens with Madison Young’s Unravelled Intimacies – stay tuned for our extensive preview on Friday; and whatever you do, book your tickets for Mongay, as Kino International are doing a preview screening of Céline Sciamma’s breathtaking Portrait Of A Lady On Fire (which goes on general release on Oct 31).

Check our OV search engine for showtimes.